Full Playlist Here
I suppose, you could say this is that classic rock playlist. When I reached out to all of you asking if you would like to see more playlists or reviews, it was EVEN. I guess you guys are loving both so I will of course continue to do both. This playlist is filled with tons of amazing classic rock hits; however, I obviously cannot go through every song because you really don’t want to read all of that and I definitely don’t have time to talk about each one. So, of course, I narrowed it down to fifteen. Now, this isn’t twenty that I chose. I put the playlist on shuffle and let the universe take control of what songs I will mention.
#1 The Weight – The Band: I’ve heard about this band for a majority of my life, but never started listening to them until last year. Come to find out, a great number of classic rock fans actually love The Band and their records are very rare to find. And the live version of this song is of course the best.
Favorite lyrics
“Take a load off Fanny, take a load for free, take a load off Fanny, and (and) (and) you put the load right on me”
#2 Hey Jude – The Beatles: I promise you, this is COMPLETELY random. I did not choose this song, this song chose me. A song I’m sure I have heard my entire life, though my earliest memory of listening to it was when I was ten years old when I first got into The Beatles. There’s so much to say about this song, yet everyone’s favorite lyrics are, “na na na na na na na”.
Favorite lyrics:
“And anytime you feel the pain, hey Jude, refrain, don’t carry the world upon your shoulders”
“And don’t you know that it’s just you, Hey Jude, you’ll do, the movement you need is on your shoulders”
#3 Whole Lotta Love – Led Zeppelin: I think this is pretty appropriate and essential to be on any classic rock playlist. Ever. My earliest memory of hearing this song is when my uncle, who’s in tons of local tribute bands, was in a tribute band at the time called “Houses of The Holy” when I was about twelve. A twelve-year-old girl, very shy, barely knowing the music, around tons of loud, drunk forty to fifty year olds screaming. It was quite the sight to see. Besides Stairway To Heaven, this is my second favorite Zeppelin song. The beginning riff gets me every time, makes me rock my head back and forth, move my body, etc.
Favorite lyrics:
“You’ve been cooling baby I’m not fooling, I’m gonna send ya back to schooling, a-way down inside a-honey you need it, I’m gonna give you my love, I’m gonna give you my love, want to whole lotta love”
#4 Beast Of Burden – The Rolling Stones: “Are you a Beatles girl or a Stones chick?”, is what someone asked me one time. I responded, “Beatles girl for life”. I love the Stones, but for some reason, I never truly started listening to them on my own, aside from hearing them on the radio and elsewhere, until this past year. Funny enough, this song is actually in the popular A&E TV show, Bates Motel, episode and the album is to be spinning on a record player. I always call this “my jam”, but I suppose in reality, it’s “my Stones jam”. Or at least one of them.
Favorite lyrics:
“I’ll never be your beast of burden, I’ve walked for miles my feet are hurting, al I want is for you to make love to me”
“I don’t need no beast of burden, I need no fussing I need no nursing, never, never, never, never, never, never, never be”
#5 Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love – Van Halen: What would this playlist be without the king himself? One of my FAVORITE Van Halen songs is this one, along with Panama, I listen to this song a ton when I’m in an 80s rock mood, or I just wanna hear some amazing guitar riffs.
Favorite lyrics:
“Ain’t talkin’ ‘bout love, my love is rotten to the core, ain’t talkin’ ‘bout love, just like I told you before, before, before”
#6 Stone In Love – Journey: Soon many amazing feelings and memories when I hear this song. Again, my uncle has been in a Journey tribute that is actually called, “Stone In Love”, since I was probably twelve. And this is my absolute favorite song by Journey. As my sister and I say, “This song makes you wanna kick over tables and chairs”. That’s how much we love this song.
Favorite lyrics:
“Those summer nights are calling stone in love, can’t help myself I’m falling, stone in love”
“In the heat with a blue jean girl burning love comes once in a lifetime, oh the memories never fade away, golden girl I’ll keep you forever”
#7 Star-Spangled Banner – Jimi Hendrix: So controversial. How Woodstock ended. There’s so much controversy about this version of America’s National Anthem because it’s “disrespectful” to the country, the song and the military. Being that Hendrix was making guns and bomb sounds with his guitar, which first of all how the actual hell, was a huge statement of what was happening in the world at the time of being in Vietnam. The creativeness. The focus. Everything is there with him. At the end of this video, he’s to be seen on a talk show with of course, the talk show host telling him what he did was “unorthodox”. “I didn’t think it was unorthodox. I thought it was beautiful. And there you go.”
