A blatant ripoff?

[Corey]

I was just playing over the changes to the jazz standard "Love for Sale" [Dexter Gordon Version] and I noticed that, and correct me if I'm wrong, the theme from the "Six Million Dollar Man" completely rips off the turnaround from this song. Pikers! But, being as it's been at least 24 years since I have actually heard the theme to the six million dollar man, I'm not sure. And now it's bothering me quite deeply. Seems to me it's a total 100% shameless rip off though.

I figured that knowledge of this might help you someday in your quest for power and/or fame...

Corey Milner
Creative Director, Indigo Rose Software (http://www.indigorose.com)

[Lorne]

Weird...I can't remember the music from the six million dollar man at all. All I can remember is the "tsi tsi tsi tsi tsi tsi tsi tsi..." sound and "Gentlemen, we have the technology." /ubbthreads/images/icons/smile.gif

[Corey]

When we were kids we used to lapse in and out of slow motion randomly [whilst playing] to simulate that bionic moment and when we were in slow motion mode we would always make that "Tsi tsi tsi tsi tsi" sound... (more of a "eh eh eh eh eh eh" really though) Actually I still do that to this very day, maybe that's why I'm single...

Corey Milner
Creative Director, Indigo Rose Software (http://www.indigorose.com)

[Lorne]

Can't be...I still do that sometimes, and I'm married. /ubbthreads/images/icons/smile.gif

Funny how these shows from when we were kids stick with us. Like watching Dukes of Hazard as an adult and realizing that, no, it wasn't very good at all.

Still can't remember the $6,000,000 man theme song though. All my attempts to conjure it up just result in the "dunna, dunna dunna, dunna, dunna, dunna dunna dunna..." of the Knight Rider theme song...

[Corey]

I outgrew TV by the time Knight Rider arrived, that besides my full on complete disregard for all things Hasselhoffian. Possum on a gumbush.

To compound the mystery, here is the offending snippet:

Click here to hear the snippet (http://www.indigorose.com/temp_web/trash.mp3)

Corey Milner
Creative Director, Indigo Rose Software (http://www.indigorose.com)

[Corey]

A-ha one more culprit revealed. The last line lyrics to $6,000,000 man theme http://www.culttelly.co.uk/lyrics/sixmillion.html seem similar to the robotic hit song by Daft Punk, "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger". Is there no end to the larceny? Hehe...

BTW did you know there's a Fonzie song, I didn't but thanks to my research into $6,000,000 man theme I do now...

http://franklarosa.com/vinyl/AudioPlay.jsp?File=FonzSong.rm

Also

Laverne & Shirley
http://franklarosa.com/vinyl/Exhibit.jsp?AlbumID=66
The Odd Couple Sings
http://franklarosa.com/vinyl/Exhibit.jsp?AlbumID=84
Bill Cosby Sings
http://franklarosa.com/vinyl/Exhibit.jsp?AlbumID=64

You get the idea, they're all here in full audio plus much more nauseum invoking stuff:
http://franklarosa.com/vinyl/

My favorite, Muhammed Ali vs. Tooth Decay
http://franklarosa.com/vinyl/Exhibit.jsp?AlbumID=82&byDate=1

I pick Ali in the 6th because tooth decay is a fool and a chump. Dig those crazy lyrics, "Who put the crack in the liberty bell? Who gave that bell a real good smack?" etc... Don't miss Frank Sinatra trying to sell evil ice cream to the kids...

A close second for favorite was the Banana Splits primarily because they had such a profound influence during my formative years:
http://franklarosa.com/vinyl/Exhibit.jsp?AlbumID=65

My least favorite "William Shatner: Captain of the Starship" subtitled, "When William Shatner's career was on the skids" :
http://franklarosa.com/vinyl/Exhibit.jsp?AlbumID=56

Actually I liked the subtitle. This album would be a good solution to punishing young offenders I would think. Actually this whole site might be good for that.


