3 Incredible Rock Songs That Band Members Tried To Ruin

Why would a band member want to sabotage a song that could potentially become a hit? Well, there are quite a few reasons, some of them nonsensical. Let’s take a look at a few rock songs from the 20th century that ended up becoming hits, but not without some resistance from band members who (allegedly) tried to ruin them from the start.

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“Across The Universe” by The Beatles (1969)

This gorgeous song, written by John Lennon, is one of the most memorable tracks in The Beatles’ discography. It inspired a movie musical based on their music, after all. And yet, apparently, Paul McCartney was not a fan. And Lennon accused him of trying to ruin the song during the recording process.

“Paul would […] sort of subconsciously try and destroy a great song,” said Lennon. “Usually we’d spend hours doing little detailed cleaning-ups of Paul’s songs; when it came to mine […] somehow this atmosphere of looseness and casualness and experimentation would creep in. Subconscious sabotage.”

He would also say in his famed 1980 Playboy interview that the “guitars are out of tune” on “Across The Universe” and that “nobody’s supporting me or helping me with it and the song was never done properly.”

“Creep” by Radiohead (1992)

The grip this alt-rock song had on the public in the early 1990s was wild. And it’s a really good song, no matter how you look at it. In the years following the release of “Creep”, though, Radiohead tired of it and would try to avoid performing it when they could. But before then, one Jonny Greenwood allegedly tried to “f*ck the song up” during recording.

In the spot where the verse shifts to the chorus, you can hear three loud blasts of noise from Greenwood’s guitar. Today, it adds charm to the song. But back then, it was apparently a bit of an accident according to Greenwood, who claimed he did not know how quiet the song was supposed it be. Member Ed O’Brien claimed that it was intentional.

“That’s the sound of Jonny trying to f*ck the song up,” said O’Brien. “He really didn’t like it the first time we played it, so he tried spoiling it. And it made the song.”

“Cum On Feel The Noize” by Quiet Riot (1983)

The heavy metal band Quiet Riot had a hit on their hands with the 1983 song “Cum On Feel The Noize”. A cover of a 1973 glam rock tune, this track ended up putting Quiet Riot on the map. And it makes it to our list of rock songs that band members tried to ruin before just about everyone in the band didn’t want to take it on. Kevin DuBrow originally refused to cover it. And when it came to the recording sessions, the band opted to do their best to play the song as badly as possible so their label couldn’t release it. Only, the results were way better than expected.

“The producer kept calling the rehearsal studio, ‘Are you working on ‘Cum On Feel The Noize’?’” said member Frankie Banali. “And we’d say, ‘Yeah. It sounds great.’ But we never played it. So the day came when it was time to record the song, and I came in early and told the engineer what was going on. I was honest with him. I said, ‘You might just want to record this for laughs and giggles.’ […] Kevin was sitting at the corner of the studio, just giggling, waiting for this massive train wreck, and the train wreck never happened.”

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