When The Beatles Sued ‘Beatlemania’
In 1977, the broadway musical, “Beatlemania,” featuring four Beatle lookalikes who performed the group’s greatest hits debuted 7 years after the band’s final studio album, Let It Be. In 1979, The Beatles’ record label filed a lawsuit against “Beatlemania” for misappropriation of right of publicity. It was estimated the show had grossed 45 million dollars. In 1986, a Superior Court judge ruled they exploited The Beatles’ popularity without their consent and awarded the record label 10 million dollars.
Spanish Language Versions of ’80s Songs By The Original Artists – Smokey Robinson, Jermaine Jackson
Here are two artists who recorded Spanish language versions of their hit songs – “Being With You” vs “Aqui Contigo” by Smokey Robinson and “Let’s Get Serious” vs “Seamos Serios” by Jermaine Jackson.
Original Versions of Popular ’60s Songs – The Rolling Stones, Blood, Sweat & Tears
Here are the original versions of popular songs from 1960s – featuring “Time Is On My Side” by The Rolling Stones vs Kai Winding (featuring Dee Dee Warwick, Dionne Warwick and Cissy Houston), and “You’ve Made Me So Very Happy” by Blood, Sweat & Tears vs Brenda Holloway.
’90s Songs and The Music They Sampled – Massive Attack, Portishead
Here are two songs from the 1990s and the songs they sampled. Massive Attack released “Teardrop” (feat. Elizabeth Fraser) in 1998 – their highest charting single in the UK. The song’s beat comes from the beginning of “Sometimes I Cry” by Les McCann from 1973. Portishead released “Glory Box” from their debut album in 1994. The song samples an edited portion of “Ike’s Rap II” by Isaac Hayes from 1971.
Original Versions of Popular ’80s Songs – Bananarama, Simply Red
Here are the original versions of popular songs from 1980s – featuring “Venus” by Bananarama vs Shocking Blue, and “If You Don’t Know Me by Now” by Simply Red vs Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes.
3 Actors Who Released Music In The ’90s – Joe Pesci, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jamie Foxx
Here are 3 actors who released music in the 1990s. Featuring “Wise Guy” by Joe Pesci, “Infatuation” by Jamie Foxx, and “How Do I Deal” by Jennifer Love Hewitt.
2 Artists Who Re-Recorded Their Songs That Became Popular – Simon & Garfunkel, James Taylor
Here are two artists who re-recorded their songs that became more popular – featuring “I Am A Rock” by Simon & Garfunkel and “Something In The Way She Moves” by James Taylor. Simon & Garfunkel released “I Am A Rock” on their second album in January 1966. Four months earlier, Paul released it in the UK on his debut solo album. James Taylor re-recorded “Something In The Way She Moves” for his Greatest Hits album in 1976 because he couldn’t secure the rights for the original recording from his debut album released eight years earlier.
Did Michael Bolton Rip Off The Isley Brothers?
Released in 1991, Michael Bolton’s “Love Is A Wonderful Thing” made it to the top 5 in the United States. Ten months later, The Isley Brothers filed a lawsuit against Bolton, his co-writer, and the record label for copyright infringement of their song from 1966. Bolton claimed that he never heard the song. In 1994, a jury ruled Bolton and company were liable and owed The Isley Brothers 66 percent of past and future royalties. Bolton’s team tried to appeal the decision but failed, and paid The Isley Brothers 5.4 million dollars.
’90s One-Hit Wonders From The U.S. Top 40
Here’s a list of songs from the 1990s by artists who have appeared in the top 40 of U.S. Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart just once. Featuring “Better Days (And the Bottom Drops Out)” by Citizen King, “Missing” by Everything But The Girl, “Your Woman” by White Town, “Freak Like Me” by Adina Howard, “Tubthumping” by Chumbawamba, “Criminal” by Fiona Apple, “Mambo No. 5 (a Little Bit of…)” by Lou Bega, “Return of the Mack” by Mark Morrison, “Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm” by Crash Test Dummies, “Groove Is in the Heart” by Deee-Lite, “Lullaby” by Shawn Mullins, “Steal My Sunshine” by Len, and “In The House Of Stone And Light” by Martin Page.
Original Versions of Popular ’60 Songs – Joe Cocker, The Byrds
Here are 2 popular songs from the 1960s and their original recordings – “Feeling Alright” by Joe Cocker vs “Feelin’ Alright?” by Traffic and “Turn! Turn! Turn!” by The Byrds vs “To Everything There Is a Season” by The Limeliters.
