3 Rock Songs From the 1980s That Revived 1950s Rock and Roll

It’s easy to discount how referential music seems to be today. We don’t have the data, so perhaps the 2020s are the era most reliant on nostalgia. But musicians today certainly aren’t the first to throw things back to past decades. Similarly to how obsessed we all seem to be with the 1980s these days, musicians in that decade had their sights set on the ’50s. Many bands and artists had a major ’50s pastiche in the ’80s. To revisit this trend, check out the three ’80s rock hits below. They sound uncannily similar to songs from rock’s origin decade.

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[RELATED: 3 One-Hit Wonders From the 1960s That We Could Listen to Forever]

“The Longest Time” (Billy Joel)

If you didn’t know any better, you’d be forgiven for thinking that Billy Joel’s “The Longest Time” was a ’50s doo-wop hit—or at least a cover of one. Joel paid homage to groups like Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers for this 1983 hit, expressly borrowing ideas from decades prior.

This song has simple melodies and tight harmonies, both of which were commonplace in ’50s doo-wop. Even the lyrics suggest the PG, polite sentiments of the mid-century: There would still be music left to write / What else could I do / I’m so inspired by you / That hasn’t happened for the longest time. The success of this song speaks to the popularity of ’50s style with ’80s rock audiences.

“Crazy Little Thing Called Love” (Queen)

Though technically released in 1979, this song found popularity on Queen’s 1980 album The Game. At any rate, this song made the band early adopters of ’50s pastiche. Freddie Mercury, always a revolutionary thinker, saw this resurgence coming from a mile away. He may not have been the first to try out ’50s rock in the ’80s, but he certainly helped put that idea on the map.

“Crazy Little Thing Called Love” feels straight off an Elvis Presley record. Mercury boiled down the appeal of ’50s crooning rockers and laced this song with his findings. Again, listeners could be convinced this song was released much earlier than it was, thanks to the band’s keen sense of throwback musicality.

“Pink Cadillac” (Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band)

This song was unmistakably released in the ’80s. There is something about the musicality that time-stamps it, but there are explicit references to ’50s rock that can’t be ignored.

On top of the title reflecting ’50s car culture, the Chuck Berry-esque melody and rhythm key the listeners into Springsteen’s ’50s influences. Springsteen has always been good about giving credit to his predecessors. “Pink Cadillac” is a straightforward example of that affinity.

(Photo by Fin Costello/Redferns)