#8 The Spirit Of Radio – Rush: Often not mentioned as one of the greatest rock bands ever for some reason, this is my favorite song by Rush. It’s extremely catchy and I love the message overall.
Favorite lyrics:
“All this machinery making modern music can still be open-hearted”
“One likes to believe in the freedom of music”
#9 All Along The Watchtower – Jimi Hendrix: Lyrically, I think this is his best song. Absolutely obsessed with it. And of course, there’s many different versions of this song, but this is of course the best version. And the guitar solo is as usual, amazing.
Favorite lyrics:
“There must be some way out of here said the joker to the thief”
“There are many here among us who feel that life is but a joke”
“All along the watchtower princes kept the view, while all the women came and went, barefoot servants too”
#9 Baba O’Riley – The Who: (Aka Teenage Wasteland) The first time I remember hearing this song I was twelve. Vh1 was televising a special program on The Who and this song was, of course, featured in the previews. I was hooked with the keyboard. Then I heard that extremely repetitive guitar riff. And I was gone. I started recognizing it on local classic rock stations, when I was at my uncle’s gigs, I started hearing it everywhere. Needless to say, it’s one of my favorite classic rock songs by a band who was way ahead of their time.
Favorite lyrics:
“Don’t cry, don’t raise your eye, it’s only teenage wasteland”
“Put out the fire and don’t look past my shoulder”
“The exodus is here, the happy ones are near, let’s get together before we get much older”
“Teenage wasteland, they’re all wasted”
#10 Something – The Beatles: One of my all-time favorite Beatles songs, especially since it’s George Harrison. The video is amazing as well. A song that I’ve been listening to since I was ten, but in more recent years I’ve appreciated so much more. Such a simple song, yet so much meaning. I, like many others, can’t ever help but to repetitively nod my head to this song.
Favorite lyrics:
“Somewhere in her smile she knows that I don’t need no other lover"
“Something in the way she knows and all I have to do is think of her”
#11 Guitar Man – Bread: I just discovered this song. JUST. My favorite guitar player, Jake Kiszka, shared it on his Instagram story the other day and I decided to take a listen for myself. I was pleasantly surprised how fond of the song I was straight away. I think it reminded me of being at concerts and how much I adore watching him play in person.
Favorite lyrics:
“Who draws the crowd and plays so loud, it’s the guitar man”
“Night after night who treats you right, it’s the guitar man”
“Then you listen to the music and you like to sing along, you want to get the meaning out of each and every song, then you find yourself a message and some words to call your own, and take them home”
#12 Under Pressure – Queen & David Bowie: It’s so complicated to choose which Queen song is my favorite. They have such amazing songs. I think, for a few years, this one has spoken to me the most.
Favorite lyrics:
“Insanity laughs under pressure we’re breaking, can’t we give ourselves one more chance”
“Why can’t we give love one more chance?”
“’Cause love’s such an old-fashioned word and love dares you to care for the people on the edge of the night, and love dares you to change our way of caring about ourselves, this is our last dance”
“This is ourselves, under pressure”
#13 I Won’t Back Down – Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers: A song I’ve been listening to on repeat for the past two or three years. It’s one of my top favorite motivational songs and I’m just in love with Tom Petty’s such simple yet powerful music.
Favorite lyrics:
“And I’ll keep this world from draggin’ me down, gonna stand my ground, and I
won’t back down”
“Hey baby there ain’t no easy way out, hey I will stand my ground, and I won’t back down”
#14 Reelin’ In The Years – Steely Dan: I know Steely Dan isn’t exactly included in “classic rock”, but I feel like they’re pretty initial for me flexing between rock, pop and jazz. This song is one I’ve probably been listening to since I was at least six.
Favorite lyrics:
“Are you reelin’ in the years? Stowin’ away the time? Are you gathering up the tears? Have you had enough of mine?”
“You’ve been telling me you were a genius since you were seventeen, in all the time I’ve known you I still don’t know what you mean, the weekend at the college didn’t turn out like you planned, the things that pass for knowledge I can’t understand”
#15 Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic – The Police: Comin’ in hot at number fifteen is The Police (who I almost forgot) who is one of my favorite bands. I really started listening to them two or three years ago and haven’t been able to escape them, or this song since then. The music video for this song is one of my favorite music videos of all time.
Favorite lyrics:
“Every little thing she does is magic, every little thing she do just turns me on, even though my life before was tragic, now I know my love for her goes on”
“I resolve to call her up a thousand times a day, and ask her if she’ll marry me some old-fashioned way, but my silent fears have gripped me long before I reach the phone, long before my tongue has tripped me, must I always be alone”
What are YOUR favorite classic rock hits?
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