Songs That Reference Other Songs/Artists/Albums

[cedahlia]

Some I know of...

Major Tom (Coming Home) by Peter Schilling, references Bowie's Space Oddity. (Schilling's whole song is basically the continuing story of Bowie's Major Tom character.)

Spirit of the Radio by Rush, references Simon and Garfunkel's Sounds of Silence: "the words of the prophets are written on the studio walls and concert halls" (I'm assuming this lyric was inspired by S&G's "the words of the prophets are written on the subway walls and tenement halls." And the Rush lyric might actually be saying "profits" not "prophets" but I couldn't find the exact lyrics.)

Sweet Home Alabama by Lynyrd Skynyrd, references Neil Young and his song Southern Man: "I hope Neil Young will remember...a southern man don't need him around anyhow..."

Rats by Pearl Jam, references Ben by Michael Jackson with a direct quote: "Ben, the two of us need look no more..."

Tori Amos makes reference to Nine Inch Nails in two different songs.
Caught a Lite Sneeze: "made my own pretty hate machine..."
Precious Things: "with their nine inch nails and little fascist panties tucked inside the heart of every nice girl..."

So, what are some other good ones? These could include artists referencing their own previous songs and albums as well (couldn't think of any examples of that off the top of my head, but I'm sure there's some out there.)

[bbernardini]

1. The Who - "You Better, You Bet"

They refer to both T. Rex, and their own "Who's Next" album.

[bbernardini]

2. Mike Keneally - "Aglow" (from 'Boil That Dust Speck')

This one includes references to Zappa's "Sheik Yerbouti" (specifically Side 4) and The Beach Boys ("Wild Honey").

[newscott]

3. The Ghost of Tom Joad

Has the obvious double-link to John Steinbeck and Woody Guthrie.

[hfojvt]

4. American Hair Band by Tuff

or are you talking about "serious" songs?

[cedahlia]

5. serious or funny...whatever! :-) n/t

[hfojvt]

7. "I want my MTV"

Dire Straits

[Goathead]

6. The Police 'Oh My God'

references an earlier The Police song 'Everything She Does is Magic'

It's a big enough umbrella
But it's always me that ends up getting wet.

[cedahlia]

8. damn...I almost forgot about Wesley Willis!

The King of name-checking other musicians in his songs!

Here's a short list of his songs about other musicians...

"Elvis Presley"
"Easy E"
"Urge Overkill"
"Courtney Love"
"Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers"
"Jello Biafra"
"Dave Grohl"
"Morbid Angel"
"Fugazi"
"KMFDM"
"Kurt Cobain"
"Shonen Knife"
"Hootie and the Blowfish"
"Liz Phair"
"Spin Doctors"

:D

[tuvor]

17. He thought he was so cool naming all those alternative groups.

:eyes:
:evilgrin:

[MrSlayer]

9. Goddamn Electric - Pantera

To walk through the world by one's self, you can’t
Be protected.

Your trust is in Whiskey and Weed and SLAYER! It's Goddamn Electric!

[merwin]

10. Damn near every Eminem song

[fishwax]

11. Twisting, by They Might Be Giants

references a couple other artists:

"she doesn't have to have her dB's record back now"

and

"she doesn't have to have her Young Fresh Fellows tape back"

[fishwax]

16. Syd Barret's "Bob Dylan Blues"

(A lot more songs that reference Dylan can be found on the Barf List: http://www.expectingrain.com/dok/edlis/barf.html)

Got the Bob Dylan blues
And the Bob Dylan shoes
And my clothes and my hair's in a mess

But you know I just couldn't care less

Gonna write me a song 'bout what's right and what's wrong
Got God and my girl and all that
Quiet while I make like a cat

Cause I'm a poet, doncha know it
And the wind you can blow it
Cause I'm Mr. Dylan the king
And I'm free as a bird on the wing

Roam from town to town, get to get people down
but I don't care too much about that
Cause my gut and my wallet are fat

Make a whole lot of dough but i deserve it though
I got soul and a good heart of gold
So I'll sing about war and the cold

Cause I'm a poet, doncha know it
And the wind you can blow it
Cause I'm Mr. Dylan the king
And I'm free as a bird on the wing

Well I sings about dreams and I rhymes it with seams
Cause it seems that my dream always means
That I can prophesy all kinds of things

Well the guy that digs me
Should try hard to see
That he buys all my discs in a hat.
And when I'm in town go see that.

Cause I'm a poet, doncha know it
And the wind you can blow it
Cause I'm Mr. Dylan the king
And I'm free as a bird on the wing

[tuvor]

12. Echo and the Bunnymen and U2 did it a lot

Well, maybe more than once or twice.

On Under a Blood Red Sky, Bono cops "Send in the Clowns" on Electric Co.

On a live version of "Back of Love" Ian McCullogh sings a bit of "When I Fall in Love," and "Sex Machine" in "Do It Clean".

EDIT: House of Love song "Beatles and the Stones," and Mojo Nixon's "Elvis is Everywhere" and "Debbie Gibson is Pregnant (With My Two-Headed Love Child)."

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

13. "Broadway Melody of 1974" by Genesis

More pop references than you can shake a stick at.

[bbernardini]

21. Don't forget about "Lamb Lies Down" and "It"!

In "The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway", there's a segment of "On Broadway". In "It", there's a reference to "It's Only Rock and Roll".

