Songs by bands you always thought did it originally but then found... didn't

I didn't know until recently that Soft Cell's Tainted love was a cover, but I was really surprised to learn that Cyndi Lauper's Girls just Wanna Have Fun is also a cover.

Blinded by the light, I always thought the original was by manfred manns earth band, i was surprised when I found out it was in fact a springsteen song.
Weirdly, i discussed this recently with my mother, she was only aware of the springsteen version.
That surprised me, especially considering that we’re british, i could understand an American not being aware of a British band covering a song.

@nickc - was going to post the same about Tainted Love.
@martymac - I only found that out a few years ago.

I never realised that Venga Boyz going to ibiza was a cover. I thought they wrote all their own stuff.

Remember Terry Jacks?

Course not, but reckon most people would recognise Seasons in the Sun, massive one-hit wonder from the 70s. A nursery-rhyme arrangement of the Jacques Brel song Le Moribond.

The Green Manalishi – I always thought it was an original by Judas Priest but of course, it was originally recorded by Fleetwood Mac.

I think the classic one has to be Valerie by Amy Whitehouse though – it's commonly assumed she was the original artist (although with that particular one I always knew it was by The Zutons as I bought the album when it first came out).

Remember when the Fugees covered Roberta Flack? They didn't, they covered Lori Lieberman

And, and this is a great fact, Lori Lieberman wrote it about Don McLean

Tide is high -  not originally by Blondie
'One step beyond' and 'Madness' -  not originally by Madness
A message to you Rudi - not originally by the Specials
Dancing in the moonlight - not originally by Top Loader

There's loads - https://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/covers-that-are-more-well-known-than-the-original/

I love Rock 'n' Roll by Britney Spears

Joan Jett & the Blackhearts

Arrows

Step on. Yes I know! Call the cops!

Rockin all over the world was originally by John Fogerty of Creedence Clearwater Revival.

Motorhead by Motorhead* was originally released by Hawkwind. Ian 'Lemmy' Kilmister was the bassist at the time and wrote the song. The vocals were meant to be done by the lead vocalist (Dave Brock I think) but they decided his voice wasn't raw enough so they got Lemmy to record them.

*Lemmy wanted to call the band Bastard. Thankfully his manager convinced him otherwise LOL!

The Green Manalishi – I always thought it was an original by Judas Priest but of course, it was originally recorded by Fleetwood Mac.

Oof.

‘One step beyond’ – not originally by Madness

Prince Buster and Allstars. B Side to "Al Capone". A big hit at my sister's 18th birthday party!

There’s loads –

The Op was meant to be more about ones you'd always thought were by some artist, and only found out by chance much later that they weren't, not so much a list of covers that are more popular than the originals.

But these things seem to find their own way. 😊

Oh and by the way, Pink Fairies are one of the few bands whose gig I walked out of. Absolute trash.

I didn’t know until recently that Soft Cell’s Tainted love was a cover, but I was really surprised to learn that Cyndi Lauper’s Girls just Wanna Have Fun is also a cover.

I knew about Tainted Love when it was first released.
I found out about Girls Just Wanna Have Fun when I read this thread.

This is one that I have known since I was 14 when I bought an Otis Redding greatest hits album well before the black crowes covered it, but it seems to surprise most when the original pops up on my playlist.

Turns out Kula Shaker didn't write Hush

I was astonished to learn that Jeff Buckley wrote the original.

I was astonished to learn that Jeff Buckley wrote the original

You might just catch a fish or two with that one.

Motorhead by Motorhead* was originally released by Hawkwind

It was the B-side of 'Silver Machine'

Ransos - you were joking, right? However, I suspect that Leonard Cohen was laughing all the way to the bank! BTW, the first (of many) versions of Hallelujah was done by Bob Dylan.

Dead Flowers by Townes Van Zandt (made popular by appearing on The Big Lebowski soundtrack) - written by The Rolling Stones. Never heard their version, and not fussed about changing that.

It was a few years before I realised that José Gonzalez didn't write "Heartbeats"

It was originally written and sung by The Knife. Now I prefer this version.

80s Pop

From the 60s

This is a great thread.

Respect by Aretha Franklin was actually by Otis Redding.

It was the B-side of ‘Silver Machine

yup, yes it was. Silver Machine (as most of Hawkwind’s output) was rubbish. Motörhead and Lemmy made a good choice to move on from that stuff.

In my youthful stupidity I though "Suspicious Minds" was a cracking original tune by Fine Young Cannibals 🙂

Likewise, assumed the Neil Young classic "Like a hurricane" was an original by The Mission.

Also presumed the cover of Jefferson Airplane's "Someone to Love" was a brilliant song by Irish band "In Tua Nua"

LOADs of others, but those three are standouts given the profile of the original artists.

