♪ Oh won't you stay with me ♪ ♪ Oh I won't back down ♪
- (laughs) I mean, that is definitely too close for comfort.
(beep)
Hello and welcome back to another daily video
where I'm just a fragment of who I used to be
because, honestly, my life is in shambles.
I'm in quarantine.
I'm in, there's only two things, and they're not that bad.
Anyway, today we're once again looking at songs
that sound exactly the same
that have whatever lawsuits against them
because they sound the same,
or they may not have lawsuits.
I don't know.
We're going to put them into our music program,
compare them, pitch them to the same keys,
check out the chord structures, whatever.
See, are they really copied?
What should really be happening with these songs?
Anyway, let's get fricking started.
Make sure to watch this video 'til the end.
There are some pretty crazy ones in this one, I gotta say.
I was surprised. (synth blares)
(beep)
Sam Smith's "Stay With Me"
versus Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers "I Won't Back Down."
Okay.
♪ Oh, won't you stay with me ♪
♪ 'Cause you're all I need ♪
♪ This ain't love it's clear to see ♪
♪ But darling, stay with me ♪
♪ Well I won't back down ♪
♪ No I won't back down ♪
♪ You could stand me up at the gates of hell ♪
♪ But I won't back down ♪
- Man.
That's pretty close!
Let's have a listen to that in the music program.
Pitch into the same key, that sounded unbelievably close.
I think the chords are a little bit different,
just from first listen.
Structure and melody seems too close for comfort!
(elevator music)
Okay, so let's have a listen to them pitched
to the same key, and stretched to the same tempo.
♪ Oh, won't you stay with me ♪ ♪ Well I won't back down ♪
♪ 'Cause you're all I need ♪ ♪ No I won't back down ♪
♪ This ain't love ♪ ♪ You could stand me up ♪
♪ It's clear to see ♪ ♪ At the gates of hell ♪
♪ But darling, stay with me ♪ ♪ But I won't back down ♪
- (laughs) I mean, that is definitely too close for comfort.
The melodies are very very close, apart from this one part.
You probably caught it.
♪ This ain't love ♪ ♪ You could stand me up ♪
♪ It's clear to see ♪ ♪ At the gates of hell ♪
- But then it goes back
and becomes the exact same thing in the end anyway.
♪ Stay with me ♪ ♪ Won't back down ♪
- That's just, unfortunate for, Sam Smith.
I wonder if it was on purpose?
I mean, it probably wasn't on purpose,
it wouldn't try to get away with this.
I guess someone had heard that other song before.
They're very rare, these ones where it's exactly the same.
By the way, if you're confused right now,
it probably means that you're not listening
with both headphones on, maybe.
Or one of your headphones is broken,
as some people usually comment on these videos.
I'm playing the Tom Petty song in one ear
and Sam Smith in one ear, so yeah.
Deal with it!
(laughs)
Sorry if you can't hear it properly, sorry.
♪ Oh won't you stay with me ♪ ♪ Well I won't back down ♪
- It's just, exactly.
♪ 'Cause you're all I need ♪ ♪ Well I won't back down ♪
- It's not the most genius melody in the world,
but it is distinctive enough for me to think
that there was inspiration going on.
Perhaps even, plagiarism.
Let's see if there was any lawsuits or anything around this.
"This song was written by Sam Smith, James Napire,
and William Philips, with the late Tom Petty
and Jeff Lynne later receiving co-writer credits
due to the song's noted melodic similarity
to Petty's single 'I Won't Back Down.'"
That's reasonable.
But they got it later though, it seems like.
Yeah.
"In January 2015, it was revealed
that a settlement had been reached
with Tom Petty's publishing company
to add Petty and Jeff Lynne as co-writers,
and that they would receive
a 12.5 percent songwriting credit."
I almost feel that's not enough.
12.5 percent? (sad violin music)
Okay, so Tom Petty actually said
he didn't believe Sam Smith plagiarized him, saying,
"All my years of songwriting have shown me
these things can happen.