[tinfoilinfor2005]

14. Jimmy Buffett

"Just hope Anita Bryant never ever does one of our songs."

[tuvor]

15. Actually, I thought the first reply would be American Pie. n/t

[cedahlia]

18. "20 Years in the Dakota"

by Hole

(Okay, I'm posting another answer to my own thread, :P but this one is a goodie 'cause it refers to The Beatles, Yoko Ono, and possibly the band Big Black...)

She spent 20 years in the Dakota,
Every single day it was black in the Dakota...

You don't fuck with the fabulous four,
Or you spend the rest of your life
Picking things up off the floor...

Big black rules, pearl, life...

Hey Jude, hey Jude,
Are they coming for me,
Judy, Judy,
Are they coming soon?

[mcscajun]

19. Some Memorable Ones...

"If I Had $1,000,000" -- Barenaked Ladies
"I'd buy you some art; a Picasso, or a Garfunkel."

"Bald Headed Men" -- Four Bitchin' Babes
"Tom Paxton? Love him."

"Ramblin' Jack & Mahan" -- Guy Clark
"Ole Ramblin' Jack Elliot said..."

"I Feel Lucky" -- Mary-Chapin Carpenter
"Dwight Yoakum's in the corner, tryin' to catch my eye; Lyle Lovett's right beside me with his hand upon my thigh."

"Talking New Bob Dylan" -- Loudon Wainwright
The whole thing's about Bob...his 50th birthday, and his 'dumbass kid brothers': "Yeah, I got a deal and so did John Prine, Steve Forbert and Springsteen, all in a line." :)

"Sweet Soul Music" -- Arthur Conley
"Spotlight on Lou Rawls, y'all..."
Conley goes into Sam and Dave, Wilson Pickett, Otis Redding, and of course, James Brown. :)

[Bossy Monkey]

20. John Wesley Harding's Paradise is a brilliant sequel to Waterloo Sunset

Used to be called "In Paradise"; go figure. Lyrics here:
http://www.wesweb.net/recordings/newdeallyrics.html#paradise

[Bossy Monkey]

22. Too Much Joy wrote love songs to The Mekons and Love Tractor

when on tour with each: "If I Was A Mekon" (found here, assuming you're willing to put up with Real Player: http://www.sayhername.com/tmj_sosia.php) and "Hello Love Tractor" (here: http://www.sayhername.com/tmj_gods.php). Both sweet-natured, both impassioned, both a lot of fun

[cedahlia]

26. The Mekons

Were they 1990's indie pop? (I'm on a dial-up connection, x( so I don't do music downloading.)

[Bossy Monkey]

32. Can't really help much; the two songs I've heard by them were kind of

grandiloquent. But yes, they were indie artists, from Leeds according to Too Much Joy. Had a pretty long run, I think, '80s and '90s. Apparently touring as recently as last year: http://www.mekons.de/mekonhom.htm

Edit: late '70s, too

[BlueStateGirl]

23. Mott the Hoople... "All the Young Dudes"

'My brother's back at home with his Beatles and his Stones'

Hootie and the Blowfish
"Only Wanna be with You."
'Put on a little Dylan, sitting on a fence. I say that line is great, you ask me what I meant "Said I shot a man named Grady, took his wife to Italy. She inherited a million bucks and when she died it came to me"

Counting Crows "Mr. Jones"

"I wanna be Bob Dylan"

Bowling for Soup's 1985 refernces Springsteen, Madoona, Nirvana, Ozzy, Van Halen, Whitesnake, Duran Duran.

[Steel City Slim]

24. Summer Rain by Johnny Rivers

Mentions Sgt. Peppers.

[XemaSab]

25. Standin' on the corner in Winslow Arizona

Tori Amos, and whatsisname

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

27. u2 - angel of harlem

"we've got john coltrane and a love supreme"

[Bossy Monkey]

30. Not to mention Billie Holliday, whom the song is about... n/t

[Lautremont]

28. Donovan "Bert's Blues" (about Bert Jansch)

Cowboy Junkies "Townes' Blues" (Townes Van Zant)
Pavement "Unseen Power of the Picket Fence" (in large part about R.E.M.)
Sloan "Coax Me" (references Consolidated: "I drink concentrated OJ / I think Consolidated's okay / It's not the band I hate, it's their fans...")

[cedahlia]

29. "Unseen Power of the Picket Fence"

Good one!!! :thumbsup:

That song is very cool...

"And they're marching through Georgia,
Ja-ja-ja-ja-ja-Georgia!

And there stands R.E.M.!"

[evlbstrd]

31. The walrus was Paul..

...self referential. Magical Mystery Tour and the White Album.

[Yupster]

33. Ashes to Ashes

is Bowie's own attempt to catologue his Major Tom character's fall. A very autobiographical song, and a sad one.

"Ashes to ashes,
fun to funky,
We know Major Tom's a junkie,
Strung out on heaven's high,
and hitting an all-time low."

What a cry for help.

[Doc_Technical]

34. "Yer Blues" by the Beatles on the white album,

.."I feel so suicidal, just like Dylan's Mr. Jones."

Also in Joni Mitchell's "Cold Blue Steel and Sweet Fire"

there is the line, "Blue steel calling but its indistinct,
someone's hi-fi drumming Jelly Roll."

[TOhioLiberal]

35. Nightshift...

by the Commodores references two artists: Marvin Gaye and Jackie Wilson.