They're sure to be loads of other songs out there I like that I've yet to realise are covers, have been a few revelation on this thread already (Including "Tainted Love", not that I was a big Soft Cell fan).

I somehow always feel a bit cheated\betrayed when I realise that a song I really like by a band is in fact a cover, also a bit similar when you realise that the score \ lyrics weren't written by the band, even if they're the first to record it.

^Awesome track, but this was released earlier...

Still no cigar:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5W2se8MMqwo

Silver Machine (as most of Hawkwind’s output) was rubbish. Motörhead and Lemmy made a good choice to move on from that stuff.

If it pleases you to think that, then knock yourself out, but it wasn’t/isn’t. Two completely different styles of music.

Having seen both Hawkwind and Motörhead, my opinion is at least as valid as yours, especially considering Hawkwind had Ginger Baker in their lineup at one point, and played metal, Prog, psych, as well as being considered a proto-Punk band.

Interesting fact, Hawkwind’s first album was produced by Pretty Things guitarist Dick Taylor. And don’t forget, Lemmy didn’t ‘leave the band’, he was kicked out after being busted in America for possession after border police found amphetamine powder and mistakenly thought it was cocaine, chucking him in jail and forcing them to miss several gigs; pissed at him because of his erratic behaviour they booted him out. He was replaced by former Pink Fairies guitarist Paul Rudolf, and Lemmy formed Motörhead with Larry Wallis, another former guitarist from Pink Fairies, plus Motörhead was the name of the last song Lemmy wrote for Hawkwind.

There’s an enormous amount of DNA shared between the three bands, so claiming one was better than the others is ignoring the fact that each of them could be just as crap as each other at any given moment.

This one should be particularly well known, Nilsson’s hit ‘Without You’ was originally by Badfinger, but it was never released as a single. Nilsson’s version is the better version anyway, he had a better voice and could hit higher notes than Pete Ham and Tom Evans could.

Sadly, nobody made any money from it and Ham and Evans both killed themselves because of legal difficulties and issues over royalties.

I think I'll get grief for this but I thought that Johnny Cash did Hurt first.

I'd always assumed that Everything But The Girl penned "I don't want to talk about it" as Rod Stewart does a lot of covers but his cover from 1977 predates the EBTG version by 12 years and the song was written and originally recorded by Danny Whitten of Crazy Horse in 1971
Rod re recorded it in '89 and that version got a lot of airplay at the time

Also presumed the cover of Jefferson Airplane’s “Someone to Love” was a brilliant song by Irish band “In Tua Nua”

I grew up convinced it was by Agent Orange 😊

I think I’ll get grief for this but I thought that Johnny Cash did Hurt first.

That song really became his (in many peoples opinions) so no grief there.
I hadn't heard it as a NIN song either for ages after I first heard that version.

I thought Bucks Fizz* did the original Lion Sleeps Tonight in the early 80s, then I thought it was the Tokens, then I thought it was the Weavers, but of course it was Solomon Linda's Mbube that was really the first version.
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*And it wasn't even them, it was Tight Fit.
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Don't get me started on Rama lama ding dong.

I think I’ll get grief for this but I thought that Johnny Cash did Hurt first.

Been a big NIN fan since the early 90's so i knew Trent Reznor sung it first but i actually prefer the Johhny Cash version

With Tainted love i only knew the Marc Almond version till i heard the original by Golria Jones 20 years later, my fave version is by Marilyn Manson though

Never knew the following were covers until later in life

I love rock n roll by Joan Jett

First cut is the deepest, i knew the Rod Stewart verion first, then Sheryl Crow, finally found out it was orignally by Cat Stevens

This can be done with films also

Never knew Gone in 60 seconds (Nicholas Cage) was a remake of the original from 1974 (which i really like)

I am legend (Will Smith) was first released as a book in 1954, then released as a film called the last man on earth in 1964, released as the Omega Man in 1971 (featuring Charlton Heston as the lead) then as the Will Smith version in 2007 along with a direct to video version the same year called I am Omega

When I was a kid I thought Cash did his own songs. Turns out Boy Named Sue, Sunday Morning Coming Down, Desperados Waiting for a Train...all covers.
Talking of Townes Van Zandt....Cash never covered any of his tunes as far as I know but he did a cover of a song that was a direct rip off of a Townes song. Would you lay with me by David Allen Coe was a rip off of If I needed you.

plus Motörhead was the name of the last song Lemmy wrote for Hawkwind.

err yes, I know that - it was my posting that in the first place that kicked off this line of discussion.

And I still think Hawkwind are rubbish with Motörhead far superior.

Until recently I always thought that the Poppies wrote Beaver Patrol, turns out it was the Wilde Knights.

