Who sang it first?
Many songs in the Top 2000 are a cover of an older song. Below are 37 well-known examples, with who recorded or released the song first.
37covers alongside their originals
19originals that are themselves also in the Top 2000
| Song in the list | Original by | Year | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hurt Johnny Cash (2003) | Nine Inch Nails | 1994 | Written by Trent Reznor for the album The Downward Spiral. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Hey Joe The Jimi Hendrix Experience (1967) | The Leaves | 1965 | Billy Roberts had the song registered as early as 1962; The Leaves made the earliest known commercial recording in late 1965. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| With A Little Help From My Friends Joe Cocker (1968) | The Beatles | 1967 | Sung by Ringo Starr on Sgt. Pepper; Cocker's version became a number 1 in England in 1968. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Jealous Guy Roxy Music (1981) | John Lennon | 1971 | Lennon released it on Imagine; the Roxy Music version (1981) became the hit and reached number 1 in England. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Dancing In The Street David Bowie & Mick Jagger (1985) | Martha and the Vandellas | 1964 | Written by Marvin Gaye, William Stevenson and Ivy Jo Hunter; a Motown classic. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| I'm A Believer The Monkees (1966) | The Monkees | 1966 | Written by Neil Diamond; The Monkees turned it into a worldwide hit. Diamond himself is in the list with it too. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Fever Peggy Lee (1959) | Little Willie John | 1956 | Written by Eddie Cooley and Otis Blackwell; the 1958 version by Peggy Lee became the best known. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| The Tide Is High Blondie (1980) | The Paragons (John Holt) | 1967 | A rocksteady song from Jamaica; Blondie turned it into a number 1 hit in 1980. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Everybody's Talking Harry Nilsson (1969) | Fred Neil | 1966 | Neil recorded it in 1966 and released it two years later; Nilsson had success with it in 1969 thanks to the film Midnight Cowboy. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| The Sound Of Silence Disturbed (2016) | Simon & Garfunkel | 1964 | The acoustic first version from 1964; in 1965 an electric version came out that went to number 1 in America. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Fast Car Luke Combs (2023) | Tracy Chapman | 1988 | Written and released by Chapman as her debut single. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Sealed With A Kiss Bobby Vinton (1972) | The Four Voices | 1960 | Written by Peter Udell and Gary Geld. The first recording was not a hit; Brian Hyland made it famous in 1962. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Kiss Tom Jones & Art Of Noise (1988) | Prince | 1986 | Prince had a US number 1 with it in 1986; Tom Jones and Art of Noise made their own version of it. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Blue Suede Shoes Elvis Presley (1956) | Carl Perkins | 1955 | Carl Perkins wrote and recorded it first; Elvis put it on his debut album in 1956. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| You Are So Beautiful Joe Cocker (1975) | Billy Preston | 1974 | Preston released it on the album The Kids & Me; Cocker recorded a slower version later that year. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Unchained Melody The Righteous Brothers (1965) | Todd Duncan | 1955 | Alex North wrote it for the prison film Unchained; Todd Duncan sang it in the film. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Where Did You Sleep Last Night (unplugged) Nirvana (1994) | Traditional (folk) | 1870s | An American folk song of unknown authorship, also known as “In the Pines”. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| La Bamba Los Lobos (1987) | Traditional Mexican folk song | before 1958 | Ritchie Valens made his own version of it in 1958; Los Lobos had a hit with it in 1987. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Proud Mary Ike & Tina Turner (1971) | Creedence Clearwater Revival | 1969 | Written by John Fogerty; Ike & Tina Turner made their best-known version of it in 1971. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Hallelujah Jeff Buckley (1994) | Leonard Cohen | 1984 | Cohen released it on Various Positions and had little success with it at first. John Cale's recording (1991) inspired Jeff Buckley's 1994 version. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| I Will Always Love You Whitney Houston (1992) | Dolly Parton | 1973 | Parton wrote it as a farewell to her business partner and mentor Porter Wagoner; the single came out in 1974. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| All Along The Watchtower The Jimi Hendrix Experience (1968) | Bob Dylan | 1967 | From Dylan's album John Wesley Harding; Hendrix released his version in 1968. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Respect Aretha Franklin (1967) | Otis Redding | 1965 | Aretha Franklin rewrote and rearranged the song in 1967; it became her signature song. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Nothing Compares 2u Sinéad O'Connor (1990) | The Family (written by Prince) | 1985 | Prince wrote it for his project The Family; Sinéad O’Connor turned it into a worldwide hit in 1990. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Girls Just Want To Have Fun Cyndi Lauper (1984) | Robert Hazard (writer) | 1979 | Robert Hazard wrote the song in 1979; Cyndi Lauper changed part of the lyrics and made it famous in 1983. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Twist And Shout The Beatles (1963) | The Top Notes | 1961 | Written by Phil Medley and Bert Berns. It only became a hit in the Isley Brothers version (1962). Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Mad World Michael Andrews ft. Gary Jules (2002) | Tears For Fears | 1982 | Written by Roland Orzabal and sung by Curt Smith; it was the band's first hit. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Knockin' On Heaven's Door Guns N' Roses (1992) | Bob Dylan | 1973 | Written for the film Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Torn Natalie Imbruglia (1997) | Lis Sørensen (Danish version) | 1993 | The song was written in 1991 by Scott Cutler, Anne Preven and Phil Thornalley. Lis Sørensen released a Danish version in 1993 under the title “Brændt”. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| The Man Who Sold The World (unplugged) Nirvana (1994) | David Bowie | 1970 | From Bowie's third album, recorded in 1970 with Mick Ronson on guitar. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| I Heard It Through The Grapevine Marvin Gaye (1969) | Gladys Knight & the Pips | 1967 | Written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong. The Miracles were the first to record it (1966), but that version was not released at the time; the first release was the one by Gladys Knight & the Pips. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Tainted Love Soft Cell (1981) | Gloria Jones | 1964 | Composed by Ed Cobb; Soft Cell turned it into a worldwide hit in 1981. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Hound Dog Elvis Presley (1959) | Big Mama Thornton | 1952 | Written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller; Thornton recorded it in 1952 and the single came out in 1953. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Blinded By The Light Manfred Mann's Earth Band (1976) | Bruce Springsteen | 1973 | From Springsteen's debut album; the version by Manfred Mann’s Earth Band reached number 1 in the United States in 1977. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Venus Bananarama (1986) | Shocking Blue | 1969 | A Dutch band, with a song written by Robbie van Leeuwen that topped the American Billboard Hot 100 in 1970. Bananarama had a hit with it in 1986. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Always On My Mind Pet Shop Boys (1987) | Brenda Lee and Gwen McCrae | 1972 | Brenda Lee was the first to record it; the first release was Gwen McCrae's (March 1972), three months before Lee's version. Elvis Presley then had the first big success with it. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
| Black Magic Woman Santana (1970) | Fleetwood Mac | 1968 | Written by Peter Green; Santana released it in 1970 on the album Abraxas. Wikipedia (opens in a new tab) |
Beware of songs with the same title that have nothing to do with each other. The overview is a selection and not exhaustive. Years and names have been checked against the song's Wikipedia page. Is a well-known example missing? Let us know via the contact page.
Source: own calculation based on the Top 2000 database (NPO Radio 2 charts 1999 to 2025, Top 2000 Database by Erwin Groenhof), supplemented with MusicBrainz and Wikidata.