The Green Day album, Dookie was a cornerstone of my youth experience. Everyone I know owned it. I use to love every song on the album. I still own it and i’m not sure if I legitimately still like some of the songs or if it’s based solely on nostalgic feelings. Either way, I never followed their career with much zeal after that album. I’m especially not buying their new status as aging rock opera art damaged bullshitters.
Anyway, driving home the other day I heard their song “Warning” on the radio. I hadn’t heard it since it came out about a decade ago. I didn’t care for it than and I sure as hell didn’t care for it now, yet it seemed somehow oddly familiar to me. I realized this was because it sounded identical to one my current favorite songs, “Picture Book” by the Kinks from their 1968 album, The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society (I know, ridiculous title. But they are British and it was the 1960′s). Now i’m not a musician, so I can’t tell you if the cords are exactly the same. But they sound pretty similar to me.
Example #1, “Picture Book” by The Kinks
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Example #2, “Warning” by Green Day
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To my knowledge this isn’t the first time they’ve done something like this. Even in 7th grade when Insomniac was released I knew the thundering riffs of “Brain Stew” we’re just a rip off of the Chicago’s 1970 song, “25 or 6 to 4″. This one isn’t as exact, but you can still hear it. Green’s day version is alot slower and “grungier”
Example #1, “Brain Stew” by Green Day
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Example #2, “25 or 6 to 4″ by Chicago
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You be the judge
Chicago never had a Godzilla remix though so who is the real loser?
[...] band never got the acclaim other British bands received, but they are fucking great. We now know Green Day shamelessly ripped them off. Oh, and the song isn’t about children’s books apparently picture book is British for [...]