And on that note, still haven't found the theme to seix million dollar man, but now that I've listened to love for sale a few more times I'm no longer certain if it's the theme to $6,000,000 man which steals this riff or in fact the theme to the bionic woman. I'm on the case though and when I crack this one wide open the world will never be the same again.

Corey Milner
Creative Director, Indigo Rose Software (http://www.indigorose.com)

[AGRO]

Just found it.....

Six Million Dollar Man theme .mp3 (http://www.ericvision.com/3d/smdm.mp3)

[Corey]

DEJA VU! Thank you AGRO! One more reason why you da bomb.

OK so it was the theme to the bionic woman I was thinking of after all, drat. (The part that goes da-nuh-nuh na-nah nuh-nuh, da-nuh-nuh na-nah nuh-nuh, da-DUNNNNNNN...) Now we need to find the theme to the bionic woman, if you see it let me know. /ubbthreads/images/icons/smile.gif Then we'll bust this caper wide open and let the chips fall where they may. Although I think even the revelations about Daft Punk so far already justify the whole investigation. PIKERS!!! Better lock your bikes when Daft Punk comes to town kids... Hehe...

BTW 3 more things I realize I love about this:

http://franklarosa.com/vinyl/BigImg/ali.jpg

1. That guy's name is Arther. According to my roomate whois a language expert this, at some point in his family's history, was undoubtedly due to a spelling error. Same way Elvis got named, Aron, etc.

2. The rainbow on the cover wa clearly done freehand with magic marker by someone shaky, especially love the little straight edge distortion near the bottom right from where the artist had an errant piece of paper beneath their drawing sheet and so left an impression and then just tried to make it look like it meant to be that way. Now THAT'S art history. It appears Mr. Tooth Decay was created with same markers, nowadays no record company would approve that. Too bad. There's something to be said for the human quality of old album art.

3. The price declares proudly in slightly crooked letters, "$2.98".

Corey Milner
Creative Director, Indigo Rose Software (http://www.indigorose.com)

[John-oh]

Corey ..

I'm sure I've suggested this before but :

Try to get out more..

(You will feel better for it)

Anyway enough of all this american piffle ..

Try this :

www.bbc.co.uk/cult/ilove/tv//who/yoyo.shtml (http:// www.bbc.co.uk/cult/ilove/tv//who/yoyo.shtml )

Oh no, this means I need to get out more often ..

LL&P

J

[Corey]

Hey great, another 42 hour long, 12 part BBC special on how the government makes Stilton cheese... (Is this the wild, uncut director's version where Sir Jeffrey Hives attempts to promulgate his controversial theory on mesophilic vs. thermophilic starter cultures without first filling out a R-1241 form? Gasp...) I'm on the edge of my seat...

What's next, Sir William Maxwell Aitken reads the extended Dickens in extra-super-slow motion? Wait, let me get my party hat and camera...

Good grief man, this is vital stuff here. Musical piracy is no small guffaw, just ask Rick James. Or Muhammed Ali...
Or, if you're looking for a British equivalent, Sir William Maxwell Aitken's prized corgi, "Queeny". Ask Queeny, she'll tell you.

Corey Milner
Creative Director, Indigo Rose Software (http://www.indigorose.com)

[AGRO]

Is this the Bionic Woman Theme? I found it but it does not sound familiar....

Bionic Woman Theme .mp3 (http://www.ericvision.com/3d/bw.mp3)

[Corey]

Man that's dramatic, pure syrup. Whoever wrote that theme should be sued. But that's it allright, those violins grind some old neuro pathway...

OK now I know exactly what theme it was from after all, Wonder Woman. (The part that goes da-nuh-nuh na-nah nuh-nuh, da-nuh-nuh na-nah nuh-nuh, da-DUNNNNNNN...) Not sure why my brain morphed that with the bionic duo but I certainly thank you for being the one to jog my memory AGRO. What an odd process. OK so it was Wonder Woman all along, I always suspected that Lynda Carter had a larcenous side. Now all I have to do is find the theme to Wonder Woman and the case is closed. AGRO? /ubbthreads/images/icons/smile.gif

Corey Milner
Creative Director, Indigo Rose Software (http://www.indigorose.com)

[AGRO]

You ask, and shall receive.......

