27 classic songs you didn’t know were covers

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What: ‘Respect’. Who: Otis Redding wrote the original, before Aretha Franklin covered it. Hear the original.

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What: ‘Step On’. Who: John Kongos did it before Happy Mondays made it Madchester ‘tastic. Hear the original.

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What: ‘Blinded By The Light’. Who: Bruce Springsteen did the track before Manfred Mann’s Earth Band took it chart-bound. Hear the original.

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What: ‘Downtown Train’. Who: Tom Waits did the singer/songwriter original before Rod Stewart got his hands on it. Hear the original.

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What: ‘Step By Step’. Who: Whitney Houston’s version was a cover of an Annie Lennox track. Hear the original.

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What: ‘Don’t Turn Around’. Who: Tina Turner originally recorded this before Aswad reggae-fied it. Hear the original. Listen to the original versions of all these songs as a Spotify playlist.

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What: ‘Gloria’. Who: Umberto Tozzi did the original before Laura Branigan rocked it up. Hear the original.

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What: ‘Hanging On The Telephone’. Who: Power-pop band The Nerves did Blondie before Blondie. Hear the original.

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What: ‘Hey Joe’. Who: Jimi Hendrix may have made this his own but it was folkers The Leaves who did it originally. Hear the original.

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What: ‘I Didn’t Know I Was Looking For Love’. Who: Everything But The Girl did this version before Karen Ramirez had a one off hit with it. Hear the original.

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What: ‘Torn’. Who: Edenswap featured Phil Thornalley, randomly a member of both The Cure and Johnny Hates Jazz. Hear the original.

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