Top 10 One Hit Wonders You Didn't Know Were Rip-Offs
#10: The Verve
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“Bitter Sweet Symphony” (1997) This crossover smash single by England’s The Verve hinges upon one very noticeable sample within its arrangement. A sample that wasn’t cleared with enough parties beforehand, and resulted in a major copyright lawsuit that destroyed band morale. The song in question was “Bitter Sweet Symphony,” and it sampled The Rolling Stones. BUT, there’s a catch. The sampled material is actually taken from a cover version of the Stones’ song “The Last Time,” performed by The Andrew Oldham Orchestra. This otherwise arcane point of reference is probably lost on listeners and fans of The Verve, but it most certainly was NOT lost on former Stones manager Allen Klein, who was successful in his litigation.
#9: 2 Live Crew
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“Pretty Woman” (1989) 2 Live Crew may be best known for their late eighties hit, “Me So Horny,” but there was another song whose rip-off status may be lesser known to fans. In fact, the song was so controversial, that a case surrounding it went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. The case Campbell v. Acuff-Rose Music, Inc. references the 2 Live Crew track “Pretty Woman,” which was a parodic rip-off/re-telling of the Roy Orbison classic, “Oh, Pretty Woman.” 2 Live Crew were turned down by Acuff-Rose Music during their initial clearing phase for permission, but recorded and released the song anyway. The resulting legal victory for 2 Live Crew helped further cement parody as a viable form of artistic expression.
#8: De La Soul
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“Transmitting Live from Mars” (1989) The legitimacy of sampling within hip-hop music endured an uphill battle as the genre gained popularity in the eighties and nineties. As a result, not every artist appreciated having their music used without their authorization and attempted to sue for royalties or songwriting credits. De La Soul sampled “You Showed Me” by The Turtles for their song, “Transmitting Live from Mars.” The classic rock group sued for damages, and the case was settled out of court. The question remains, however: should De La Soul be labeled as rip-offs for stealing The Turtles’ music without permission, or does the reuse of that music then constitute a new form of art unto itself? It’s a valid discussion that rages to this day.
#7: Men at Work
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“Down Under” (1980) The moral behind the construction of this next song may be: watch from where you steal musical inspiration. It may come back to bite you in the butt. Greg Ham and his bandmates from Men at Work found this out the hard way when it came to light that Ham nicked a bit of the Australian children’s tune, “Kookaburra” for the group’s smash, “Down Under.” It took until the year 2007 for the similarities between the two songs to come to light, but that didn’t mean that the publishers of “Kookaburra” weren’t out for blood. They successfully sued for back royalties, to the tune of five percent, dating back to 2002.
#6: Gnarls Barkley
“Crazy” (2006) Some of the best sample sources can be taken from obscure places. Well, at least obscure to the average listener. Die hard fans of Italy’s Spaghetti Western genre likely knew immediately that Gnarls Barkley ripped off a catchy little melody from a film soundtrack. The movie in question was “Viva Django,” a.k.a. “Django, Prepare a Coffin.” “Crazy” is musically indebted to the sort of atmosphere present within these scores, and copied so much from “Viva Django” that composers and brothers Gian Piero and Gian Franco Reverberi received songwriting credit. It’s the sort of earworm that you won’t be able to ignore once you hear it, and we hope that, somewhere, a Gnarls Barkley fan was inspired to check out some of these badass old westerns.
#5: Terry Jacks
“Seasons in the Sun” (1974) Some of the best songs go through multiple hands before they become hits. “Seasons in the Sun” was actually written and performed multiple times, including by Jacques Brel, who adapted the Belgian song “Le Moribond” for his version in 1961. Years later, Terry Jacks would take this hand-me-down “Seasons in the Sun” all the way to the bank in 1974 for his career-defining hit. Fans of the Canadian singer-songwriter probably have no idea that his version was also recorded (but initially unreleased) by The Beach Boys, as well. Not too bad for a Belgian song that became a French song that then traveled to America and Canada for chart success!
#4: Baha Men
“Who Let the Dogs Out (2000) You might not think that a one-hit wonder as innocuous as “Who Let the Dogs Out” could possess such a convoluted and complex backstory…but here we are! In fact, there’s been an entire documentary made about how “Who Let the Dogs Out” doesn’t belong to Baha Men, or anybody else, really. What is known is that the copyright ownership is ridiculously convoluted, with many agreeing that the hook dates somewhere back to 1959. Fingers are pointed and hands are raised as to who exactly is responsible for that call-and-response refrain everyone recognizes But one thing’s for sure: the most-famous version is certainly NOT an OG.
#3: Ray Parker, Jr.
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“Ghostbusters” (1984) Let’s get one thing out of the way: Ray Parker, Jr. has most definitely achieved chart success away from his smash title theme to “Ghostbusters.” However, his public profile is almost indelibly connected to this tune, with many laypersons on the street probably struggling to name one of these aforementioned hits. One person who just might have a beef with Parker, Jr. however is Huey Lewis, who was initially contacted to write a theme back in 1984. Lewis claimed that Parker, Jr. utilized the arrangement of “I Want a New Drug” for “Ghostbusters,” and sued. The pair settled out of court, but Parker, Jr. would later sue Lewis for breach of confidentiality. It’s all a mess, but we wanna know: do you hear the similarity?
#2: Robin Thicke
“Blurred Lines” (2013) You may know about the lyrical controversy behind Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines,” but did you also know that there were some alleged musical shenanigans going on behind-the-scenes, as well? It all depends on how you look at it, because Thicke knowingly admitted to being inspired by Marvin Gaye’s “Got to Give It Up” when writing “Blurred Lines.” The Gaye Family successfully sued for royalties, but it brings up a deeper question: does musical inspiration count as theft? Every artist is influenced by someone, yet it’s up to the songwriters in question to differentiate themselves enough to justify the new material’s existence. Or maybe the courts just got the decision wrong with this one? You decide.
#1: Vanilla Ice
“Ice Ice Baby” (1990) It’s true a lot of people might know the story behind Vanilla Ice’s “Ice Ice Baby”, but you could be hearing it for the first time if you’re not a 90s baby! It’s pretty much become common knowledge by now that Ice heavily adapted Queen and David Bowie’s “Under Pressure” for this hip-hop hit. Specifically, it’s John Deacon’s iconic bassline from this aforementioned Queen that gets manipulated for Ice’s big moment in the sun, albeit given an extra “ting” here and there. That said, the youthful fans of Vanilla Ice might have been unaware that this Queen jam was heisted for “Ice Ice Baby”...that is, until they grew up and realized they’d been bamboozled all along. Feel like debating sample viability or one-hit wonder status? Hit us up in those comments below! Pitchforks and torches optional.
