10 Rock Songs That Ripped Off Other Songs
4. The Red Hot Chili Peppers Tribute To Heartland - Dani California
By the time the Red Hot Chili Peppers got around to making Stadium Arcadium, they had nothing left to prove to anyone in the music industry. After reuniting with guitarist John Frusciante, the band had made two of the greatest records of the decade in Californication and By the Way and were now ready to go even bigger with a double album's worth of material.
While "Dani California" was a no brainer for a single with its bouncy groove and infectious chorus, the subtle lifts in the playing don't seem to be as original as the Peppers may have wanted. Most of the verse groove is taken from the verses of Tom Petty's "Mary Jane's Last Dance." On the other hand, the way Anthony Kiedis spits his verses over those chords is something far removed from Petty's more laid-back delivery.
The cribbing of ideas doesn't stop there though, with Frusciante's recurring solo theme being lifted practically note-for-note from the opening of Jimi Hendrix's "Purple Haze." While the Petty connotation may be excused, the solo section is almost impossible to ignore if you've heard the Hendrix tune at least once. These similarities don't negate the quality of the song, but the Chilis could have been in less hot water if they covered their tracks a little bit more on this one.