Songs that reference (without directly sampling) other songs or famous bits of music

HAL9000

Pink Floyd’s One of These Day’s references the Dr Who theme.

Paul Simon’s American Tune takes its melody from the hymn Oh Sacred Head Now Wounded and also resembles JS Bach’s Erkenne Mich Mein Hüter.

Brahms First Symphony references the ‘Ode to Joy’ tune from Beethoven’s Ninth and the Eroica motto from Beethoven’s Third.

Tannin

EricTheWeary said:

Bellycaster said:

The Lyrics "Echo Beach" were contained in the 1978 Ultravox Song "Hiroshima Mon Amour"

A song called Echo Beach was released in 1980 by Martha and the Muffins.

I think I’d assumed that Echo Beach was a real place but no it’s from the Ultravox song. That song is based on the 1959 film Hiroshima Mon Amour and I can’t see from Wikipedia wether Echo Beach is mentioned in that or the band’s own invention. The film also inspired the song Hiroshima Mon Amour by Alcatrazz in 1983, a young Yngwie Malmsteen doing the widdly bits. 

I read that and thought "Nahh, that doesn't sound likely. It's such an obvious place name."

On checking, it isn't exactly *a* real place name, it's seven real place names and counting. Best-known is probably the resort in Bali (Indonesia), but there is also one in Zanzibar (Tanzania), one in Victoria and one in Queensland (both Australia), and no less than three in Canada. Probably there are others but I couldn't be bothered looking harder.

bloodandtears

Journey's Raised on Radio has name checks and lyrics lifts throughout...

RandallFlagg

The Jam - Start!. More than just a little bit like The Beatles - Taxman

Lyrical references:

The Who - You Better You Bet - "...to the sound of old T-Rex and 'Who's Next'" 
John Lennon - How Do You Sleep? - "So Sergeant Pepper's took you by surprise...the only thing you done was 'Yesterday' and since you've gone you're just 'Another Day'"

Haych

Del Amitri have a song called Funny Way to Win from their Some other Sucker's Parade album.

It opens with a very Lynyrd Skynyrd riff and then a couple of seconds in there's a very Van Zandt type whistle - I never picked up on it until my guitar teacher heard it and stated quite emphatically that it had to be a nod to Skynyrd.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0c7ncvQ5OuE

rlw

A whiter shade of pale.  Somewhat Bach like I believe.

punchesjudy

https://youtu.be/B7e7bmoUgJQ?si=XV9QX6hnMkeN90Q9 

This song has a good few references throughout.

rlw

viz said:

Whiter Shade of Pale sounds like it's going to sound like bits of Bach but it isn't quite.

As with any good illusion, it wasn’t obvious how the trick worked. Only years later did I realise that it was a late-60s mashup of sorts, although – like mixing sulphuric acid with nitric acid and a dash of glycerine – it was the combination that was so innovative and explosive. Bach was in the mix – Sleepers Wake and the arrangement Air on the G String. We loved the latter from those humorous and hugely popular Hamlet cigar ads on TV. From 1966, they had famously featured the Jacques Loussier Trio’s jazzed-up version. So already Johann was cool and catchy to a young mind that could only imagine the pleasures of smoking. And if you listened to R&B and soul, Procol Harum’s singer Gary Brooker sounded very similar to Percy Sledge, whose 1966 single Warm and Tender Love (the B side of When a Man Loves a Woman) was played on Radio Caroline regularly by Johnnie Walker. It was the theme music to his lovesick listeners’ letters to boyfriends and girlfriends everywhere, delivered on his 9pm to midnight show – an essential late-night date under the blankets.

Funkfingers

Eric Carmen - All By Myself.

The verse chord sequence is a straight lift from Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto #2 in C Minor. Bloody good chords they are too!

•

I find that the melody of Highway Star by Deep Purple sits perfectly over a Hogarth-era Marillion song. (I need to check which one before posting a title.)

hollywoodrox

DiscoStu said:

Fade To Grey by Visage sounds so much like Human League's 'Being Boiled'.

Very interesting  it does sound like the chorus of FTG  the verse of FTG has a lot more fatness & melody to it. Both jolly good though 

Grumpyrocker

Lots of very obvious deliberate callbacks here to Led Zep in Gary Moore and Ozzy's Led Clones.



And possible one of the biggest musical thefts of all time. Back when WASP decided to steal wholesale from Ziggy Stardust and Pink Floyd. 

I'm not even going to mention what the following pilfers from as it's so obvious. But that start the solo- wow. I actually completely love this song, and I've actually seen a couple of bands play it live with a segue into the very obvious inspiration.

Offset

Manfred Mann's 'Joybringer' and Gustav Holst's 'Jupiter'.

Philly_Q

Grumpyrocker said:

And possible one of the biggest musical thefts of all time. Back when WASP decided to steal wholesale from Ziggy Stardust and Pink Floyd. 

I'm not even going to mention what the following pilfers from as it's so obvious. But that start the solo- wow. I actually completely love this song, and I've actually seen a couple of bands play it live with a segue into the very obvious inspiration.

I've never really been a fan of WASP but I do think, on a good day, Blackie has an amazing voice.  Especially on that song.  I even bought the album, although I can't say I ever listened to it much.