As mentioned above, TIffany's hit song "I think we're alone now" was a cover of Tommy James and the Shondells - Billy Idol's "Mony Mony" was also by Tommy James and the Shondells

When I first got in to rock I loved Thin Lizzy’s Rosalie. Didn’t know until years later that it was a Bob Segar song.

But I knew the Black Crowes version of Hard To Handle was a cover, my Dad was a huge soul fan, so I’d heard it growing up. I remember arguing with friends about the Crowes version being a cover, which they wouldn’t believe, even after taking an Otis Redding album and playing it for them. They tried to argue that Otis had covered it, despite being dead for at least 20 years.

EDIT: I just remembered I submitted a Rock Block to Planet Rock Radio with a theme of cover versions. Everything from Cream and Hendrix all the way up to NiN version of Cars by Gary Numan.

Love a good covers thread. This will be my playlist for this morning. keep it up.

When I was a kid I thought Cash did his own songs. Turns out Boy Named Sue, Sunday Morning Coming Down, Desperados Waiting for a Train…all covers.

Oh yeah, that reminds me, I thought until a few years back that depeche mode did a great cover of Cash's "Personal Jesus" 🙂

I thought "Hurt" was a Cash original.  Its so perfect for him at that point in his life.  I only discovered later it was a cover

Turns out Kula Shaker didn’t write Hush

I knew that, it has however come as quite a surprise that it wasn't deep purple.

It was a few years before I realised that José Gonzalez didn’t write “Heartbeats”

I think I vaguely know both of those but I didn't realise they were the same song!

I always loved this song that the Clash definitely wrote and performed... 🤔

The Clash

The Crickets

I loved this one too that they obviously wrote and performed...
It's ok though as I love both versions 😊

The Clash
https://youtu.be/N3A8uNG3GH4

Junior Murvin
https://youtu.be/XlP3J3J3Upw

I thought for a very long time that Elvis Costello wrote 'She'.

i heard this by an artist i like (Landon Tewers) and fell in love with it.

A few weeks later my daughter heard it whilst i had it on and said she recognised the lyrics. I protested somewhat, thinking my man Landon had written a banger. Turns out it was written... or at least sung by....

Still a great song, with lots of feels, but i prefer the Landon Tewers version.

Of course 'It Ain't What You Do, It's The Way That You Do it' was by Bananarama & Fun Boy Three

but originally recorded by Jimmy Lunceford as 'Tain't What You Do' (vocals around 0:58)

Ella Fitzgerald also did a version

https://youtu.be/X8fCXNTCWig

Following on from that Bananarama colab, there's this:

Written and performed originally by:

@kayak23 I came here to post "I fought the law" after being surprised that it wasn't a Clash original. However, it turns out that the version I thought was the original is itself a cover!

Althea & Donna’s Uptown Top Ranking took me a few years to realise its was a version of Trinity’s Three Piece Suit.

Blinded by the light, I always thought the original was by manfred manns earth band, i was surprised when I found out it was in fact a springsteen song.

Their hilarious mispronunciation of the word 'deuce' is a bit of a giveaway.

Nirvana. Killing Joke basslines and disco drums.

Faith No More. Killing Joke keyboards.

Milli Vanilli. Actually, they were pretty good.

I'm surprised no-one's mentioned this already, but...

...pretty much everything Led Zepplin sung! 🙂

Led Astray

A collection of the source material, well worth listening to.
When The Levee Breaks is my favourite song on IV; it's my favourite on this album too but for very different reasons. You can hear the resignation and worry in the vocal - losing the very little you do own to a flood was clearly a very real prospect.

PimpmasterJazz
Free Member
Nirvana. Killing Joke basslines and disco drums.

Faith No More. Killing Joke keyboards.

I think you are missing (as in a different continent) the point of the thread. Hop on back and start from the beginning.

It’s my life - No Doubt.
No doubt about it, a great version, but . . .
It’s my life - Talk Talk is betterer.

This is one that I have known since I was 14 when I bought an Otis Redding greatest hits album well before the black crowes covered it, but it seems to surprise most when the original pops up on my playlist.

My dad bought me Otis Redding - The Definitive Collection when I was 16 and au got The Black Crowes version a few months after. I love both versions - but prefer the original. Otis has been my favourite singer all my adult life and I don’t see that changing! One of my sons has the middle name ‘Otis’.

Otis wasn’t averse to covers himself - he are two of Sam Cooke’s that he did.

I believe the latter was written as Sam heard Bob Dylans protest song ‘The Times They Are A-changin.’ Both are hugely meaningful to me. Essential parts of my education in Civil Rights.

It’s my life – No Doubt.
No doubt about it, a great version, but . . .
It’s my life – Talk Talk is betterer.

