It 's the Same Old song - wikipedia It 's the Same Old song `` It 's the Same Old Song '' Single by Four Tops from the album Four Tops ' Second Album B - side `` Baby I Need Your Lovin ' '' ( Netherlands ) ; `` Your Love Is Amazing '' ( selected countries, namely in the West German, American and Australian markets ) ; `` I Ca n't Help Myself ( Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch ) '' ( on one copy in the UK ) Released July 9, 1965 Format 7 '' single Recorded Hitsville U.S.A. ( Studio A ) ; July 8, 1965 Genre Soul, pop Length 2 : 46 Label Motown Songwriter ( s ) Holland -- Dozier -- Holland Producer ( s ) Brian Holland Lamont Dozier Four Tops singles chronology `` I Ca n't Help Myself ( Sugar Pie Honey Bunch ) '' ( 1965 ) `` It 's the Same Old Song '' ( 1965 ) `` Something About You '' ( 1965 ) `` It 's the Same Old Song '' is a 1965 hit single recorded by the Four Tops for the Motown label. Written and produced by Motown 's main production team Holland -- Dozier -- Holland, the song is today one of The Tops ' signature songs, and was reportedly created -- from initial concept to commercial release -- in 24 hours. It reached number 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and # 2 on the Billboard R&B Singles chart. It also reached number 34 in the UK. Contents 1 Writing and recording 2 Personnel 3 Charts 3.1 Weekly charts 3.2 Year - end charts 4 Cover versions 5 Uses 6 Notes 6.1 References 7 External links Writing and Recording With the recent release of a previously unreleased version of `` It 's the Same Old Song '' recorded by the Supremes, the truth of the events on how the song came together for the Four Tops is put into question. Holland - Dozier - Holland originally wrote and cut a track of `` It 's the Same Old Song '' for the Supremes in May 1965 before the Four Tops ' version in July of that year. This first version would remain unreleased until 2017. A second version was cut in a very similar style to the Four Tops ' version would be released in 1967 on The Supremes Sing Holland - Dozier - Holland. After `` I Ca n't Help Myself ( Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch ) '' hit # 1 in June 1965, The Four Tops ' former label, Columbia Records, wanting to cash in on the group 's success, re-released the Tops ' 1960 Columbia single `` Ai n't That Love ''. Berry Gordy ordered that a new Four Tops single had to be released within a day 's time. At 3 : 00 PM that afternoon, the Holland brothers and Lamont Dozier wrote `` It 's the Same Old Song ''. Four Tops tenor Abdul `` Duke '' Fakir recalled : `` ( Songwriter ), Lamont Dozier and I were both a little tipsy and he was changing the channels on the radio. He said, ' It sounds like the same old song. ' And then he said, `` Wait a minute. '' So he took `` I Ca n't Help Myself ( Sugar Pie Honey Bunch ) '' and reversed it using the same chord changes. The next day, we went to the studio and recorded it, and then they put it on acetate, shipped it out to disc jockeys across the country. '' '' The engineering team worked around the clock perfecting the single 's mix and making hand - cut vinyl records so that Berry Gordy 's sister Esther in the Artist Development department could critique them and select the best ones for single release. By 3 P.M. the next day, 1500 copies of `` It 's the Same Old Song '' had been delivered to radio DJs across the country, and the song eventually made it to number five on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number two on the R&B chart. `` It 's the Same Old Song '' is very similar in melody and chord progressions to `` I Ca n't Help Myself '', which in turn is even more similar in melody and chord progressions to `` Where Did Our Love Go '' by the Supremes, who covered `` It 's the Same Old Song '' in 1967. Critic Maury Dean disputes that there is much in common with `` I Ca n't Help Myself '', saying that it is `` a dynamic NEW treatment, with just a hint of Benny Benjamin 's thundering drums echoing '' `` I Ca n't Help Myself ''. Allmusic critic Ron Wynn calls `` It 's the Same Old Song '' `` a tidy little number '' with `` one of the greatest lyrical hooks -- and titles -- ever. '' Fellow critic Steve Leggett calls it `` wise beyond its era. '' Pop music writers and bloggers have noted the similarity of the song 's main instrumental riff with the marimba riff in the Rolling Stones song `` Under My Thumb '' which was first released almost a year later, on April 15, 1966, as part of their album Aftermath. Personnel Lead vocals by Levi Stubbs Background vocals by Abdul `` Duke '' Fakir, Renaldo `` Obie '' Benson, Lawrence Payton, and The Andantes : Jackie Hicks, Marlene Barrow, and Louvain Demps Instrumentation by The Funk Brothers and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra ( strings ) Written by Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, and Edward Holland, Jr. Produced by Brian Holland and Lamont Dozier Charts Weekly charts Chart ( 1965 ) Peak position UK ( Official Charts Company ) 34 US Billboard Hot 100 5 US Billboard R&B US Cash Box Top 100 6 Year - end charts Chart ( 1965 ) Rank US Billboard Hot 100 83 US Cash Box Top 100 61 Cover versions In 1967, Australian singer Ray Brown ( following his split with The Whispers ), took his version into the Australian Top 10. In 1967 Siw Malmkvist recorded a version in Swedish, `` Samma gamla sång ''. Claude Francois released a cover version of the song in French, `` C'est la meme chanson ''. In 1971, Jonathan King covered the song with a completely different arrangement under the name The Weathermen and his version reached the UK Top 20 selling over 250,000 copies. In 1975, The Armada Orchestra included an instrumental version on their debut self - titled LP. In 1978, KC and the Sunshine Band did a disco - based cover of the song. Anticipated to be a big hit as the lead off single from the band 's `` Who Do Ya Love '' album, and on the heels of a succession of hits by the band, the record was a relative flop. It peaked at # 35 on Billboard 's Hot 100 chart, and at # 41 on both Record World 's and Cashbox 's top singles chart. Bandleader Harry Wayne `` KC '' Casey cited lack of airplay, especially from R&B outlets, as the source of the record 's chart failure. He stated, `` ( T ) he record never got played and... our records go R&B first and then crossover to pop. But this one did n't get the R&B support ; it did n't get the airplay. '' Casey suggested that -- perhaps due to T.K. Records distribution problems -- the `` It 's the Same Old Song '' single was n't easily accessible, saying `` ( W ) e 've had a lot of letters, too, from people who could n't buy the record anywhere. '' On May 29, 1978, K.C. and the Sunshine Band performed this song on the TV special `` Happy Birthday, Bob, '' celebrating the 75th birthday of comedian Bob Hope ; it was broadcast from the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Uses The group appeared in a 1997 Velveeta Shells & Cheese commercial, which first aired in 1996, where they spoofed `` It 's the Same Old Song '', with a song called `` It 's Not the Same Old Side. '' This commercial features the group performing in outfits of blue and yellow, to match the colors of the Velveeta Shells & Cheese box. The group also appeared in a promo for The Rosie O'Donnell Show, where they also spoofed `` It 's the Same Old Song '', with a song called `` It 's Not the Same Old Show ''. The song appears in the 1984 Coen Brothers film Blood Simple, in both the 99 - minute theatrical release and the 96 - minute 2001 and 2008 DVD releases. The song is not featured on the official soundtrack for the film, and is not on the 1995 99 - minute VHS release. Notes Jump up ^ `` It 