THE SCORE: Drops of 'Drift Away' in Her Hair

There are only so many appealing chord progressions in music. Even with synthesizers and other technological developments, artists often find themselves navigating through sonic waves that were staples of their predecessors. And so, as time passes, it seems inevitable that contemporary songs -- subconsciously or not -- borrow from ones that were written decades earlier.

Take the Offspring's seemingly effortless (and decade-old!) radio hit, "Why Don't You Get a Job?," whose similarities to the Beatles' "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" did not go unnoticed. To be sure, there are probably hundreds -- if not thousands -- of examples. There's even a cleverly satirical performance by stand-up comedian Rob Paravonian about the almost-unavoidable recycling of classical music.

Here's a juxtaposition that can be added to the proverbial list, although it should be noted that other listeners have heard the connection as well:

• Dobie Gray -- "Drift Away" (1973)
• Train -- "Drops of Jupiter (Tell Me)" (2001)

Not surprisingly, the chord constructions in the corresponding choruses -- (B-F#-E) and (C-G-F) -- are essentially congruent. But, as is audible below, the resemblance is more obvious than letters on a screen might suggest:

Dobie Gray didn't write this classic, but his version is perhaps the most famous:

Nearly 30 years later, Train's "Drops of Jupiter" dominated the charts for months:

When you put them together, it comes out something like this ... sort of. Give him the beat, boys.