21 songs released by The Beatles which were actually covers

Formed by George Harrison, Paul McCartney, John Lennon and Ringo Starr, The Beatles were one of the most successful and influential bands of all time. Their songwriting was incredible and inspired countless generations of artists worldwide and it will probably continue forever.

Although they became known as incredible songwriters they actually recorded many covers and some of those versions were so good that they kind of became really Beatles tracks, like “Twist and Shout”, for example. So we selected the 21 songs released by the Fab Four that were actually not originally written by them.

The 21 songs released by The Beatles which were actually covers

“Anna (Go To Him)”

Starting in chronological order, the first song we’ll mention is “Anna (Go To Him)” from their debut album “Please Please Me”, released in 1963. That song was written by the American Country-Soul singer and songwriter Jason Ankeny. The track was released by him in 1962 as the b-side for the song “I Hang My Head and Cry”.

“Chains”

The Beatles debut album is the one which had more covers and “Chains” is another song from that record which wasn’t written by Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Ringo Starr or George Harrison. It was released as a single by the American R&B girl group The Cookies in 1962. It had been written by the famous songwriters Gerry Goffin and Carole King.

“Boys”

Also from “Please, Please Me”, “Boys” became one of The Beatles most famous songs with the drummer Ringo Starr on vocals. Written by Luther Dixon and Wes Farell, the song was originally released by the American girl group The Shirelles. The track was part of their 1960 album “Tonight’s The Night”.

“Baby It’s You”

Another song originally recorded by The Shirelles, “Baby It’s You” was also part of the debut album by the Fab Four. It was originally released on their 1961 album of the same name. The track was written by Mack David, Luther Dixon and Burt Bacharach.

“A Taste of Honey”

Also part of their debut album, “A Taste of Honey” was written by Bobby Scott and Ric Marlow. It was originally an instrumental track written for the 1960 Broadway version of the 1958 British play of the same name. But The Beatles covered the version made by Lenny Welch, who was the first one that recorded a vocal version of the song in 1962.

“Twist and Shout”

“Twist and Shout” is probably the most famous Beatles song which is actually a cover and many people have no idea. But the track was written by Phil Medley and Bert Russell, being first recorded by the Isley Brothers in 1962.

“Till There Was You”

On their second album “With The Beatles”, released in 1963, there were many covers as well. The first one was “Till There Was You”, which was written by Meredith Wilson. That song was originally recorded by Anita Bryant, being released as a single in 1959.

“Please Mr. Postman”

Another famous song covered by The Beatles on their second album was “Please Mr. Postman”, written by Georgia Dobbins, William Garrett, Freddie Gorman, Brian Holland and Robert Bateman. It had already been a huge hit when it was originally recorded by the girls group Marvelettes in 1961.

 “Roll Over Beethoven”

The first Chuck Berry song The Beatles covered was “Roll Over Beethoven”, released by them on their second album. The track was originally recorded by the legendary American singer and guitarist in 1956, being released as a single.

“You Really Got a Hold on Me”

Also on “With The Beatles”, the song “You Really Got a Hold on Me” was originally written by Smokey Robinson and released by The Fabulous Miracles, band he was part of, in 1962. Curiously, George Harrison was a huge fan of Smokey and even recorded a song inspired by him during his solo career.

“Devil In Her Heart”

“Devil In Her Heart” was one of the first Beatles songs with George Harrison on vocals. But it was written by Richard B. Drapkin. That song was originally recorded by the American girl group The Donays, being released as a single in 1962.

“Money (That’s What I Want)”

The final cover of “With The Beatles”, the song “Money (That’s What I Want)” was originally written by Janie Bradford and Berry Gordy. That track was first released by the American singer Barrett Strong in 1959.

“Rock and Roll Music”

The second Chuck Berry cover released by The Beatles was “Rock and Roll Music”, which was part of their fourth album “Beatles for Sale”, released in 1964. That song was released by Chuck in 1957 as a single.

“Mr Moonlight”

Another song from “Beatles for Sale”, the track “Mr. Moonlight” was written by Roy Lee Johnson. But was first recorded by the American group Dr. Feelgood and the Interns in 1962, being released as a single.

“Kansas City/Hey-Hey-Hey-Hey!”

Written by Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller, Richard Penniman, the medley “Kansas City/Hey-Hey-Hey-Hey!” was also part of The Beatles’ fourth album. McCartney first discovered those songs in 1959, when listening to a Little Richard performance of that medley in 1955.

“Words of Love”

The Beatles had the chance to cover “Word of Love”, a song written by one of their biggest influences, the late legendary American singer and guitarist Buddy Holly. So he was a fundamental inspiration for the Fab Four and first released the track in 1957, two years before his tragic death at the age of 22.

“Honey Don’t”

Also from “Beatles For Sale”, the song “Honey Don’t” was written and first recorded by the legendary American singer and guitarist Carl Perkins, who first released that track in 1956 as a single.

“Everybody’s Trying to Be My Baby”

The second Carl Perkins song The Beatles covered on their fourth album was “Everybody’s Trying to Be My Baby”. The curious thing is that Perkins didn’t actually write the song all by himself. Because a track with the same name was written and recorded by Rex Griffin in 1936. So it was the one that inspired Perkins to write the new version, but he changed lyrics and gave the track a new arrangement.

“Act Naturally”

The Beatles started to write all the tracks from most of their albums released during their final years together. But there were still two covers on their 1965 album “Help!”. The first one was “Act Naturally”, written by Johnny Russell and Vony Morrison, being first recorded by Buck Owens and the Buckaroos in 1963.

“Dizzy Miss Lizzy”

The second cover present on “Help!” was “Dizzy Miss Lizzy”, which became even more famous as a Beatles track, was first written and recorded by the American singer Larry Williams in 1958. John Lennon, who was the vocalist on the Fab Four version, used to also play the track live when he was playing with the Plastic Ono Band.

“Maggie Mae”

The final Beatles cover was “Maggie Mae”, released on their final album “Let It Be”, in 1970. There is no exact info about who wrote the track because it was a traditional folk song in Liverpool, where they were born and grew up.