Tweet Same title, different songs

There were a number of instances in the early 20th century where two different songs used the same or quite similar titles--some examples follow:

Who? (Berlin, early 1925)
Who? (Kern-Hammerstein, late 1925)

[I've Grown So Lonesome] Thinking of You (Donaldson-Ash, 1926)
Thinking of You (Kalmar-Ruby, 1927)

I Found a Million Dollar Baby [in a Five and Ten Cent Store] (Rose-Fisher, 1926)
I Found a Million Dollar Baby [in a Five and Ten Cent Store] (Warren-Dixon-Rose, 1931)

Did You Mean It? (Baker-Silvers-Lyman, 1927)
Did You Mean It? (Dixon-Greer, 1936)

[Let's Do It] Let's Fall in Love (Porter, 1928)
Let's Fall in Love (Koehler-Arlen, 1933)


What others?

-Harold

Harold,

There are two very different songs called MAKE BELIEVE. Both very big hits. One from the early 20's and the other the late 20's. The latter of course was written for SHOW BOAT.

In The Still Of The Night (Hoagy Carmichael, 1932)
In The Still Of The Night (Cole Porter, 1937)
In The Still Of The Nite (The Five Satins, 1956)

Star-Dust: A Novelette (R. E. Hildreth, 1919)
Star Dust (Hoagy Carmichael, 1927)

Not quite on topic (sorry) but here's an odd one- a song somewhat rewritten and reissued.

The Sheik Of Araby (1921)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQZCn-3nMe0


That Night In Araby (1926)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfIE-CIONjA


Both tunes are by Ted Snyder. The verses are different but the choruses are pretty close.

I always get a mental blank when it comes to `Should I?' and `Would You?' - both Nacio Herb Brown songs, and both featured in `Singin' In The Rain', but not especially similar otherwise ...

Moonglow by John Frederick Barth (Sam Fox, 1918)
Moonglow by Hudson, Mills and DeLange (Mills, 1934)

A very rare example of two songs with the same "original" music, but different composers and lyrics:

"Be a Clown" by Cole Porter, in The Pirate (1948), and

"Make 'Em Laugh" by Brown & Freed, in Singin' in the Rain (1952).

Jim Gettys

One that I really should've remembered: there were two "Coquettes" within a year of each other. The first, published in early 1928, was written by Carmen Lombardo, Johnnie Green and Gus Kahn. I don't believe that it had an official connection to the Broadway play with Helen Hayes that had opened the previous year, but I'm sure the song was inspired by it in some ways. Guy Lombardo's orchestra plays it (and Carmen sings it) right here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4qcCIH0yg0

The second "Coquette", written by Irving Berlin, was tied in with the Pickford film, although I can't recall at the moment whether it was played on the soundtrack. While the lyrics and melody aren't as good (or memorable) as the Lombardo-Green-Kahn composition, careful handling can make it sound better. Frank Munn puts it over nicely:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QceHFNBHT5U

-Harold

A very rare example of two songs with the same "original" music, but different composers and lyrics:

"Be a Clown" by Cole Porter, in The Pirate (1948), and

"Make 'Em Laugh" by Brown & Freed, in Singin' in the Rain (1952).

Jim Gettys

Unofficially, though. The story goes that during the production of `Singin' In The Rain', it was decided to include a solo piece for Donald O'Connor with a tune along the lines of `Be a Clown'. Arlen came up with `Make 'Em Laugh', which was plainly so very close to the earlier song to verge on plagiarism, but nobody was willing to pick Arlen up on it.

No doubt there'd be a huge court case over it nowadays ...

The cue sheet for Beggars of Life has music for a title song with a different composer and different tune than the published "theme song" version. I've never seen the cue sheet version anywhere else, but at one point it must have been planned for the cross-marketing of that film.

I have two completely different pieces called Honey Bunch, one a reasonably well-known mid 1920s foxtrot by Walter Donaldson with words, the other an instrumental one-step (by Dan Caslar, 1915).

I have an orchestrated waltz called On a Moonlight Night by L. Wolfe Gilbert, 1921. I was looking for lyrics and came across sheet music from a waltz of exactly the same name, but it was a different piece by a different composer. I found this a bit odd because of the nonstandard usage. Normally it'd be "Moonlit," but at least two composers disagree.

The song I Ain't Got Nobody was originally published with the much more intriguing title I Ain't Got Nobody Much, but was later re-released under the abbreviated title. That's the opposite of your question, of course.

And, perhaps more topically, in 1926 there were two published pieces called The Marching Song of the Foreign Legion, one by James Bradford, and the other by Hugo Riesenfeld (included in his "Three Themes from Beau Geste"), and both published for use with the Paramount film.

"How Little We Know" - Hoagy Carmichael from "To Have and Have Not'
"How Little We Know" - Phillip Springer & Carolyn Leigh was a Sinatra hit single

Different title; same song! The tune "Blue Moon" had at least three different titles and lyrics by Rodgers and Hart. "What's New" was first titled: "I'm Free."

ALL ALONE, 1911, Harry Von Tilzer. Lovely cover with a girl on the telephone
http://www.indianamuseum.org/museumcoll ... 32&i=89444

All Alone, 1924, Irving Berlin....contains the line "All Alone, by the Telephone"
http://songbook1.wordpress.com/pp/fx/fe ... -cvr-1-d5/

Coincidence?

Another one that I knew about but forgot to include in my first post: "Learn to Croon". The first song with that title was written by Harold Arlen & Jack Yellen, originated in the 1931 Broadway musical You Said It and its chorus begins:

"Learn to croon a sentimental tune,
And end it with the words 'I love you'.
Learn to moan into a megaphone,
and it may be the making of you".

There aren't many versions available online, but I did find the one by Sunny Clapp and his Band o' Sunshine (Vic 22682):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hti9AaOeu4&NR=1.

The more famous song of this title originated in the film College Humor and is most associated with its star, Bing Crosby. It was written by Sam Coslow & Arthur Johnston.

-Harold

Smile & Show Your Dimple/Easter Parade by Irving Berlin.

These are pretty obscure ones.

Love Will Find A Way- Noble Sissle & Eubie Blake
Love Will Find A Way- Al Dubin & Joe Burke

Wouldn't It Be Wonderful - Lerner & Lowe
Wouldn't It Be Wonderful - Grant Clarke & Harry Akst

You'll Never Know- Harry Warren & Mack Gordon
You'll Never Know- Al Jolson, Arthur Franklin, Billy Rose

There are two songs called "Love Me Tonight" both from 1932- one by Crosby, Washington & Young, the other by Rodgers & Hart.

Go Home and Tell Your Mother (Abel Baer, Benee Russell, Ira Schuster) - 1927.
Go Home and Tell Your Mother (Dorothy Fields & Jimmy McHugh) - 1930.

Hallelujah, I'm a Bum - old folk standard that, although several versions were recorded in 1928, dates from much earlier.
Hallelujah, I'm a Bum (Rodgers & Hart) written for the the 1933 Al Jolson movie of the same name.

"When My Ship Comes In" (Walter Donaldson & Gus Kahn) from Eddie Cantor movie KID MILLIONS (1934).
"When My Ship Comes In" - in 1934 Betty Boop cartoon of the same name.

Sorry that I'm away from the actual records right now, so I can't post the composer information, but there is a Victor record by Fats Waller and his Buddies of a song called "Lookin' for Another Sweetie" which has the same melody as "I'm Confessin' That I Love You." Different composers-lyricists are credited.