5 Music Legends Who Wrote Hit Songs They Didn’t Sing

Prince: “Manic Monday” by the Bangles

The 1986 single “Manic Monday” was recorded by the all-female rock quartet the Bangles, and many assume the group wrote the track. But the song was originally penned two years earlier by Prince, the same year he released the seminal album Purple Rain. 

Back in 1983, Prince founded an all-female singing trio called Apollonia 6. The following year he wrote “Manic Monday” for that band’s namesake album, though he ultimately opted to leave it off the record. Two years later, he decided it was the perfect song for the Bangles, who’d just made their debut with the 1984 album All Over the Place. 

According to Bangles founder Susanna Hoffs, Prince was a big fan of that album, specifically the song “Hero Takes a Fall.” Prince later showed up unexpectedly at a Bangles gig in San Francisco, where he hopped on stage and played a solo backed by the rest of the band.

In May 1985, Prince formally offered “Manic Monday” to the Bangles (along with the song “Jealous Girl,” which the band rejected). Songwriting credit was given to “Christopher” — a pseudonym meant to reference Prince’s character in the 1986 film Under the Cherry Moon. “Manic Monday” eventually peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in April 1986. Coincidentally, the No. 1 song that very same week was Prince’s own song, “Kiss.”

Willie Nelson: “Crazy” by Patsy Cline

“Crazy” is undoubtedly the defining song of Patsy Cline’s career. It’s also her only top 10 Billboard hit, having reached No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 in October 1961. But Cline didn’t pen this beautiful ballad; that credit belongs to country legend Willie Nelson. At the time, Nelson was in his mid-20s and just kicking off his own musical career.

In the late 1950s, Nelson used his daily commute to compose new song ideas. On one such journey, he wrote “Crazy” in less than an hour, though it was originally titled “Stupid.” The song was far from a hit at first, and he struggled to sell the tune because it was more complex than most country songs at the time. As Nelson told American Songwriter, “Crazy” “wasn’t your basic three-chord country hillbilly song,” and he ended up having “problems immediately… because it had four or five chords in it.”

In the 2023 book Energy Follows Thought: The Stories Behind My Songs, Nelson explained how the song ended up in Patsy Cline’s hands. It began when he brought a scratchy recording of the tune to Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium one night, where he met Cline’s husband, Charlie Dick. Dick loved the song so much that he drove Nelson over to his house at 1 a.m. and woke up Cline so she could listen to it. Cline went on to put her own spin on the tune, which became the hit we know today.

Neil Diamond: “I’m a Believer” by the Monkees

The Monkees started as a fictional band created for their namesake sitcom, which aired on NBC from 1966 to 1968. Despite the fact that they didn’t even play their own instruments at first (they relied on studio musicians for that), they eventually became a real-life pop sensation. 

Monkees songs topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart three separate times, including “Last Train to Clarksville” and “Daydream Believer,” both of which were written by other songwriters. The band also hit No. 1 with 1966’s “I’m a Believer,” which was written by a then up-and-coming Neil Diamond, who went on to become one of the bestselling musicians of all time.

Diamond cracked the Billboard Hot 100’s Top 10 for the first time on May 21, 1966 with his song “Solitary Man,” and hit No. 6 with “Cherry, Cherry” that August. His work caught the attention of the Monkees’ musical supervisor Don Kirshner, who reached out to Diamond’s producers and asked if he had any other songs similar to “Cherry, Cherry.” 

Diamond agreed to let the Monkees record “I’m a Believer,” which became a major hit for the group. Diamond later released his own version on his 1967 album Just for You, though it proved to be far less popular. During a 2008 interview with Mojo, he was asked if he was upset that the Monkees’ version performed better. He replied that he was “thrilled because, at heart, I was still a songwriter and I wanted my songs on the charts.”

The Bee Gees: “Islands in the Stream” by Dolly Parton & Kenny Rogers

On October 29, 1983, “Islands in the Stream” topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart, where it remained for two weeks. This beautiful duet between country legends Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton was a hit, earning Rogers his first No. 1 pop song since 1980’s “Lady” and Parton her first since 1981’s “9 to 5.” But despite both artists being talented songwriters in their own right, the song was actually written by Barry, Maurice, and Robin Gibb — collectively known as the Bee Gees.

In a 2001 interview with Good Morning America, Barry Gibb said the band originally wrote the tune for Diana Ross, although Gibb’s brother, Robin, interjected to say they actually wrote it for Marvin Gaye. Whatever the truth may be, the song ultimately fell into the hands of Kenny Rogers in 1983, with Barry Gibb producing. 

According to American Songwriter, Rogers was brought in to record the song solo, but ended up disliking the tune after four days of singing it. Barry introduced the idea of adding Dolly Parton — who happened to be downstairs at the studio — and making it a duet. Parton was brought into the room and completely transformed the song into the smash hit it remains today.

Paul McCartney: “Come and Get It” by Badfinger

Badfinger may not have achieved their success if it wasn’t for the mentorship of the Beatles. Back in 1968, they were the first band signed to the Beatles’ Apple Records label, and they even took their name from the working title of a Beatles song. (“With a Little Help From My Friends” was originally called “Bad Finger Boogie” since John Lennon performed it with an injured hand.) Badfinger can also credit their first major success to Paul McCartney, who wrote the top 10 hit song “Come and Get It.”

McCartney originally wrote “Come and Get It” for the 1969 movie The Magic Christian, which starred Beatles drummer Ringo Starr. McCartney recorded a demo of the song on July 24, 1969, and even considered including it on Abbey Road. But he decided to give the song over to Badfinger instead, and held auditions to determine which band member would sing lead. (Rhythm guitarist Tom Evans was the winner.) 

While the band suggested putting their own take on it, McCartney instructed them to perform it exactly like the demo and turned down any other suggestions. The result was a success, as “Come and Get It” peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on April 18, 1970, and spent 15 weeks total on the chart.