's the Same Old Song The Four Tops - 45cat Search ''. Retrieved 3 October 2014. Jump up ^ Gilliland, John ( 1969 ). `` Show 25 - The Soul Reformation : Phase two, the Motown story. ( Part 4 ) '' ( audio ). Pop Chronicles. University of North Texas Libraries. Jump up ^ `` Four Tops Awards ''. Allmusic. Retrieved 2014 - 03 - 15. Jump up ^ `` Four Tops charts ''. officialcharts.com. Retrieved 2014 - 03 - 16. Jump up ^ Bronson, F. ( 1997 ). The Billboard Book of Number One Hits. Billboard Books. p. 209. ISBN 0823076415. Jump up ^ `` The Four Tops ''. Retrieved 3 October 2014. Jump up ^ Dean, M. ( 2003 ). Rock ' n ' Roll Gold Rush. Algora. p. 164. ISBN 0875862071. Jump up ^ Wynn, R. `` Second Album ''. Allmusic. Retrieved 2014 - 03 - 15. Jump up ^ Leggett, S. `` The Definitive Collection ''. Allmusic. Retrieved 2014 - 03 - 16. Jump up ^ Konnikova, Maria ( 2009 - 07 - 30 ). `` Copy Shop ''. The New Yorker. Retrieved 2016 - 09 - 29. Jump up ^ `` Oldie of the week -- Under my thumb, or It 's the same old song ( Stones or The Four Tops ? ) -- FOO Law and Economics ''. Foolawecon.wordpress.com. 2009 - 11 - 07. Retrieved 2016 - 09 - 29. Jump up ^ Joel Whitburn 's Top Pop Singles 1955 - 1990 - ISBN 0 - 89820 - 089 - X Jump up ^ Cash Box Top 100 Singles, September 11, 1965 Jump up ^ Musicoutfitters.com Jump up ^ Cash Box Year - End Charts : Top 100 Pop Singles, December 25, 1965 Jump up ^ `` KC & the Sunshine Band - Chart history ''. Billboard. Retrieved 2016 - 09 - 29. Jump up ^ Whitburn, Joel ( 2015 ). The Comparison Book. Ann Arbor, Michigan : Record Research Inc. p. 276. ISBN 978 - 0 - 89820 - 213 - 7. Jump up ^ `` Cash Box Top 100 6 / 24 / 78 ''. 98.130. 35.56. Retrieved 2017 - 10 - 21. ^ Jump up to : `` SoulMusic.com ''. www.soulmusic.info. Retrieved 2017 - 10 - 21. Jump up ^ Wynn, Bob ( 1978 - 05 - 29 ), Happy Birthday, Bob, Bob Hope, Lynn Anderson, Ann - Margret, retrieved 2017 - 10 - 21 Jump up ^ DavEvans066 ( 2015 - 05 - 15 ), KC & The Sunshine Band -- `` It 's The Same Old Song '', retrieved 2017 - 10 - 21 Jump up ^ Beckett, david ( March 27, 2013 ). `` Blood Simple -- Director 's Cut ( 2013 ) DVD ''. Film 365. References Dennis, Robert ( 1998 ). Our Motown Recording Heritage, Part 3 : Emergency Release. Recordingeq.com. External links Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics Four Tops Abdul `` Duke '' Fakir Ronnie McNeir Roquel Payton Harold Bonhart Levi Stubbs Renaldo `` Obie '' Benson Lawrence Payton Theo Peoples Studio albums Four Tops ( 1964 ) Four Tops Second Album ( 1965 ) On Top ( 1966 ) Reach Out ( 1967 ) Yesterday 's Dreams ( 1968 ) The Four Tops Now ! ( 1969 ) Soul Spin ( 1969 ) Still Waters Run Deep ( 1970 ) Changing Times ( 1970 ) Nature Planned It ( 1972 ) Keeper of the Castle ( 1972 ) Main Street People ( 1973 ) Meeting the Minds ( 1974 ) Night Lights Harmony ( 1975 ) Catfish ( 1976 ) The Show Must Go On ( 1977 ) At The Top ( 1978 ) Tonight ! ( 1981 ) One More Mountain ( 1982 ) Back Where I Belong ( 1983 ) Magic ( 1985 ) Hot Nights ( 1986 ) Indestructible ( 1988 ) Albums with The Supremes The Magnificent 7 ( 1970 ) The Return of the Magnificent Seven ( 1971 ) Dynamite ( 1971 ) Other albums The Ultimate Collection ( 1997 ) Singles ( US / UK Top Ten singles ) `` I Ca n't Help Myself ( Sugar Pie Honey Bunch ) '' ( 1965 ) `` It 's the Same Old Song '' ( 1965 ) `` Reach Out I 'll Be There '' ( 1966 ) `` Standing in the Shadows of Love '' ( 1966 ) `` Bernadette '' ( 1967 ) `` Walk Away Renée '' ( 1967 ) `` If I Were a Carpenter '' ( 1968 ) `` It 's All in the Game '' ( 1970 ) `` Still Water ( Love ) '' ( 1970 ) `` A Simple Game '' ( 1971 ) `` Keeper of the Castle '' ( 1972 ) `` Ai n't No Woman ( Like the One I 've Got ) '' ( 1973 ) `` When She Was My Girl '' ( 1981 ) `` Loco in Acapulco '' ( 1988 ) Related topics Discography Members Holland -- Dozier -- Holland The Supremes Book : Four