Top 10 Songs Based On Classical Music (’70s And ’80s Version)
Paul Simon Sings "American Tune," 1974 (YouTube)
Public domain can be a songwriter’s best friend. Here are 10 more pop songs based on classical music, ’70s and ’80s style.
10: Manfred Mann’s Earth Band – “Joybringer” is built on the ever-popular piece, “The Planets,” by Gustav Holst.
9: Paul Simon – “American Tune” is based on Bach’s “St. Matthew Passion.”
8: Walter Murphy – “A Fifth of Beethoven” is a disco version of, hmmm, maybe Tchaikovsky?
7: David Shire – “Night on Disco Mountain” is a disco version Mussorgsky’s “Night on Bald Mountain.”
6: Deodato – “Also Sprach Zarathustra” is an arrangement of the Richard Strauss piece.
5: Dan Fogelberg – “Same Old Lang Syne” uses themes from Tchaikovsky’s “1812 Overture.”
4: Eric Carmen - ”All by Myself” quotes Rachmaninoff’s “Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor” (profiled here) as does his subsequent hit, “Never Gonna Fall in Love Again.”
3: Falco – “Rock Me Amadeus” is all about Mozart (kind of).
2: Sting – “Russians” is arranged around Prokofiev’s “Romance” from Lieutenant Kijé.
1: Barry Manilow – “Could It Be Magic” is based on Chopin’s “Prelude In C Minor,” which he plays as an intro on the album version.
More of Michael’s Top 10 picks can be found here …
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