BY: JESSICA BEUKER
Sometimes a song becomes so popular and iconic that we never even stop to think about its origin story. After all, the version that we know and love and sing along to in the car must be the original version right? Not necessarily.
Oftentimes an artist will release a song and then a little while later a different artist, sometimes from a completely different genre, will pick up that song, record and release their own version of it, and then skyrocket to fame because of it. At least that was the case for the following three artists.
These songs are very well known, but what most have forgotten is that they weren’t actually pop songs to begin with. No, they were actually country songs. Weird, right?
Take a listen below to these popular songs and then read on to find out who they are really by. Here are three pop songs that you didn’t realize were actually covers of country songs:
- I Will Always Love you – Whitney Houston
I Will Always Love You is probably one of the most iconic love songs of all time. Which is why it is surprising to a lot of people that it’s not actually by Whitney Houston, the soulful singer who brought the song to life in her 1992 film, The Bodyguard. The song went on to become the best-selling single by a woman in music history and Houston won a grammy award. However, the song was originally written by country superstar Dolly Parton in 1974, as a farewell to her partner and mentor of seven years, Porter Wagoner.
2. If You Could Read My Mind – Stars on 54
In 1998, a funky little club tune by the name of “If You Could Read My Mind” came out, charting in 7 different countries and making it to the top 10 in Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The song was recorded by Stars on 54, a supergroup that was put together to record the song for the soundtrack of the film, 54, which came out that same year. The catchy house version was not the original version however, even though it might be the version that many people grew up knowing. The original version was actually written and recorded by Canadian folk singer and songwriter, Gordon Lightfoot. It was first released in 1970, and lightfoot has credited his divorce for inspiring the lyrics, which he wrote in a vacant Toronto house one summer.
3. I D0 (Cherish You) – 98 Degrees
Pop boy band, 98 degrees, had a universal hit in 1999 with I Do (Cherish You). The song charted and was also featured on the soundtrack for the film, Notting Hill. The original song however, was actually released a year earlier in 1998 by country singer Mark Wills. The song was a big hit for Wills as well, landing on the Billboard Top 10 under the Hot Country Singles and Tracks section for that year. But even with his success, it is still 98 Degrees’ version that seems to live on in the hearts of 90s kids everywhere.