4 Musicians From The Sinatra Family – Frank Sinatra, Nancy Sinatra, Frank Sinatra Jr, AJ Lambert
Here are four musicians from the Sinatra family – featuring “That’s Life” by Frank Sinatra, “These Boots Are Made for Walkin'” by Nancy Sinatra (Frank’s daughter), “The Second Time Around” by Frank Sinatra Jr. (Frank’s son), and “Cleo” by AJ Lambert (Frank’s granddaughter/Nancy’s daughter).
Original Versions of Popular ’80s Songs – Huey Lewis, Kim Carnes
Here are 2 popular songs from the 1980s and their original versions – “Bette Davis Eyes” by Kim Carnes vs Jackie DeShannon and “Do You Believe in Love” by Huey Lewis and the News vs “We Both Believe In Love” by Supercharge.
5 Popular Songs By The Same Songwriters – The O’Jays, Lou Rawls, Billy Paul, Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes
Here are five popular songs that were written by the same songwriting team – Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff of Philadelphia International Records. Featuring “Love Train” by The O’Jays, “You’ll Never Find Another Love Like Mine” by Lou Rawls, “If You Don’t Know Me by Now” by Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, “T.S.O.P. (The Sound of Philadelphia)” by Mother, Father, Sister, Brother (MFSB) featuring The Three Degrees, and “Me and Mrs. Jones” by Billy Paul.
Song Lyrics That Were Changed For Radio & TV – Tom Petty, Radiohead
Here are 2 songs whose lyrics were changed or edited because they were considered too hot for radio or television in the United States – “You Don’t Know How It Feels” by Tom Petty and “Creep” by Radiohead.
Foreign Language Versions of ’80s Songs – Peter Gabriel, The Police
Here are two artists who recorded foreign language versions of their hit songs – “Shock The Monkey” vs “Schock den Affen” (German) by Peter Gabriel and “De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da” vs “De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da” (Spanish and Japanese) by The Police.
Live vs Studio – Which Version Do You Prefer? – Feat. Paul McCartney, Peter Frampton
Here are the studio versions of popular live songs. Featuring “Maybe I’m Amazed” by Wings with Paul McCartney and “Do You Feel Like We Do” by Peter Frampton.
Original Versions of Popular ’70 Songs – Edwin Starr, Gladys Knight and The Pips
Here are 2 popular songs from the 1970s and their original versions – “War” by Edwin Starr vs The Temptations and “Midnight Train to Georgia” by Gladys Knight and The Pips vs “Midnight Plane to Houston” by Jim Weatherly.
Did Coldplay Plagiarize Another Musician’s Song?
In May 2008, “Viva La Vida” was released by Coldplay. Seven months later, Joe Satriani filed a lawsuit against Coldplay for using “substantial original portions” of his song “If I Could Fly” released in 2004. Coldplay said any similarities are entirely coincidental. In 2009, the case was dismissed upon stipulation, suggesting that an out-of-court settlement may have been reached.
Photo Credits:
Joe Satriani – Southend Cliffs Pavillion – 04-24-2018 #1 – by Steve Knight – Licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Joe Satriani – Southend Cliffs Pavillion – 04-24-2018 #2 – by Steve Knight – Licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Video Credits:
Joe Satriani – Friends, Time, If I Could Fly – Sept 28th 2015, Oosterpoort Groningen – by nvdkamp
Song Lyrics That Were Changed For Radio & TV – James Blunt, Sean Kingston
Here are 2 songs whose lyrics were changed or edited because they were considered too hot for radio or television – “You’re Beautiful” by James Blunt and “Beautiful Girls” by Sean Kingston.
3 Actors Who Released Music In The 2010s – Seth MacFarlane, Jeremy Renner, Rita Wilson
Here are 3 actors who released music in the 2010s. Featuring “The Night They Invented Champagne” by Seth MacFarlane, “Main Attraction” by Jeremy Renner, and “Big City Small Town Girl” by Rita Wilson.
Most Covered Pop Song Ever – “Yesterday” by The Beatles, Paul McCartney
This is the most covered pop song in music history – “Yesterday” written by Paul McCartney (credited to Lennon-McCartney) and originally performed and released by The Beatles in 1965. “Yesterday” has been covered over 1000 times including Marvin Gaye, Ray Charles, Plácido Domingo, Bob Dylan & George Harrison, Elvis Presley, Lou Rawls, Michael Bolton, and Paul McCartney.