Most times you catch it
before it gets out the studio door
but in this cate it got by.
Sam's people were very understanding of our predicament
and we easily came to an agreement."
Tom Petty and the other songwriter for the old song,
did not receive a Grammy,
even though the song get a Grammy.
That's interesting that that's how it works.
So, if you sample something
and your sampled song gets a Grammy,
the person you sampled doesn't get a Grammy.
That's (laughs),
I gotta make that my life's work now
just to start sampling songs and try to get Grammys
that the original writers don't get anything of.
That's a funny life story.
I got 28 Grammys by sampling,
and the people who I sample didn't get anything.
Lol.
And then you die.
In your grave like,
(laughs) (eerie music)
"All my 28 Grammys, my sample Grammys!"
By the way, please subscribe if you haven't already,
I'm so close to hitting six million subscribers,
I have some big videos planned for that
that you don't wanna miss.
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Turn on them noti, fications.
Thank you.
(laughs)
"Imperial March" from Star Wars
versus "A Spoonful of Sugar" from Mary Poppins.
I don't think I can sing any of these songs.
Anyway.
(dramatic orchestral music)
Oh yeah, no sorry.
I can't, of course.
It's one of the most iconic Star Wars soundtrack songs.
Let's have a listen.
(dramatic orchestral music)
♪ That a spoon of sugar ♪
♪ Helps the medicine go down ♪
♪ The medicine go down ♪
- Wait what?
♪ Medicine go down ♪
♪ Just a spoon ♪
- Okay the vibes of the songs
are obviously intensely different,
but let's get that in the music program.
That's interesting.
It's definitely not going to be a straight up rip.
But, maybe, there's something to it.
Okay, I'm excited about this.
Let's see what they sound like at the same time.
♪ Spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down ♪
♪ The medicine go down ♪
♪ Medicine go down ♪
- That's funny, the rhythm is so close.
Okay, let's get 'em to the same key as well.
Okay so here they are technically in the same key
but it doesn't sound any good on top of each other.
I think the harmonic structure.
Nerd stuff, okay?
It doesn't entirely line up.
But, anyway, there's some, like,
advanced, some, little bit jazzier,
little bit crazier things going on with this
than in most pop music,
so they don't really overlap in the best way possible.
However, listen to this.
It's pretty funny.
♪ Spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down ♪
♪ The Medicine go down ♪
♪ Medicine go down ♪
♪ Just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down ♪
♪ In a most delightful way ♪
(laughs)
- That's a fun remix.
Maybe one of you guys can make a remix out of it.
- You can do it!
- When you auto tune "Spoonful of Sugar"
to be on top of,
the, "Imperial March," maybe someone has already done it.
There's so many Star Wars nerds out there.
Come on Star Wars nerds, don't disappoint me!
Show me your strength.
- [Obi-Wan] Use the force, Luke.
- Here we go, let's see.
I think this should work.
♪ And ev'ry task you undertake becomes a piece of cake ♪
♪ A lark, a spree, it's very clear to me ♪
♪ That a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down ♪
♪ Helps the medicine go down ♪
♪ Medicine go down ♪
- Yeah, so like, yeah you can definitely sing it on top.
I would love to hear an auto tune version though.
If anyone wants to do it, I will applaud.
I will feature you in a video if you do a real one.
Anyway, let's move the frick on.
Okay so we got ABBA.
Very epic music.
"Waterloo" versus The Foundations, "Build Me Up Buttercup."
Okay I've heard both of these songs,
I've never thought of them being similar, let's see.
♪ Waterloo couldn't escape if I wanted to ♪
♪ Waterloo knowing my fate is to be with you ♪
- Excellent.
♪ Oh, oh oh oh ♪
♪ Why do you build me up, build me up, buttercup, baby ♪
♪ Just to let me down, let me down, and mess me around ♪
♪ And then worst of all, worst of all, you never call, baby ♪
♪ When you say you will, say you will, but I love you still ♪
♪ I need you, I need you, more than anyone, darlin' ♪
♪ You know that I have from the start ♪
- God I'm such a sucker for that sort of song,
like those harmonics and happy melodies.
