3 Songs That Quietly Rewrote the Rules of Classic Rock

Genres typically have agreed-upon conventions among members. Success usually breeds followers, and at times, a genre can sound like an endless echo of artists all doing the same thing. But there is always one or two artists who can tell when a genre needs shaking up. The three artists below all quietly reinvented classic rock, effectively giving the genre a much-needed flip.

Videos by American Songwriter

[RELATED: 3 One-Word Classic Rock Songs From 1969 That Are Still Awesome Today]

“Riders on the Storm” (The Doors)

For a lot of classic rock’s early history, the structure of songs was relatively simple. Though attitudes and tones changed throughout the ’50s and ’60s, certain conventions persisted. By the time the end of the ’60s rolled around and the ’70s gaveway, rock music was becoming a little freer and weirder. While The Doors certainly weren’t the only band to lean heavily into psychedelia, one of their songs dared to go further than any band had ever gone: “Riders on the Storm.”

“Riders on the Storm” proved that a song didn’t have to be loud to be heavy. This haunting hit prioritizes atmosphere above all else. The Doors broke with conventional rock song structure on this early ’70s release, sending the genre into a new space as the decade rolled on.

“Sultans Of Swing” (Dire Straits)

Dire Straits’ “Sultans Of Swing” proves that guitar-forward rock tracks didn’t have to be flashy to be impressive or memorable. Though this song features an iconic guitar line, it’s far from “shredding” and isn’t meant to be a flex of instrumental talent. It serves the song well as a melodic tool.

Though other bands had used this method of classic rock songwriting before, the late ’70s/early ’80s saw a lot of flashy guitar work. Dire Straits’ decision to pare things back a bit was out of the ordinary for the time.

“Can’t You Hear Me Knocking” (The Rolling Stones)

Once rockers become hitmakers, their sound gets more conventional. The experimental stuff is typically left to the less mainstream groups. But there are a few popular groups who dare to think outside the box while earning top-selling songs. The Rolling Stones certainly fall into that category.

“Can’t You Hear Me Knocking” is an example of a mainstream rock song that defied the expectations put on hits. The Stones adopted a jam-band mentality, letting the song go where it wanted for far longer than most popular songs.

(Photo by Mike Prior/Redferns)