Top 10 Rip Off Songs You Didn't Realize Are Rip Offs
#10: “Fight Test” (2003)
The Flaming Lips
The Flaming Lips’s 2002 album “Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots” marked a turning point in their vibes. They went from more traditional psychedelic rock to a more experimental and electronic sound. It’s interesting, then, that the band was sued for plagiarism by folk rock singer Cat Stevens after they changed their sound. When the Flaming Lips’s 2003 single “Fight Test” came out, Stevens, now going by the name Yusuf, noticed a similarity to his 1970 song “Father and Son.” Wayne Coyne, frontman for the Flaming Lips, later admitted to being inspired by Stevens. The issue was brought to court, with Stevens now getting 75% royalties from “Fight Test.”
#9: “Stay with Me” (2014)
Sam Smith
British soul singer Sam Smith’s debut studio album, “In the Lonely Hour,” ran into some trouble with the lead single. “Stay with Me” is their most successful single to date, but there are undoubtedly some melodic similarities to another artist’s single from 1989. Tom Petty recognized that the melody of “Stay with Me” was suspiciously similar to his own song, “I Won’t Back Down.” Although the songwriters of “I Won’t Back Down” pursued legal action against Smith, Petty says he doesn’t believe the plagiarism was intentional. Even so, he gets 12.5% songwriting credit for it.
#8: “Whole Lotta Love” (1969)
Led Zeppelin
English rock band Led Zeppelin is no stranger to accusations of copyright infringement. Many people have heard about the many-years-long court battles regarding Led Zeppelin’s song “Stairway to Heaven” and the band Spirit’s song “Taurus,” but there was another lawsuit from 1985 about another Zeppelin song. The first track from their second album was “Whole Lotta Love,” and it shares a lot with the 1962 blues song “You Need Love.” More than just similarities with the melody, “Whole Lotta Love” seems to take lyrics from “You Need Love” as well. The case was settled out of court, but Jimmy Page and Robert Plant still get pretty defensive about the whole thing.
#7: “Folsom Prison Blues” (1955)
Johnny Cash
Country music icon Johnny Cash wrote more than 1,000 songs. One of his most famous numbers, however, wasn’t actually his at all. First released in 1955, “Folsom Prison Blues” has become known as one of the greatest country songs ever. But two years earlier, popular composer Gordon Jenkins released the song “Crescent City Blues,” a torch song about a woman longing to leave town. Cash sped up the tempo and made minor changes to the lyrics. Now the song told of a man longing to leave prison. After “Folsom Prison Blues” really took off in the early ‘70s, Jenkins wanted credit for his work. Cash paid a settlement of approximately $75,000 for drawing so heavily from another artist’s efforts.
#6: “Midnight Memories” (2013)
One Direction
The title track from pop boy band One Direction’s third album, “Midnight Memories,” leaned heavily on a very different band’s single. Hard rockers Def Leppard released the song “Pour Some Sugar on Me” in 1987, and when “Midnight Memories” came out in 2013, some critics were quick to spot the similarities. One writer from Billboard pointed out the particularly noticeable rock influence on the 1D song. He even singled out the guitar riff for sounding an awful lot like “Pour Some Sugar on Me.” A rumor circulated that Def Leppard was pursuing legal action, but two members soon denied the claim.
#5: “We Can’t Stop” (2013)
Miley Cyrus
Former Disney idol Miley Cyrus is no stranger to controversy, from scandalous photographs to illicit substance use. But do you remember the plagiarism lawsuit brought against her for $300 million? Cyrus’s song “We Can’t Stop” was released in 2013. Five years later, in 2018, Jamaican dancehall artist Flourgon sued her for plagiarism of his 1988 song “We Run Things.” Sharing more than just a chorus and hook, Flourgon claimed about 50% of “We Can’t Stop” was stolen. A settlement was reached in favor of Flourgon, but the exact monetary amount was not disclosed.
#4: “Call Me Maybe” (2011)
Carly Rae Jepsen
“Call Me Maybe” took the pop world by storm in 2011 and 2012. It was the worldwide best-selling single of the year and reached number one on the charts in over 19 countries. Canadian singer Carly Rae Jepsen soared in popularity. And this is crazy: the single is suspiciously similar to a Ukrainian singer’s 2010 song “Hunky Santa.” The Ukrainian singer Aza sued Jepsen for an unspecified amount after hearing the song on the radio. Allegedly, Aza nearly crashed her car when she first heard “Call Me Maybe.” Jepsen and her representatives denied the coincidence, saying Jepsen doesn’t listen to Ukrainian radio.
#3: “Girlfriend” (2007)
Avril Lavigne
One of the best-selling and most-downloaded singles of the 2000s was pop-punk singer Avril Lavigne’s song “Girlfriend.” Released in 2007 with her third album, the catchy song quickly caught on with listeners. But not everyone was happy with its success. Within months of the release date, a lawsuit was filed against Lavigne. Tommy Dunbar and James Gangwer, members of the ‘70s power-pop band the Rubinoos, noticed something oddly familiar in “Girlfriend.” The Rubinoos’s 1979 song “I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend” does actually seem like a prototype for Lavigne’s song, especially with the lyrics. The Rubinoos took serious issue with “Girlfriend,” going so far as to hire a musicologist to investigate the similarities with their song.
#2: “Surfin’ USA” (1963)
The Beach Boys
What song is more associated with the ‘60s California Sound than “Surfin’ USA”? When you hear those opening notes, your mind probably goes straight to the Beach Boys. But those very same notes weren’t actually written by them. In 1958, the Father of Rock and Roll Chuck Berry released the song “Sweet Little Sixteen.” “Surfin’ USA” sounds so much like Berry’s hit because they’re basically the same song, just with different lyrics. Beach Boy Brian Wilson even admitted writing his lyrics to the tune of “Sweet Little Sixteen.” Upon release in 1963, Berry didn’t get credit for the melody. But with a little pressure from his publisher, Berry received songwriting credit for all re-releases.
#1: “Creep” (1992)
Radiohead
Radiohead’s debut single took the alt rock world by storm. Since its release in 1992, “Creep” has thrived as a grunge anthem, despite Radiohead’s resentment of the song’s popularity. But the chord progression and melody weren’t newly written or newly popular. “The Air that I Breathe” was first recorded in 1972, and it rose to fame when the Hollies covered it in 1974. Songwriters Albert Hammond and Mike Hazlewood said that Radiohead was honest about using their music, so they settled for writing credit and a small part of royalties. Flashforward to 2018, and Radiohead actually sued Lana Del Rey for plagiarizing “Creep” with her song “Get Free.” The matter was eventually settled.
Do you know of any songs that are a little too similar in composition? Let us know in the comments.