When Is A Cover Version Not A Cover?

[major_clanger]

In the course of a discussion on cover versions at coth's party at the weekend, I commented that most people thought Cydni Lauper had covered Roy Orbison's I Drove All Night, when it had really been the other way around. This surprised a few people, so I thought I'd better check that I had my facts straight.

Well, as explained here, I was half right. I Drove All Night was written by Tom Kelly and Billy Steinberg, who wrote a lot of Lauper's material. It was offered to Orbison, who recorded a rough demo, but ended up being recorded by Lauper and released on her A Night To Remember album, which came out shortly after Orbison died. The Orbison demo was later edited and released posthumously, and it is now the version that most people remember.

So, in actual fact neither Cyndi Lauper nor Roy Orbison covered the other. Both recorded I Drove All Night separately, Orbison before Lauper; Lauper's version was released first, but Orbison's ultimately became better known.

This post has been brought to you by the Campaign For Real Musical Pedantry.

MC