Tops Four Tops singles discography 1960s 1964 `` Baby I Need Your Loving '' `` Without the One You Love ( Life 's Not Worth While ) '' 1965 `` Ask the Lonely '' `` I Ca n't Help Myself ( Sugar Pie Honey Bunch ) '' `` It 's the Same Old Song '' `` Something About You '' 1966 `` Shake Me, Wake Me ( When It 's Over ) '' `` Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever '' `` Reach Out I 'll Be There '' `` Standing in the Shadows of Love '' 1967 `` Bernadette '' `` 7 - Rooms of Gloom '' / `` I 'll Turn to Stone '' `` You Keep Running Away '' 1968 `` Walk Away Renée '' `` If I Were a Carpenter '' `` Yesterday 's Dreams '' `` I 'm in a Different World '' 1969 `` What Is a Man '' `` Do What You Gotta Do '' `` Do n't Let Him Take Your Love from Me '' 1970s 1970 `` I Ca n't Help Myself ( Sugar Pie Honey Bunch ) '' ( re-issue ) `` It 's All in the Game '' `` Still Water ( Love ) '' `` River Deep -- Mountain High '' ( with The Supremes ) 1971 `` Just Seven Numbers ( Can Straighten Out My Life ) '' `` You Gotta Have Love in Your Heart '' ( with The Supremes ) `` In These Changing Times '' `` MacArthur Park ( Part II ) '' 1972 `` A Simple Game '' `` Bernadette '' ( re-issue ) `` Walk with Me, Talk with Me, Darling '' `` ( It 's the Way ) Nature Planned It '' `` Keeper of the Castle '' 1973 `` Ai n't No Woman ( Like the One I 've Got ) '' `` Are You Man Enough '' `` Sweet Understanding Love '' `` I Just Ca n't Get You Out of My Mind '' `` One Chain Do n't Make No Prison '' `` Midnight Flower '' `` Seven Lonely Nights '' `` We All Gotta Stick Together '' 1976 `` Catfish '' `` I 'm Glad You Walked into My Life '' 1980s 1981 `` When She Was My Girl '' `` Do n't Walk Away '' 1982 `` Let Me Set You Free '' `` Back to School Again '' `` Sad Hearts '' `` Tonight I 'm Gonna Love You All Over '' `` I Believe in You and Me '' `` I Just Ca n't Walk Away '' 1985 `` Sexy Ways '' `` Reach Out I 'll Be There '' ( re-issue ) `` If Ever a Love There Was '' ( with Aretha Franklin ) `` Indestructible '' `` Loco in Acapulco '' Book : Four Tops Holland -- Dozier -- Holland Brian Holland Lamont Dozier Eddie Holland Songs 1962 `` Dearest One '' `` Old Love ( Let 's Try It Again ) '' `` Darling, I Hum Our Song '' 1963 `` Leaving Here '' `` Locking Up My Heart '' `` What Goes Up Must Come Down '' / `` Come on Home '' `` Tie a String Around Your Finger '' `` Come and Get These Memories '' / `` Jealous Lover '' `` You Lost the Sweetest Boy '' `` Heat Wave '' / `` A Love Like Yours ( Do n't Come Knocking Everyday ) '' `` ( He Wo n't Be True ) Little Girl Blue '' `` Mickey 's Monkey '' `` Too Hurt to Cry, Too Much in Love to Say Goodbye '' / `` Come on Home '' `` When the Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes '' / `` Standing at the Crossroads of Love '' `` I Gotta Dance to Keep From Crying '' `` Quicksand '' / `` Darling I Hum Our Song '' `` Live Wire '' / `` Old Love ( Let 's Try It Again ) '' `` Run, Run, Run '' / `` I 'm Giving You Your Freedom '' `` Can I Get a Witness '' 1964 `` A Tear from a Woman 's Eyes '' `` My Lady Bug Stay Away from That Beatle '' `` Like a Nightmare '' / `` If You Were Mine '' `` In My Lonely Room '' `` Just Ai n't Enough Love '' `` Where Did Our Love Go '' `` Baby Do n't You Do It '' `` Guarantee for a Lifetime '' `` Baby I Need Your Loving '' / `` Call on Me '' `` Candy to Me '' / `` If You Do n't Want My Love '' `` Whisper You Love Me Boy '' `` Baby Love '' / `` Ask Any Girl '' `` Come See About Me '' / ( You 're Gone But ) Always in My Heart '' `` Without the One You Love ( Life 's Not Worth While ) '' / `` Love has Gone '' `` You 're a Wonderful One '' `` How Sweet It Is ( To Be Loved by You ) '' 1965 `` Where Did You Go '' `` Stop ! In the Name of Love '' / `` I 'm in Love Again '' `` You 've Been a Long Time Coming '' `` Who Could Ever Doubt My Love '' `` Nowhere to Run '' `` Back in My