| SONG | ORIGINAL ARTIST | FAMOUS COVER |
|---|---|---|
| My Boy Lollypop | Barbie Gaye | Millie Small as "My Boy Lollipop" |
| On Broadway | The Cookies (unreleased original) Crystals (first release) | Drifters |
| Gentle On My Mind | John Hartford | Glen Campbell |
| Unchained Melody | Todd Duncan | Righteous Brothers |
| We've Only Just Begun | Crocker Bank TV commercial, first recorded as single by Freddie Allen | Carpenters |
| Mercy, Mercy, Mercy | Marlena Shaw | Buckinghams |
| Do-Wah-Diddy | Exciters | Mannfred Mann |
| It's All Over Now | Valentinos | Rolling Stones |
| Killing Me Softly With His Song | Lori Lieberman | Roberta Flack |
| Rising Sun Blues (1933) | Clarence "Tom" Ashley and Gwen Foster | Animals as "House of the Rising Sun" |
| Evil Ways | Willie Bobo | Santana |
| He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother | Kelly Gordon | Hollies |
| My Sweet Lord | Billy Preston (Written by George Harrison for Preston, who was first to record it. Harrison was sued by the Chiffons for the song's alleged similarity to their "He's So Fine".) | George Harrison |
| Galveston | Don Ho with the Oak Ridge Strings | Glen Campbell |
| Queen of Hearts | Dave Edmunds | Juice Newton |
| Wild One (1958) | Johnny O'Keefe | Iggy Pop as "Real Wild Child (Wild One)" |
| Reason To Believe | Tim Hardin | Rod Stewart |
| Everybody Needs Somebody to Love | Solomon Burke | Rolling Stones, Wilson Pickett, Blues Brothers |
| Barbara-Ann | The Regents | The Beach Boys as "Barbara Ann" |
| Jock-A-Mo | James Sugarboy Crawford & his Cane Cutters | Dixie Cups as "Iko Iko" |
| Burning Love | Arthur Alexander | Elvis Presley |
| Suspicious Minds | Mark James | Elvis Presley |
| By The Time I Get To Phoenix | Johnny Rivers | Glen Campbell |
| Hush | Billy Joe Royal | Deep Purple |
| Mbube | Solomon Linda's Original Evening Birds | The Weavers as "Wimoweh", The Tokens as "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" |
| I Never Promised You a Rose Garden | Joe South | Lynn Anderson |
| Mustang Sally | Sir Mack Rice | Wilson Pickett |
| Ring of Fire | Anita Carter | Johnny Cash |
| They Long To Be Close To You | Richard Chamberlain | Carpenters |
| Good Rockin' Tonight | Roy Brown | Elvis Presley |
| Heartbreak Hotel | Glen Reeves | Elvis Presley |
| Here Comes The Night | Lulu and the Luvvers | Van Morrison and Them |
| Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood | Nina Simone | Eric Burdon and the Animals |
| My Girl Sloopy | Vibrations | McCoys as "Hang On Sloopy" |
| Sweets For My Sweet | Drifters | Searchers, and the Riddles |
| Brandy | Scott English | Barry Manilow as "Mandy" |
| I Love Rock & Roll | The Arrows | Joat Jett |
| Video Killed the Radio Star | Bruce Woolley & the Camera Club | Buggles |
| Sloop John B | The Kingston Trio (1st recording under this title) | Beach Boys |
| Me And Bobby McGee | Roger Miller (first recording) Kris Kristofferson (composer) | Janis Joplin |
| Sorrow | McCoys | Merseys |
| You're No Good | Dee Dee Warwick | Linda Ronstadt |
| Rhinestone Cowboy | Larry Weiss | Glenn Campbell |
| Kitty | Racey | Toni Basil as "Hey Mickey" |
| You've Made Me So Very Happy | Brenda Holloway | Blood, Sweat, & Tears |
| I Fought The Law | Crickets | Bobby Fuller Four |
| Something Stupid | Carson & Gaile | Frank and Nancy Sinatra |
| The Air That I Breathe | Albert Hammond | Hollies |
| Bette Davis Eyes | Jackie DeShannon | Kim Carnes |
| Midnight Train To Georgia | Cissy Houston | Gladys Knight |
| (There's) Always Something There To Remind Me | Lou Johnson | Sandie Shaw |
| The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine (Anymore) | Frankie Valli | Walker Brothers |
| Without You | Badfinger | Harry Nilsson |
| Lady Marmalade (Voulez Vous Couche Avec Moi) | Eleventh Hour | Patti LaBelle |
| California Dreaming | Barry McGuire | Mamas and Papas |
| Rock Around The Clock | Sonny Dae & His Knights | Bill Haley & Comets |
| Let's Work Together | Wilbert Harrison | Canned Heat |
| I Hear You Knocking | Smiley Lewis | Dave Edmunds |
| The Tide Is High | The Paragons | Blondie |
| Boots | Lee Hazlewood | Nancy Sinatra |
| Sugar and Spice | Searchers | Searchers |
| I Shot the Sheriff | Bob Marley | Eric Clapton |
| Montego Bay | Bar-Kays | Bobby Bloom |
| I Can Hear Music | Ronettes | Beach Boys |
| I'm Into Something Good | Earl-Jean (McCree) (of the Cookies) | Herman's Hermits |
| Dedicated To The One I Love | The '5' Royales | Mamas and Papas |
| I Can't Let Go | Evie Sands | Hollies |
| Take Me For A Little While | Evie Sands | Jackie Ross, and later, Vanilla Fudge |
| Angel Of The Morning | Evie Sands | Merilee Rush |
| Any Way That You Want Me | Evie Sands | Troggs |
| Needles And Pins | Jackie DeShannon | Searchers |
| Go Now | Bessie Banks | Moody Blues |
| Got My Mind Set On You | James Ray (w/Hutch Davie Orchestra) | George Harrison |
| Time Is On My Side | Irma Thomas | Rolling Stones |
| Nobody But Me | Isley Brothers | Human Beinz |
| Twist and Shout | Top Notes | Isley Brothers, and then the Beatles |
| Chains | Cookies | Beatles |
| Act Naturally | Buck Owens | Beatles |
| Respect | Otis Redding | Aretha Franklin |
| All Along the Watchtower | Bob Dylan | Jimi Hendrix |
Corrections? Additions?
Please let me know (click here)!
-- Kevin Killion
Here's a tremendous source for info on originals: