You know how there are these songs that have been around for such a long time and that are so widespread that you feel everyone knows them? Now what constitutes a classic song is a very personal and subjective process. People know music based on the people they meet, what they go through in life and when they were born. For instance, I was born in 1984, grew up listening to a bunch of 70s rock as that was my dad’s favorite music, my mom fed me Pink Floyd when I was 14 and through my early exposure to dance music I count that as part of my repertoire as well. I already wrote about some of my favorite 60s music here and here, but I have yet to list my all time favorite songs: my personal classics.
Pink Floyd – The Great Gig in the Sky
Like I said it was my mom who got me into Pink Floyd at the tender age of 14. It’s one of the few records I actually played over and over on my mom’s old record player when I was a teenager. This song has always stood out on the album and moves me every time I hear it. Timeless is the only way to describe this song.
Deep Purple – Child in Time
I was introduced to this song by my dad after a radio station played only half of it. The record he owned (and which he used to put the song on a cassette tape for me) had this Made in Japan live version on it and I still prefer it over the studio version. It is also one of my favorite all time songs and pretty much constitutes my introduction what I would call ‘real music’ (instead of bubble gum 90s pop).
The Babys – Isn’t it Time
Ah the 70s how epic you were for music. This song is one of the best pop songs ever in my honest opinion. I love the vocals in this and it makes me happy whenever I listen to it. Even though it’s from the 70s I definitely think that it is pretty timeless and could easily have come out of the 80s, 90s or 00s.
The Beach Boys – God Only Knows
This song is up there with Child in Time contending for the spot of my ‘favorite song ever’. It is completely different of course, but I love the vibe of this song. This utterly laid back vibe combined with the realness of the lyrics and the lovely vocal arrangements make this song just perfect.
Johnny Cash – A Boy Named Sue (Live at San Quentin)
Ah the Man in Black. I love me some Johnny Cash. Epic doesn’t quite cut it. Whether you like his music or not, there is no denying his talent. Especially his earlier work is so simple but yet the stories in the music are amazing. Again, I prefer this live version of the song as you get the reaction of the inmates of San Quentin State Penitentiary which makes the song really come to life.
So there you have it: 5 of my favorite classic songs that, if you didn’t know them yet, I think you really should. Now I could pick at least 10 songs per decade since the 50s that I count as my favorites of that decade, but I think these 5 songs pretty much sum up how great music has been in the past 50 odd years. Of course, the main absentee here are The Beatles, but they are definitely in a league of their own: I can’t pick just ONE song that I deem worthy enough to post exemplifying the epicness of their repertoire. So I will save a separate post just for that.
What are your All Time Classic Songs?