Iconic Songs
- Dan Marich
- Apr 8
- 4 min read
I was watching my favorite show on TV last night, "Top Ten Revealed" on AXS TV, and it got me thinking about iconic songs that stand above all others. For me the song has to be one that was transformational for the music industry. Let's face it there are thousands of really great songs that have been recorded but honestly only a few would be considered iconic.
Now, the songs are different from a recording artist, or event, that might have been iconic. Nobody will deny that the Beatles changed not only music but the world. Also, Woodstock, Live Aid, We Are The World were all events that had significant impact on history too. But none of these fall into the iconic song category. (While We Are The World is a song the event of recording it was more of an impact than the song itself ever was.)
I limited this list to songs since the Rock era began. And the list is in no particular order other than closely related to the release date of the song. I will include a Youtube link to each song for you to enjoy.
I'll start with Woody Guthrie and his hit song "This Land is Your Land". Folk music was a genre that was fairly unknown to the masses until Guthrie released this in response to Kate Smith's "God Bless America" hit in 1940. While it predates the rock era by a few years there is no doubt that it is iconic and has been inducted into the Library of Congress in 2022.
Bill Haley and the Comets are acknowledged to be the band that kicked off the rock era with their hit "Rock Around the Clock". Combining blues and blue grass they created what was called rockabilly and was the precursor to rock and roll. It spawned Elvis Presley, Little Richard, Chuck Berry and others who were the godfathers of rock.
Bob Dylan's "Blowing in the Wind" took folk and turned it into folk rock. Regarded as one of the greatest song writers of all time this song, of his many, stands alone for its inspiration to song writers and musicians to follow. This protest song asked rhetorical questions about peace, war, and freedom. Peter, Paul, and Mary released it a year later and had a bigger hit but it was Dylan's version inducted into the Rock Hall of Fame.
The Beach Boys 1966 release from Pet Sounds of "God Only Knows" was described by no less than Paul McCartney as the greatest song ever written, so that puts it in rarified air. The melody, the lyrics, the chords, all are in perfect harmony on this song and that makes it iconic. Many have described the entire album as iconic also and it is hard to argue that.
The angst and anger of the 1960's was finally coming back down to a quiet recovery when the kings of soft rock released "Bridge Over Troubled Waters" and the world went - wow! They had a string of hits during this time but this song remains a classic rock ballad that continues to give you goose bumps when you hear it.
Well you knew there had to be a Beatles song on this list. There are so many to choose from but most music experts and fans regard "Yesterday" as the song of the Beatles. It is the most covered song of all times so it must have hit a chord. As they constantly created new sounds, this songs told the music industry that it was alright to do a ballad if you were a rock group. https://youtu.be/wXTJBr9tt8Q?si=wOSc-piFJ1kemtMk
Country music was almost exclusively played and enjoyed in the deep south until Tammy Wynette released "Stand By Your Man" in 1968 and blew open the door for this music to the rest of the country. There have been many great country songs before her hit but this one was the trigger to making country mainstream and that is why it makes my list.
Led Zeppelin created some of the greatest songs ever made but one song will always remain as the most iconic of their collection. "Stairway to Heaven" and the opening chords have been learned by every single kid that ever picked up a guitar and tried to play it. It is regarded as one of the top five songs ever recorded by Rolling stone magazine.
When you look up iconic in the dictionary this song is the definition. Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Free Bird" may be the most iconic song of all time. You cannot watch video of a concert without hearing the audience scream for every band they ever see to play this song, even if it isn't theirs. If you don't get caught up in it while listening then you are likely dead inside.
The greatest singer of all time of course is on this list with one of the greatest songs of all time, "My Way." Nobody belts this out like Francis Albert Sinatra does, no matter how many have covered it. There isn't a karaoke bar, or any bar for that matter, that doesn't hear this song played and sung by everyone there at least once a night.
I can hear you gasping, Nirvana? There isn't anyone that is a student of music that won't tell you that this group and their hit song, "Smells Like Teen Spirit" changed the music industry and introduced everyone to the world of grunge. The first time you ever heard this song you knew it was something like you've never heard before and that things were about to change. Now, I'm not going to compare them to the Beatles but it is undeniable the influence they had on the world with this song.
So, there is my list of the most iconic songs since the start of the rock era. You might agree or not but I hope you enjoy the list and the songs.
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