3 Rock Hits That Were Almost Country Songs

Rock and country, although fundamentally different, overlap in more ways than the typical listener would think. Especially now, as genres continue to blur the lines, the distinction between the two is becoming less and less obvious. Here are some of our favorite rock hits that were almost country songs.

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“I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing” by Aerosmith

This No. 1 hit is a quintessential 80s rock ballad. However, before it went to Aerosmith, it was pitched to a couple of country artists. Written by Diane Warren, who has famously written for Whitney Houston and Cher, the song was actually offered to Celine Dion. Although it didn’t end up going to Dion or country music, Mark Chesnutt released a cover of it in 1999. In a way, we got the best of both worlds with this one.

“All Along The Watchtower” by Jimi Hendrix

Although “All Along The Watchtower” is known by most as a Jimi Hendrix song, real fans know it was originally written and recorded by Bob Dylan. At the time, Dylan was leaning more into a country sound, so if he had kept the song for himself, that’s likely how it would have ended up. Eventually, even Dylan would come to love the rock version as much as his own. “It overwhelmed me, really. He had such talent, he could find things inside a song and vigorously develop them. He found things that other people wouldn’t think of finding in there,” he once said of Hendrix’s take. “I took license from his version, actually, and continue to do it to this day.”  

“Every Rose Has Its Thorn” by Poison

Poison lead singer Bret Michaels wrote this song inspired by his cheating girlfriend, and it would go on to become Poison’s first No. 1 hit on the Billboard Charts. However, when he first showed “Every Rose Has Its Thorn” to his label, they thought it had too much of a “cowboy thing.” Even though giving the song away to a country artist was suggested, Michaels decided to keep it for Poison and proved his label wrong in the process. Miley Cyrus does have a cover out, though, if you want to listen to a more countrified version.

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