Last Man Standing: Songs That Directly Reference Other Songs By the Inclusion of a Performed Excerpt
At the end of Stephen Malkmus‘ long guitar jam “No More Shoes” he begins singing the chorus of the KISS disco atrocity “I Was Made for Loving You,” a direct musical reference to another song through a brief performance within the contemporary song. That’s what I’m talking about! Songs that merely mention other songs don’t count; the referenced song must be included as part of the performance, be it a direct vocal (with original lyrics) or key instrumental passage. Got it?
Beside the Malkmus reference I can immediately think of 3 other examples, 2 of which are by the same band (and 1 of those 2 is a reference to one of that band’s own songs). Collectively, you are much smarter than me, so I trust we’ll come up with at least 5 entries in this difficult challenge.
Two more exclusions:
- The referenced excerpt must be performed specifically for the newer recording; the inclusion of previous recordings, such as the early Buzzcocks records heard on the “radio” at the beginning of “I Believe,” do not count.
- References to songs within the same album on any concept album/rock opera DO NOT QUALIFY. Sorry, those of you who were planning on loading up this LMS with Who self-references from their rock operas.
As always, don’t bogart this thread: one entry per post, please.
Make me proud!
On the Otis Redding compilation Remember Me, there’s a studio version of Respect that was done like the live version & at the end, Duck Dunn plays the intro to “My Girl”
On his 1963 record “Fingertips”, Little Stevie Wonder briefly plays “Mary Had a Little Lamb” on his harmonica.
Two good musical references I hadn’t thought of!
“Young Americans” by David Bowie directly references “A Day In The Life”… “I heard the news today oh boy” is sung late in the song.
One of my favorites of this practice – and yet another I completely overlooked! (Now I’ve just thought of another Beatles-related reference in a song I expect tonyola to nail!)
I’ll jump in with a pretty obscure one that I happened to notice the other day: At the end of the Gigolo Aunts’ song, “Flippin’ Out” you can hear the guitar riff to Matthew Sweet’s “Divine Intervention.” I can think of several more.
“All You Need Is Love” ends with a bit of “She Loves You.”
A mildly obscure favorite: Game Theory’s “24” fades out with the riff that starts the climax of “Stairway To Heaven.”
THAT is one of the songs I had in mind.
“Meanwhile, I’m still thinking” from Chuck Berry’s “Little Queenie” quoted at the end of T. Rex’s “Get It On”
“Re-Make/Re-Model” has the Daytripper bass line during the spotlight dance big finish segment, to work our way through the Beatles-related entries.
Is all of “All You Need Is Love” out of play now?
the chorus of Take Me Home Tonight by the great cop rocker Eddie Money, exclaims, “Just like Ronnie(Spector) said, “Be My Little Baby””
i had the pleasure of doing stage lights for Eddie Money at the Trocadero in 1997. He did a live version of this as well. He told the crowd to, “get down like it was a James Brown concert!”
a live admission that he, himself couldn’t make you get down hard enough.
In “Looking For A Kiss” the New York Dolls directly reference The Shangri-La’s (“Give Him A Great Big Kiss”) with the opening spoken declaration: “When I say I’m In Love You Best Believe I’m In Love L.U.V.”
No, the rest is still in play. I did not specify such a rule, but I reserve the right to do so later.
Good one!
Another good one!
There was a concert review/news story recently about an Eddie Money show where Eddie supposedly didn’t sing at all and just stood next to his daughter and had her sing all his hits for him. I wonder what’s going on with Detective Money. Is there a Rock internal affairs board who can look into this?
OK, I’ll tease things out a bit more so no one can swoop in at the end, while observing the one-at-a-time rule despite the danger it poses here.
“All You Need Is Love” also, infamously, quotes “In The Mood”.