Arms Again '' / `` Whisper You Love Me Boy '' `` I Ca n't Help Myself ( Sugar Pie Honey Bunch ) '' `` The Only Time I 'm Happy '' `` Mother Dear '' / `` He Holds His Own '' `` Nothing but Heartaches '' / `` He Holds His Own '' `` Love ( Makes Me Do Foolish Things ) '' `` It 's the Same Old Song '' / `` Your Love Is Amazing '' `` Mother Dear '' / `` Who Could Ever Doubt My Love '' `` I Hear a Symphony '' / `` Who Could Ever Doubt My Love '' `` Something About You '' `` Take Me in Your Arms ( Rock Me a Little While ) '' `` Darling Baby '' `` There 's a Ghost in My House '' 1966 `` ( I 'm a ) Roadrunner '' `` This Old Heart of Mine ( Is Weak for You ) '' `` Ask any Man '' `` My World Is Empty Without You '' `` Put Yourself in My Place '' `` There 's No Love Left '' `` Shake Me, Wake Me ( When It 's Over ) '' / `` Just as Long as You Need Me '' `` Helpless '' / `` A Love Like Yours ( Do n't Come Knocking Everyday ) '' `` Call on Me '' `` Love Is Like an Itching in My Heart '' / `` He 's All I Got '' `` Who Could Ever Doubt My Love '' `` I Like Everything About You '' `` I Guess I 'll Always Love You '' `` Nothing but Soul '' `` Love 's Gone Bad '' / `` Put Yourself in My Place '' `` You Ca n't Hurry Love '' / `` Put Yourself in My Place '' `` Little Darling ( I Need You ) '' `` Reach Out I 'll Be There '' / `` Until You Love Someone '' `` Stay in My Lonely Arms '' `` You Keep Me Hangin ' On '' / `` I Wanna Mother You, Smother You With Love '' `` You Keep Me Hangin ' On '' / `` Remove This Doubt '' `` Standing in the Shadows of Love '' / Since You 've Been Gone '' `` I 'm Ready for Love '' `` ( Come ' Round Here ) I 'm the One You Need '' `` Heaven Must Have Sent You '' 1967 `` Just One Last Look '' `` Love Is Here and Now You 're Gone '' / There 's No Stopping Us Now '' `` Your Love Is Amazing '' `` Jimmy Mack '' / `` Third Finger, Left Hand '' `` Bernadette '' / `` I Got a Feeling '' `` My World Is Empty Without You '' `` The Happening '' / `` All I Know About You '' `` Just Ai n't Enough Love '' `` 7 - Rooms of Gloom '' / `` I 'll Turn to Stone '' `` I Understand My Man '' `` Your Unchanging Love '' / `` I 'll Take Care of You '' `` Reflections '' / `` Going Down for the Third Time '' `` One Way Out '' `` You Keep Me Running Away '' / `` If You Do n't Want My Love '' `` I Got a Feeling '' `` In and Out of Love '' / `` I Guess I 'll Always Love You '' 1968 `` Whisper You Love Me Boy '' `` Forever Came Today '' `` I 'm in a Different World '' 1969 `` We 've Got a Way Out Love '' `` Crumbs off the Table '' 1970 `` Give Me Just a Little More Time '' `` ( You 've Got Me ) Dangling on a String '' `` Everything 's Tuesday '' `` Band of Gold '' `` Westbound # 9 '' 1972 `` The Day I Found Myself '' `` Do n't Leave Me Starvin ' for Your Love '' `` Why Ca n't We Be Lovers '' 1973 `` You 're Gonna Need Me '' `` We 're Almost There '' `` Just a Little Bit of You '' `` Early Morning Love '' `` Where Do I Go from Here '' 1976 `` I 'm Gonna Let My Heart Do the Walking '' `` High Energy '' `` Let Yourself Go '' 1982 `` We Can Never Light That Old Flame Again '' Related topics Motown Hot Wax Records Invictus Records List of songs written by Holland, Dozier and Holland Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=It%27s_the_Same_Old_Song&oldid=853151518 '' Categories : 1965 singles Four Tops songs Songs written by Holland -- Dozier -- Holland Motown singles Torch songs Song recordings produced by Brian Holland Song recordings produced by Lamont Dozier 1965 songs Hidden categories : Articles with hAudio microformats All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from March 2015 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Nederlands Edit links This page was last edited on 2 August 2018, at 19 : 26 ( UTC ). Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: who sang it's the same old song
Answer: Four Tops