It’s not uncommon for a song to be written by an artist, then given to a friend for some reason. Most times the song is a mild hit or never charts, but just as many times the song is such a smash the writer wishes they never let it go.
Three Dog Night’s “Joy to the World” was written by country star Hoyt Axton. At the time Hoyt was happy to let Three Dog record it, and bore no hard feelings – remember he got all the royalties for the song’s commercial success.
Although the song “Nothing Compares 2U” by Prince was recorded by the star, he gave the green light for Sinead O’Connor to take a swing at it; it proved to be one of her biggest tunes.
Finally, The Monkees were a 60s phenomenon that sang a ton of hit songs on the show, translating to radio airplay and record sales. Did you know that Neil Diamond, Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart (Boyce and Hart), Carole King and Andy Kim wrote all the prominent tunes?
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