The Voice Australia fans are stunned to learn the depressing truth about Daryl Braithwaite’s The Horses – as the rock star duets with winner Chris Sebastian
For many Australians, Daryl Braithwaite’s The Horses is as sacred as the national anthem.
But when the 71-year-old rocker performed his signature track with Chris Sebastian during The Voice finale on Sunday, some fans were surprised to learn it wasn’t actually his composition.
Despite being the defining song of his career, The Horses is actually a cover version.
It’s a cover! When Daryl Braithwaite (pictured) performed his signature song, The Horses, with Chris Sebastian during The Voice Australia finale on Sunday, some fans were surprised to learn it wasn’t actually his composition
The Horses was written by American singer Rickie Lee Jones and songwriter Walter Becker for Jones’ 1989 album, Flying Cowboys.
Daryl recorded his version of The Horses for his 1990 album, Rise.
It was released as a single the following year, reaching No. 1 in the ARIA charts and eventually being certified six-times platinum.
Despite being written by two Americans, the track is synonymous with Australian popular culture and is among the most-requested songs at weddings.
Daryl himself has acknowledged the irony of the song’s popularity Down Under, saying in May 2016: ‘I am sure that Rickie Lee Jones and Walter Becker could never imagine how endearing the song would and has become.’
During The Voice finale on Sunday night, several fans tweeted the little-known fact about The Horses being a cover version.
One viewer wrote: ‘When you realise Daryl Braithwaite made a fortune and career from covering someone else’s song…’
Another added: ‘Just a public service announcement to say that The Horses by Daryl Braithwaite is a cover. Thank you.’
It’s not the first time Aussies have expressed their surprise about the song’s origins.
In November 2016, one fan tweeted: ‘I just found out that Daryl Braithwaite’s the horses is a cover and I don’t believe in nothing no more.’
Asian-Australian writer and broadcaster Benjamin Law once joked that it must be very confronting for white Australians to realise their anthem is actually a cover.
In a viral Twitter post from September 2018, he wrote: ‘The only way to make a white Australian feel displaced in their own country is to tell them Daryl Braithwaite’s Horses is actually a cover.’
Chris Sebastian, who is the younger brother of coach Guy Sebastian, went on to win The Voice after his stirring performance of Horses with Daryl.
He took home the $100,000 cash prize and a recording contract with EMI.