songs that sound like other songs

;-)

Badfinger "Without You" (1970)
America "Sister Golden Hair" (1975)

just the melody of the first line of each verse

I believe it's intentional, but: T.I. - 'What You Know' and Roberta Flack - 'Gone Away'

I had to post it somewhere because it nags at me every time I hear the latter.

Kenny Loggins "Footloose" (1984)

rips off

Big Star "O My Soul"(1973) - opening
James Gang "Funk #49" (1970) - pretty much everything else

the Flack interpolation is credited on the T.I. track

The vibe/feel of Eric Clapton's "Bad Influence" is, I think, an homage to Stevie Wonder's "Isn't She Lovely."

Heard ISL in Harris Teeter the other day - especially the joyful, long outro harmonica solo.

It occurred to me that Greg Phillinganes's intro synth solo on BI (done, I think, with a mod wheel) is an attempt to sound like Stevie without actually being Stevie.

Ooh baby, do you know what that’s worth?
Whoah oh, living on a prayer
Take my hand, well make it I swear
Ooh heaven is a place on earth

^^ You know that mash-up actually exists right?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAI30MC36hk

(see 3.45)

Oh wow! Thanks LBI

I think that’s a different BJ song but yeah

Ha you're right, it is a diff BJ song!

You give ILM a bad name.

Andrew WK - "I Love NYC" (specifically the instrumental anthem-y part pre-verse and post-chorus)
trad. - "Wind The Bobbin Up"

Swae Lee and Post Malone's "Sunflower" is basically "Paper Planes," right?

That song in the Spider-Verse movie? Yeah, I thought the same thing

The first section of this is quite a bit like Mouthbreather by Jesus Lizard.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJnGl51lR4k

Air drumming (cymablling?) to the opening of 50-Million Year Trip only for it to turn into She Bangs the Drums is a bit of a downer.

It sounded inspired by "Paper Planes" for sure, I didn't realize at first it was Swae Lee and was struck by how beautiful his voice is (as I always am when he sings)

it's either inspired by Paper Planes or that Imagine Dragons "Thunder" song we're hating on in the other thread

otm about his singing though

Quincy Jones admitted a while back that Billie Jean was a rip-off of I Can't Go For That (No Can Do).

And of course Sussudio is a lift of 1999 by Prince.

First time I heard Madonna's "Material Girl" I thought its verses sounded like the chorus of Melissa Manchester's "You Should Hear How She Talks About You," and now this is mentioned in the "Material Girl" wikipedia page.

Also remember the "Sussudio" thing being obvious from first listen.

Gil Scott-Heron - "Guerilla" (1975)
LCD Soundsystem - "Yr City's A Sucker" (2005)

Weezer - Surf Wax America = The Cure - Caterpillar

Miranda Lambert "Kerosene"
The Godfathers "Birth School Work Death"

The Who - 'I Can't Reach You'
The Jam - 'Smithers-Jones'

Major bits of Styx "Come Sail Away" = The Who "Baba O'Riley"

They don’t really sound similar at all but Sharon Van Etten’s Seventeen reminds me of Modest Mouse’s trailer trash chorus. Everytime I start to hum the chorus it ends up becoming the modest mouse song:

Downtown harks back
I used to be on this street
I used to be seventeen
And it's been a long time
Which agrees with this watch of mine
And I know that I miss you
And I'm sorry if I dissed you

Drinking & Driving by the Business sounds like Little Brown Jug.

Every time I think of the verses of innoculated city by the clash, the verses from material girl by Madonna pop into my head ...anyone else notice this?

A couple years ago I heard never knew love like this before by Stephanie mills, I thought it was borderline by Madonna for a minute...I looked it up and the same guy wrote bob songs...it was odd because I never noticed it for decades but then again I hadn’t heard the mills song in decades....

I’m sure this has been mentioned several times but the drums on takin care of business by BRO, esp during the break, are the exact same as dance to the music by sly and the family stone....and then rocks by primal scream used that exact beat for Rocks....

Anyone else think black leather by the pistols is the same as down on the street by the stooges? Although to be fair, that’s such a basic simple riff that it’s hard to say anyone “copied” it....

Here is something that I’ve thought since high school ....there is a small part in the rover by Zep, right after the opening riff and for one instant it sounds like journey took a couple seconds of that and built the riff to loving touching squeezing and built the song from there...anyone else know what I’m referring to?

Tomorrow she goes away from one of the ramones last albums borrows the melody from I turned into a Martian by the misfits....

Back in 2002 someone posted that heaven is a place on earth cribs you give love a bad name...I always thought bad medicine by Bon Jovi rips you give love a bad name....

How about day after day by badfinger and breaking us in two by joe Jackson? Joe completely lifted the badfinger song...Both are great ballads though....

Ok how about this: Paul Stanley always says he wrote hard luck woman to be like a rod Stewart song...but it IS a rod song! It’s you wear it well, esp that ascending chord pattern...both great tunes....

This is really minor but I always thought that the line what’s my name in I turned into a Martian by the misfits is a bit of a call out to the clash’s what’s my name...not a rip but a tip of the hat....

loving these contributions.. "Punisher" if that is your real name.

I'd like to hear sund4r weigh in on them

Nah just a nom de guerre....I’m an obsessive music fan who has no one to discuss this stuff in real time....I can’t believe this Board has been around since 2002....

Ok here is one that has always got me....high on you by survivor is the exact same melody as who loves you by Frankie valli...

Speaking of which, swearing to God by valli is a total rip of shaft theme....

Ok there are two songs on the superfly soundtrack that Tito ripped off: I can’t remember the songs but one of them Toto lifted for Rosanna and the other they lifted the percussive intro for Africa....I’d have to go back and check....

Thunder island by jay Ferguson and start me up by the stones...love removal machine by the cult is pretty close to start me up but to be fair, when you are talking about roffis based on chords and especially with suspended fourths, it’s hard to say anyone really steals them...

Play that funky music always reminds me of fire by the Ohio players but they both remind me of thank you by sly and the family stone...this might be more a case of a simple catchy riff that gets passed down the line

is this the only ilm thread you are posting on?
there are so many more!

Lotsa people notice the bass line for another one bites the dust is the same as good Times by chic....but I’m positive Nile Rodgers must have nicked it from who’s making love to your old lady by Johnny Taylor ....that song is more loose and soulful but I think chic tightened it up and then queen basically made it the centerpiece of the song.....

Runaround Sue by dion is a complete lift of quarter to three by Gary US bonds right down to the intro...I usually five pre Brit invasion stuff a pass because there were about five basic chord patterns that all songs used and I think the concept of oroginality and song writing was totally diffent back then ....it was more like hey play the doo wop profession or the one four five and let’s see what we come up with ....but runaround sue is really too blatant to ignore at least to me ....