I'm instantly in a good mood from "Build Me Up Buttercup."
When I hear it now,
it kinda feels like "Waterloo" was inspired by this.
Quite heavily.
But they have changed up enough things
for it to be different.
Let's get it into the music program.
Just so I can highlight what I think are different
and why they're not very similar.
Okay, so let's have a listen to 'em.
I would say that the melodies have the same rhythm
in the beginning, and they kind of harmonize.
Which makes me think that ABBA, my Swedish brethren,
must have use "Build Me Up Buttercup"
as a reference in their song writing,
and just, like, switched it up.
"What if we take it one-third up," or whatever,
to get this right here.
So, the lead-in is a little bit longer
in "Build Me Up Buttercup."
You will here it.
♪ Why do you ♪
♪ Build me up ♪ ♪ Waterloo ♪
♪ Build me up ♪
♪ Buttercup, baby ♪ ♪ I was defeated ♪
♪ Just to let me down ♪ ♪ You won the war ♪
♪ Let me down ♪
- So the ABBA song is up here.
♪ Waterloo ♪
And "Build Me Up Buttercup" is,
♪ Build me up ♪
- You actually have them being perfect thirds
and harmonizing.
♪ Why do you ♪
♪ Waterloo ♪ ♪ Build me up ♪
♪ Build me up ♪
♪ Buttercup, baby ♪ ♪ I was defeated ♪
♪ Just to let me down ♪ ♪ You won the war ♪
- And there, the melody starts diverging a little bit,
they're a little bit different.
♪ Let me down ♪
♪ And mess me around ♪
♪ And then worst of all ♪ ♪ Waterloo ♪
♪ Worst of all ♪
♪ You never call, baby ♪ ♪ Promise to love you ♪
- I would say that, sorry Swedish mates
but "Build Me Up Buttercup" is just a better song.
It's got a little more of a minor feel to it,
while the ABBA song is really flat.
(mimicking "Waterloo")
While "Build Me Up Buttercup" has like a little bit
of something to it.
Like, with all the cool harmonies.
And then it's also way happier when the happy parts come in.
It's just a great song.
Another thing that makes me think that ABBA was inspired
was the (mimicking drum rhythm)
because "Build Me Up Buttercup" has the exact same thing.
(upbeat drums)
Which is almost identical to ABBA's.
(upbeat drums)
Definitely very, very heavily inspired.
But I wouldn't say
that there should be any royalties going anywhere.
Let's have a look and see if there actually is.
It's not actually mentioned anywhere on the Wikipedia page.
Which I actually think is a little bit weird,
because it does have some pretty stunning similarities.
Instead, they said that it was inspired
by Phil Spector's "Wall of Sound" production technique.
Whatever, who cares.
I know it's a big thing in music production, okay,
like, that's when they started putting
way too much stuff into the songs
and tried to push up the volume and whatever
and make it feel like you're like (grunts)
Right now, with trap music and everything,
we're kinda having the opposite of that,
where everything is going like,
they want less and less in the song.
Like there's less and less instruments in the songs,
if you've noticed.
Anyway.
Not a single mention.
Crazy.
Has no one ever talked about this?
Okay, so here we have, on the forum abbachat.
People talking about it.
Okay, so someone here says,
"It's no surprise that ABBA's early music tends
to sound like a deliberate review of what 1960s music had,
and I also read Stikkan Anderson," the producer,
"tend to buy songs in order to make Swedish hits."
(laughs)
That's really interesting.
So it was kinda like a,
the times of plagiarism back in the day.
Because, we didn't really have a global music industry
at that point, so often,
there would be like a Swedish version
of an international song, that became a hit in Sweden.
I'm sure that still happens
with translations and stuff of songs,
like, whatever, Eastern Europe, or Asia and stuff,
that you can make cover that becomes
that country's or that region's version of a hit song.
Ah anyway, that's it for today's video.
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Thanks for watching guys, and I will see you tomorrow
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Bye.