I don’t know who I want to interview more, Eddie or the cat who wrote up this story:
http://www.examiner.com/live-music-bar-scene-in-st-petersburg/eddie-money-issues-statement-regarding-not-singing-at-last-weeks-st-pete-show
Mr. Mod, were you guessing that Tonyola would be citing the “Give Peace A Chance” quote in Yes’ “All Good People”?
“All You Need Is Love” kicks off with “La Marseillese,” or whatever that French song is called. You’re burned, Magic Man! (But there’s still another Beatles song that quotes an earlier song that I originally had in mind for someone to play.)
“Broken Arrow” by Buffalo Springfield quotes their “Mr. Soul.”
tonlyola snoozes, tonoyola loses!
I can’t remember: do they use a new performance of the song or did they cut in the record itself? If the latter this selection is ineligible. If the former, how could I have forgotten this entry?
I saw Stevie Wonder do that trick — to a much lesser extent — at show in Vegas once. His daughter had a good voice and I had no problem with it, for reasons evident below.
http://hollywoodgiants.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Stevie-Wonder-and-Daughter-Aisha-Morris.jpg
Money is supposed to play a gig at The Hamilton — a new space in DC — in the next few weeks, but I don’t want to pay to investigate!
Wow — the classic rock concert beat is a tough gig.
The photos are scary, too.
glass onion (fool on the hill)
The Bonzo’s “Look at me I’m Wonderful” has a rendition of “I Left My Heart in San Francisco” at the end.
At the end of a Bare Naked Ladies song, the singer sings a bit of Happy Hour by the House Martins, slyly acknowledging that he sounds exactly like the House Martin guy
Glass Onion has that offkey Fool On The Hill bit, but that’s not enough to really count is it?
The Smithereens’ I Don’t Want To Lose You out chorus is the same as the Byrds’ Feel A Whole Lot Better out chorus
AH! I’ve got one more of these, but I just posted.
Acquiesce by Oasis — has a some of the lyric and a bit of the riff to (What’s The Story) Morning Glory? at the top. A good version of Acquiesce is on the live “Familiar to Millions.”
Cheap Trick’s version of the Move’s “California Man” includes the main “Brontosaurus” riff and also a bit of “Message From the Country”.
The Beatles song Come Together references Chuck Berry’s “You Can’t Catch Me” (here come old flattop etc). Lennon was sued for copyright infringement, and it was the settlement of this suit that led to the Rock & Roll album, because Lennon agreed to record three other songs owned by Morris Levy.
Sorry, Stan, but “I Left My Heart in San Francisco” is a standalone song off of the Bonzo’s 1967 album Gorilla. “Look At Me I’m Wonderful” is from the 1970 album Keynsham.
King Crimson’s “The Devil’s Triangle” (the Gustav Holst ripoff) has a snippet of “In the Court of the Crimson King” towards the end.
Genesis’ “The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway” song includes two lines from the Drifters’ “On Broadway”.
The Beatles’ Carry That Weight uses You Never Give Me Your Money’s verse in the middle.
And “Greensleeves” too.
It’s a new performance, sounds live and slightly off key.
John Fogerty’s “I Saw It on TV” fades out to “Who’ll Stop the Rain.”
That’s a really close call. They don’t sing the melody or the lyrics, but they do include the flute reference. However, if I allow that I’ll have to allow songs referenced in this way in stuff like Peter, Paul & Mary’s “(I Dig) Rock ‘n Roll Music” and all those Eric Burdon and the New Animals tribute songs. I don’t think you want that, do you? I say that’s not really a performance of the older song.
The Who’s “Helpless Dancer” from Quadrophenia has a bit of “The Kids Are Alright” tacked on at the end.
When you say “the same” do you mean it’s the same melody and lyrics? It can’t just be a ripped-off melody. I’m not going to accept that first Beach Boys hit song, for instance, which is basically a rewrite of a Chuck Berry song.
I’ll accept that. Shoot, it held up in a court of law! That’s still not the Beatles song I had in mind when I kicked this off, however. Man, the one I’m thinking of is up there with the Yes and Bowie songs.
That’s from the medley, which is essentially a rock opera/concept album. Disallowed!
Disqualified on two counts: 1) It’s the intro snippet from the actual record. 2) It’s from a rock opera, even though it’s a song outside the opera proper. Along the same lines the “I’m the face” reference that comes up in one of those songs is not allowed. Sorry. At least you’re back in the game with those excellent entries you listed earlier (ie, The Move, King Crimson, Genesis).
That’s a really good one! As I type you are currently Last Man Standing.
Nice!
Despite Mod thinking he trumped me, there’s still life left in the “All You Need Is Love” area that I’ll hold off on playing yet. In the mean time, Iet’s get started on his other clue:
George sings a line of “Sorrow” in the latter half of “It’s All Too Much”.
FINALLY someone nails that bad boy!
There’s still one of my original four left on the board, but sadly, although I still recall the song referenced I am suddenly blanking on the song that directly references an older song! Maybe it’s the fact that “Young Americans” just popped up on my iPod.
Here’s one I’ll play only to force alexmagic’s hand: the bassline from “Gimme Some Lovin'” that appears in the fadeout of Hendrix’s “Dolly Dagger.” LMS.
Pete Townshend plays and sings a bit of “Pure and Easy” at the end of “The Song is Over” from Who’s Next.
You’re lucky the Who never finished that intended rock opera:) You are Last Man Standing! For now, that is.
At the end of Way Down Now by World Party, they begin to do the “hoo hoo”s like in Sympathy For the Devil.
The Rutles, of course, include a snippet of their early hit “Hold My Hand” in the fadeout of their Summer of Love smash “Love Life.”
Excellent one.
The Rutles’ “Love Life” opens with “The Battle Hymn of the Republic”.
At the very end of Sugarfoot Rag by Junior Brown, he plays the opening chords of Wind Cries Mary.
The organ plays “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” during the long version of Iron Butterfly’s “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida”.
Now you’re just being silly.
‘Scuse me while I show my ignorance publicly, but I had never noticed that or known about it until today. Funny. Perhaps also an indicator of where Yes is on my radar, but that is at least one of the couple of songs I know and sort of like.
The Jam’s “In the Crowd” references the earlier “Away from the Numbers” during the long “solo” section of the song when Weller’s repeated “in the crowd” blurs into “away from the numbers.”
The guitar intro to The Replacements’ “Mr. Whirly” quotes the opening of The Beatles’ “Strawberry Fields Forever”.
At the end of Elvis Costello’s “The Only Flame in Town,” Steve Nieve begins playing Bach’s “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring” on his shiny ’80s synthesizer.
Because Mod continues to goad me: “It’s All Too Much” also quotes “The Prince of Denmark March” right around the use of Sorrow.
Nick Lowe sings a line from Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up” in his song, “All Men Are Liars”.
I think Sugarloaf plays part of The Beatles I Feel Fine in Don’t Call Us We’ll Call You.
Barry Manilow’s “Could It Be Magic” opens and closes with Chopin’s “Prelude in C Minor”.
These classical music references musicians throw into rock songs to please their moms are starting to get on my nerves. Henceforth classical music references are NOT ELIGIBLE for consideration!
“You Can’t Always Get What You Want” quoted repeatedly on the fade of “Waiting for That Day,” George Michael, “Listen Without Prejudice Vol I”
aloha
LD
It’s not enough that the song Destroyer by the Kinks mentions Lola in the lyrics, but the whole song is built around the riff from All Day and All of the Night.
“Go! Go! Go Little Queenie!” at the end of Queen’s “Now I’m Here”
aloha
LD
May we disregard any and all U2 tunes where Bono goes off and riffs any Stones or Lou or Beatles lyric that remotely fits into the melody? See: “Bad”, LiveAid performance
aloha
LD
Stap me, you’re right… Not with it tonight…
Since Tony pulled me up bang to rights earlier on the Bonzos, I’ll have another crack with their “Sofa Head”, from the BBC sessions, in which they take off “Give Peace A Chance”.
