3 Classic Rock Songs About All the Fish in the Sea

There seems like there’s a fish pun or saying for just about any time of the year. Whether you’re lacking in romance—there’s always more fish in the sea. Or if you’re heading back to school. Or even if you’re just enjoying the end of summer out there on a boat—fishing is a staple of human existence. So, why not celebrate it in music, too?

Here below, we wanted to explore three classic rock songs that do just that. Three songs that highlight fish in some creative, fun ways. A trio of tracks for those who just want to let their line out and hope something on the end other bites. Indeed, these are three classic rock songs about all the fish in the great blue sea.

[RELATED: Four Dave Matthews Band Deep Cuts]

“Fish On” by Primus from Sailing the Seas of Cheese (1991)

Primus frontman Les Claypool is a big fisherman. And the bass master let that be known on this track from the band’s 1991 LP Sailing the Seas of Cheese. The track is about the fun and glory of fishing and just how much Claypool loves it. On the track, he sings in his signature quirky style over heavy music, offering,

I was just a little pup
And it was derby day
It was dad and me and Darrell
Out in San Pablo Bay
Taco-flavored Doritos
And my orange life vest
Dad caught a hundred pound sturgeon
On twenty-pound test
Now, he fought that fish for ’bout an hour and a half
Darrell’d say, “Jump, you sons a b—c!”
And he grabbed for the gaff
When we got him in the boat
He measured six feet long
I was so danged impressed
I had to write this song called

“Big-Eyed Fish” by Dave Matthews Band from Busted Stuff (2002)

Originally leaked onto the internet during the heyday of Napster and LimeWire on the album then known as The Lillywhite Sessions, this song was formally released in 2002 on the Dave Matthews Band LP Busted Stuff. It’s since become one of the band’s most recent fan favorites. And on it, frontman Matthews sings about creatures who don’t stay in their natural habitat and thus get themselves into trouble. The track’s first verse tells the story of a big-eyed fish who leaves his ocean. Sings Matthews,

Look at this ‘Big Eyed’ fish,
Swimming in the Sea,
Oh…
How it dreams to be a bird
Swoop’n, divin’ through the breeze
So one day,
Caught a big old wave,
Up onto the beach
Now you see –
Beneath the Sea,
Is where a fish should be…

But oh God,
Under the Weight of Life
Things seem Brighter on the Other Side

“Barracuda” by Heart from Little Queen (1977)

This quintessential classic rock song from the Seattle-born band Heart tells the story of a predatory fish. It’s a metaphoric track for an inappropriate journalist who tried to imply some pretty gross stuff about the sisters who front the group. In fact, Heart’s Nancy Wilson gave us the scoop about it, telling American Songwriter, “There was this one sleazy guy at a record company or promoter—I can’t even remember where from, exactly … And he was like, because of our album cover where we had bare shoulders touching … ‘So, Ann, how’s your lover?’ And she goes, ‘Oh, yeah, Mike’s great!’ And he goes, ‘No, no, I mean your sister, haha!’” On the track, Ann let him have it, singing,

So this ain’t the end, I saw you again today
I had to turn my heart away
Smile like the sun, kisses for everyone
And tales, it never fails

You lyin’ so low in the weeds
I bet you gonna ambush me
You’d have me down, down, down, down on my knees
Now wouldn’t you?
Barracuda, oh

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