Update: ‘Spoonful of Sugar’ and ‘Imperial March’ sound like ‘El Capitan’ by John Phillip Sousa

Here’s an update to the October 14th 2009 Sound-a-like: “A Spoonful of Sugar” from Walt Disney’s Mary Poppins and the “Imperial March” from The Empire Strikes Back. Readers commented that both songs share a similar motif from John Philip Sousa’s march “El Capitan”, written in 1896, the same year he wrote the revered “Stars and Stripes Forever”.

So, if you haven’t already, listen to just how similar the “Imperial March” is to “A Spoonful of Sugar”.

Then check out how both of these tunes borrow from Sousa’s “El Capitan”.

Thanks to some well tuned ears for this update. Can anyone suggest other examples of this motif in the history of recorded music?

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