Mos def,
Godley & Creme used portions of the earlier 10cc song “Donna” in “Group Life” from the 1978 album L.
OK, time to go for one of the big ones: Clapton playing “Blue Moon” in the middle “Sunshine Of Your Love”.
Classical Music references are out so how about Broadway? Dire Straits “Tunnel of Love” begins with them playing a bit of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s “Carousel Waltz”.
Yes’ version of the Beatles’ “Every Little Thing” also includes the “Day Tripper” signature guitar lick before the first verse.
Jacqueline Taieb’s “7 heure du matin” rambles along in French for a while until she breaks into “Talking about my ge-ge-generation”. There’s another song quote at about 1:15 I can’t quite place.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guADTFlEHJE
That cod reggae song from Sting’s first solo album ends ends with him singing “every breath you take, every cake you bake…” during the fade.
And basically the entire “Crosscut Saw” solo for the “Strange Brew” solo.
aloha
LD
In “Centerfield” John Fogerty quotes Chuck Berry’s “Brown Eyed Handsome Man”: Roundin’ third and headed for home it’s a brown eyed handsome man….
At last, I can mention Orange Juice again! They reference/play the riff from The Buzzcock’s “Boredom” in the midst of “Rip It Up” (around the 2:20 mark)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESy-Z8vqMrE&ob=av2e
Please note fabulous fashion with nary a v-neck jumper to be seen. However, E. Collins’ visual similarity to Rick Astley is pretty scary.
Steve Miller’s “The Joker” borrows from The Clovers’ “Lovey Dovery” (really love your peaches, want to shake your tree) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OIuUmyNL1iE
and
Is the reference musical and not just lyrical? The lyrics need to be sung to the original song’s melody. I’m ashamed to say I can’t remember the tune of that Berry song.
Have I ever mentioned how way back when in my hormone fueled teenage years (when The Joker was popular) I thought that line was “really love your peaches, wanna taste your cream”.
I still think it’s a much better lyric…
At the beginning of Nirvana’s “Territorial Pissings”, bassist Krist Novaselic sings the chorus of “Get Together” by The Youngbloods.
Copping the Big Bopper’s “Helloooo bay-BAYYYY!” intro from “Chantilly Lace” on Van Hagar’s “Good Enough”
aloha
LD
The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band’s “I’m Bored” has a bit of the Sound of Music theme as well as Frank Sinatra’s “Strangers in the Night”.
The Beatles add a similar peaches line to Carl Perkins’ “Matchbox”. Oddly enough, it’s added prior to the guitar solo in the studio version and after the solo in the BBC live version but Ringo manages to screw up the opening line in both versions. The Mavericks did a version with Carl Perkins and Duane Eddy, and Carl sings the peaches line that the Beatles added. I also have a Big Joe Turner song from the 1940s which the Clovers might have cribbed from, but I can’t remember the title off hand.
Nirvana’s “Come As You Are” appropriates the main riff from Killing Joke’s “Eighties”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1U1Ue_5kq8&ob=av2e
Are these considered “contemporary” songs included?
“Dixie” in the Band’s intro to “Night They Drove Old Dixie Down.”
“Taps” in NYoung’s “Let’s Impeach the President”
aloha
LD
ps – I’d like to mention a “close, but no cigar” to Rush, “For the words of the profits (prophets?) were written on the studio wall”
The guitar solo in the MC5’s “American Ruse” begins with “The Battle Hymn of the Republic.”
Led Zeppelin, “The Lemon Song.”
Pick a line, any line
aloha
LD
You might even say his resemblance to Rick Astley is quite…ghastly.
(Stole that from Nick Lowe, but I always thought it was funny, so….)