Wonder Woman Theme .mp3 (http://www.ericvision.com/3d/ww.mp3)

[Corey]

THAT'S IT! We got 'em, book 'em Danno... See for yourself... (although non-musicians may or may not recognize this as being "musically speaking" the exact same hook, but it is. 100% the exact same hook)

The original hook from the old jazz standard "Love for Sale"

http://www.indigorose.com/temp_web/trash.mp3

The culprit from the "Wonder Woman Theme":

http://www.indigorose.com/temp_web/trash2.mp3

Here it is looped 2 for 2 for easy reference:

http://www.indigorose.com/temp_web/trash3.mp3

I'm 100% convinced. Those two are compositionally identical and this is indeed the thing my brain had been twigging to this morning. Indeed. Now I can rest assured, although I now see it as more of a coincidence than a ripoff really...

Thanks AGRO...

Corey Milner
Creative Director, Indigo Rose Software (http://www.indigorose.com)

[AGRO]

No problem Corey. Glad we could put your mind at ease.

You are right, when you have the two songs side by side and they really do sound alike, to alike. I wonder if the patent lawers would have a field day with this? Anywho, glad I could help.

[Corey]

Well I can say this. Charles Fox, the composer in question, BTW here's a look at his portfolio:

Charles Fox
Love American Style - series composer
The Bugaloos - series composer
Barefoot in the Park - series composer
Me and the Chimp - series composer
Happy Days - series composer
Laverne and Shirley - theme song
Wonder Woman - theme song
Goodtime Girls - series composer

Would most certainly have been extremely familiar with the song Love for Sale, which is a Cole Porter song. Of this we can be 100% certain. We can also be reasonably certain he is most likely a fan of this song. So.... We can also be reasonably certain by the other songs in his portfolio that he's a total cheesebag, doubtless a pretty conformist dude without an artsistic axe to grind. So all in all who knows, I certainly wouldn't put it past him, after all his name is Fox, as in sly like one.

But I LOVE how you're all serious about it... Excellent.

Personally this has all been just for fun. The truth is that I think it's fine for artist's to quote each other in their work, there's a long tradition of that going back centuries in music, art, and writing and I wish that could stay the same. /ubbthreads/images/icons/smile.gif

Corey Milner
Creative Director, Indigo Rose Software (http://www.indigorose.com)

[Bruce]

Sounded like the Wonder Woman theme song to me....

[Lorne]

Why am I not surprised...

/ubbthreads/images/icons/smile.gif

[Corey]

[Insert Tarzan yell here]

Corey Milner
Creative Director, Indigo Rose Software (http://www.indigorose.com)

[sterling]

Wow - GREAT thread!

Corey, I have another PAIR of offenders for you.

I was learning Sade's "By Your Side" [a hit from a year or two ago], and realized that the chord progression is from not one but TWO hit songs. "She's Got A Way About Her" by Billy Joel, which sounds exactly like the progression from "Freebird" by Lynyrd Skynyrd. Coincidence? YOU DECIDE. <DUN-duh>

If I remember correctly, in the late eighties there was a group called "Will To Power" [they get points for the only Nietzsche reference I can think of in popular music] who had a hit with a medley of "Freebird" and "Baby I Love Your Way" by Peter Frampton. I haven't learned Frampton's song yet out of fear that it would turn out to be the exact same chord progression yet again!

Try it and see:

http://www.fretplay.com/tabs/s/sade/by_your_side-crd.shtml

[Corey]

Naw, I've been doing "By your side" ever since it came out, I still do it, played it last week at a gig actually. Seems OK to me. It's all good as they say. I was just having fun with this. /ubbthreads/images/icons/smile.gif

Corey Milner
Creative Director, Indigo Rose Software (http://www.indigorose.com)