An amazing song - one of Talk Talks best!

Turns out Kula Shaker didn’t write Hush

I knew that, it has however come as quite a surprise that it wasn’t deep purple.

Luckily, due to my dads music collection - I knew it was written by Joe South originally.

I didn’t realise that ‘I Fought The Law’ was by the Crickets originally!

Re:

Young at Heart written and performed originally by Bananarama

I think one of the Bluebells co wrote it

Bit odd seeing the Crickets & Bobby Fuller 4 singing about fighting the law whilst dressed in suits & tie! What were their crimes, tax evasion, parking in a no stopping zone?

Being a teenager in the early 90s, I thought "Molly's Lips" was a Nirvana original.

I only found out earlier this year it's a cover of a song by The Vaselines:

[url]

...AND it's actually a song about Molly Weir, the actress who played Holly McWitch in Rentaghost, whose character always had very red lipstick.

Which is how I now have stored away in my head a "did you know Nirvana have a song about Rentaghost" fact, which is bound to remain buried for several years.

Being a teenager in the early 90s, I thought “Molly’s Lips” was a Nirvana original.

I only found out earlier this year it’s a cover of a song by The Vaselines

as was "Jesus wants me for a sunbeam"

Actually a hot chocolate song.

Ace song, but penned by elvis costello.

On the subject of Motörhead, I think Dave edmunds had a hand in the production of their first album.

And Patti Smiths ‘because the night’ was a Bruce Springsteen song.

And Patti Smiths ‘because the night’ was a Bruce Springsteen song.

Once you know that it's difficult to not hear it as a Springsteen song, same as Guided By The Light.

This one should be particularly well known, Nilsson’s hit ‘Without You’ was originally by Badfinger, but it was never released as a single. Nilsson’s version is the better version anyway, he had a better voice and could hit higher notes than Pete Ham and Tom Evans could.

Sadly, nobody made any money from it and Ham and Evans both killed themselves because of legal difficulties and issues over royalties.

I bought my second guitar from Pete Ham's brother. (As did many other guitarists around here. 😀 )

Being a teenager in the early 90s, I thought “Molly’s Lips” was a Nirvana original.

I only found out earlier this year it’s a cover of a song by The Vaselines:

…AND it’s actually a song about Molly Weir, the actress who played Holly McWitch in Rentaghost, whose character always had very red lipstick.

Which is how I now have stored away in my head a “did you know Nirvana have a song about Rentaghost” fact, which is bound to remain buried for several years.

And in a nice link back to another band featured on this thread, Mary Weir appeared in Young At Heart by The Bluebells.

I'm Moving On by the Stones was originally a C & W hit by Hank Snow in 1950

Reggae classic Red Red Wine was by Neill Diamond in 1967

Natalie! How could you?!

Ednaswap

Pushing the brief a little bit but I only very recently realised this evolutionary line...

Pop Muzik by Robin Scott M, 1979
I Want a New Drug, Huey Lewis, Jan 1984
Ghostbusters by, Ray Parker Jr., June 1984

Interesting progression there!

If we're going a bit off piste, I thought Fight test was written by the Flaming lips

But it turns out it was mostly written by Yusuf Islam / Cat Stevens (Well according to the court anyway)

I know it's a cover, but just had to share it. Amanda Brown doing Gasoline with Brass Against (sorry can't post a link, bit thick).Worth googling tho'.

@jonnyboi not letting you away with that, Deep Purple recorded it first!

(but good trolling)

Natalie! How could you?!

I'd known that it was a cover for years ... but I didn't know that was the original. Pretty good.

Just catching up with some more, they didn't write it but Deep Purple were the first to perform it.

The "Nirvana" tracks mentioned were all on either Incesticide or Unplugged which were B sides and covers galore. Both brilliant albums.

yup, yes it was. Silver Machine (as most of Hawkwind’s output) was rubbish. Motörhead and Lemmy made a good choice to move on from that stuff.

Lemmy may have made better music subjectively but he appreciated a lot of stuff most Motörhead fans would turn their noses up at. ABBA for a start.

I think this counts ...

Reference the 'Hurt' discussion on page 1:

I like the Johnny Cash's version, but for me it lacks the raw-ness of the NIN original, and it fits so well at the end of The Downward Spiral.

With that being said, there's a live version with Bowie and Reznor which is my absolute favourite version of the song - utterly mesmerising.

David Bowie Nine Inch Nails Hurt (excellent quality) - YouTube

For 52 years I thought this was the original:

Then I watched this in 2022:
https://www.nme.com/reviews/film-reviews/summer-of-soul-review-questlove-2986808

Where Nina Simone performed it for the first time live. After writing it...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hdVFiANBTk