Tom Waits’ “Tom Traubert’s Blues” uses the refrain from the Australian country folk song (from the 1890s), “Waltzing Matilda”, as its own, with only a minute change to the melody.
Billy Bragg’s “A New England” opens with lines from Simon and Garfunkel’s “The Leaves That Are Green”:
“I was twenty-one years when I wrote this song
I’m twenty-two now but I won’t be for long “
The Byrds’ Draft Morning fades as someone plays Taps on the guitar.
And I’m pissed that Bostonhistorian beat me to the punch with Lovey Dovey.
“You’re My Favorite Waste of Time” by Marshall Crenshaw ends w/a bit of tape winding, then goes into the into to “Girls” from his 1st album.
Hendrix did a one-handed version of “Strangers in the Night” as part of his solo when he did “Wild Thing”.
Ex-Procol Harum organist Matthew Fisher used the “A Whiter Shade of Pale” organ line in “Going For a Song” off of his 1973 Journey’s End album.
I just remembered that the Kinks song “Property” (from State of Confusion) quotes the into to “My Girl”
The Pogues song “The Band played Waltzing Matilda” quotes from the same song.
OK, cowards, I’ll take the crown into the weekend: The Nuge plays “Third Stone From The Sun” as part of his solo on the Amboy Dukes’ cover of “Baby Please Don’t Go”.
Paul Westerberg “49:00” Reused from an earlier contest (https://www.rocktownhall.com/blogs/index.php/last-man-standing-songs-featuring-radio-broadcast-sounds/#comment-67201)
Another Yes quote. They include music from “America” from West Side Story in their cover of “America” by Simon and Garfunkle. I may be mistaken but they might slip a little sister Golden Hair in there too.
In the middle of Scruffy the Cat’s “Moons of Jupiter” they switch into “I Think We’re Alone Now” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qhy6SZf_3Gk
Hey bad boy, I’ve got one I just may sit on into 2014.
Badly Drawn Boy’s “Everybody’s Stalking” includes the lyric, “Strap your hands across my engines…” Even I know that Springsteen reference.
The band practicing in Zappa’s “Joe’s Garage” breaks into “Wipeout”.
This is a rock opera/concept album but not a self-reference. Your call.
“Why Does Such a Pretty Girl Sing Such sad Songs” by Roy Wood features all kinds of direct lifts from “Surf’s Up.”
There’s a “Little Deuce Coupe” moment in the Mothers of Invention’s “Brown Shoes Don’t Make It”.
Since it doesn’t reference a theme found elsewhere on the same record, I’d say it’s acceptable.
The Pure Prairie League’s “Amie” ends with a quote of their “Falling In and Out of Love”. And I think the inverse is true as well but I haven’t heard “Falling In and Out of Love” in years.
I don’t think that counts. The entire song“Falling In and Out of Love” immediately precedes “Amie” on Busting Out, then returns as a coda after the latter song. They’re all on the same record, so they’re outside the criteria for inclusion.
The backing singers on Bryan Ferry’s “Shame Shame Shame” sing the backing parts of Marvin Gaye’s “Can I Get a Witness” during one of the verses.
At the end of the X song ‘True Love, Pt. 2’ they sing snippets of Be Bop a Lula, Skip To My Lou, Black Betty, I’ve Been Working on the Railroad, and Freddy’s Dead.
I am the last
man
standing
Thanks for the prompt, Hrrundi:
“Are you sleeping, Brother John?” snip of “Frere Jacques” in “Surf’s Up”!
aloha
LD
Patti Smith’s “Horses” includes portions of Chris Kenner’s “Land of a Thousand Dances”
How did that stay on the board so long? Good one!
I kept waiting for someone to use Patti Smith’s “Gloria” because I’m not sure if it’s a cover or something different…if it’s not a cover, then she references Them’s “Gloria”….
Yes, that would be Hello City.
