3 Songs From the 1970s That Were Banned, Pulled, or Silenced—but Never Forgotten

The 1970s yielded many genre-bending and, at times, controversial songs that we still enjoy today. And in the 1970s, some radio stations and even government entities banned or tried to silence songs that became legendary anyway. Let’s look at a few examples, shall we?

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“God Save The Queen” by Sex Pistols (1977)

It’s certainly understandable why this punk rock classic got a firm ban from the BBC and numerous radio stations back in the day. This thrilling track is an anti-establishment anthem of sorts, and its cover art was also quite controversial. The BBC firmly banned the song from being aired. The impact of “God Save The Queen” was far from dulled, though. Sex Pistols spearheaded a punk movement that would spread across the world after this song (and their only album) dropped.

“Lola” by The Kinks (1970)

This rock song from the English band The Kinks was considered quite controversial back in the day, despite being such a jam. The song was allegedly written about a transgender woman, per numerous interpretations of its lyrics. A number of Australian radio stations banned the song because of it. However, the BBC’s reason for banning the song was just… odd. Maybe “bureaucratic” is a better word.

According to lore, the original recording of “Lola” featured the lyrics “Coca-Cola” buried in the song, and the BBC had a strict policy against any form of product placement in music. As a result, Ray Davies had to fly from New York to London, interrupting the band’s tour, to rewrite the lyrics to “cherry cola” instead so the ban could be lifted.

“Imagine” by John Lennon (1971)

Every radio station on the planet back in 1971 could have banned this song, and it probably still would have become the massively influential and memorable song it is today. You might be wondering why anyone would want to ban “Imagine” by John Lennon, considering it is such a hopeful soft rock tune about imagining a better world. 

Well, some radio stations (namely Clear Channel Communications and the BBC) did indeed ban the song. Only, they did so decades later, following the 2001 terrorist attacks in New York City. The song landed itself on that no-play list because it was more or less viewed as anti-American.

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