He’s right Mr Mod. At 2:45 in this clip
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o371qrsqeqw
Sonic Youth end the song Mary Christ with a sloppy version of the opening riff for Kool Thing, then fades out. The next track on the album is of course Kool Thing.
They also riff on Rush’s Tom Sawyer in the song Grade 9.
Metallica! At the end of their covers of Last Caress/Green Hell there is a fade out then a fade in of a sloppy beginning of Iron Maiden’s Run To The Hills.
LMS
Not sure if this fits within the rules, but Robert Plant’s version of Hey Joe references the riffs from the Leaves’ and from Hendrix’ versions of Hey Joe.
The “la la la” part of “Crocodile Rock” is straight from Pat Boone’s “Speedy Gonzales.”
Fair enough. “Amie” seems like a discrete song since it classic rock station cull. I only remember “Falling…” due to the coda.
The Pogues’ “And The Band Played Waltzing Matilda” is actually one of the many covers of a song written in 1971 by singer-songwriter Eric Bogle (the first studio recording & release of the song was in ’74 by an Australian performer named John Curry), so he was the one doing the quoting.
The bridge of The Ramones’ “It’s Not My Place (In The 9 to 5 World)” is played to the tune of The Who’s “Whiskey Man”.
“Sounds like” and “played to” don’t count. Excerpt must BE the referenced song.
That’s a GREAT later Ramones song. The break is a pure rip off. When you reach that stature, you’re allowed to borrow anything and call it an homage.
Which is EXACTLY what they claimed it to be in interviews at the time: their “salute” to The Who.
Mod, do you mean the lyrics from the referenced song have to be sung? The instrumental part and vocal melody IS “Whiskey Man”, and deliberately so.
How about The Velvet Underground quoting the riff from Marvin Gaye’s “Hitch Hike” for “There She Goes Again”?
Here’s what I mean, Bobby: if singing is involved the lyrics AND melody must be performed more or less as in the original song. For instrumental passages that are quoted, they should be quotes of instrumental passages and not the mere appropriation of a certain “lick,” like the standard Chuck Berry intro. I will let you next suggestion, of the VU’s appropriation of “Hitch Hike,” stand because it’s so specific and blatant – and because you’re a good sport.
Thanks, I was beginning to become confused..more so than usual, even.
BUT… in that Ramones song, it’s the entire middle eight that cops the melody to “Whiskey Man”, not just “a lick”. Like so…http://youtu.be/DfE22_aAjBs
It’s a more significant portion of the song than the V.U. instrumental cop, but it’s your game…and I’m still LMS!
I dunno if they used it in every song, and it wouldn’t surprise me, but that infernal Down Under song by Men At Work has that Kookaburra song phrase featured prominently.
And also sung by Dewey Martin, I believe.
That entire album is filled with allusions like that. “Grade 9” also contains a snatch of Vince Guaraldi’s “Linus and Lucy.”
And, for that matter, Edwyn Collins lifting the same riff for the hook of “The Magic Piper of Love”?
The Kingsmen’s “Jolly Green Giant” starts with the Jolly Green Giant jingle.
GREAT B-side. Best backup vocals ever!
https://www.rocktownhall.com/blogs/media/blogs/rth/The_Jolly_Green_Giant.mp3
The Pretenders’ version of “Angel of the Morning” ends with a “baby, baby, oh baby” straight from The Carpenters’ “Superstar”.
Bravo! H. Munster is currently Last Man Standing on this fun, old thread. I get a real kick out of these instances in songs, so feel free to keep ’em coming.
I just heard this song while eating lunch today! I was hoping no one had suggested it yet so I could claim the LMS long after the thread had moved on. Damn!
Lou Reed’s version of “This Magic Moment” (which was featured here at Rock Townhall several months ago) ends with the line “And please, save the last dance for me.”
The Velvet Underground’s “Satellite of Love” quotes Little Richard’s “Slippin’ and Slidin’:
“I been told, baby, you been bold”