4 of the Best Rock and Roll B-Sides From 1975

The year 1975 was a big one for rock and roll. Fleetwood Mac made their debut with Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham front and center. Pink Floyd released their magnum opus tribute to their former bandmate, Syd Barrett. Albums like Bruce Springsteen’s Born To Run and Aerosmith’s Toys In The Attic produced hits that continued to be rock radio staples even to this day.

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And while plenty of people know the A-sides that came out that year, like “Rhiannon”, “Walk This Way”, and “Have A Cigar”, there are just as many incredible B-sides that deserve their day in the sun.

“Welcome To The Machine” by Pink Floyd

“Welcome To The Machine” is Pink Floyd at its most dystopian and weird. The B-side is a hard left from the A-side of Wish You Were Here, the grooving rocker “Have A Cigar”. And indeed, that sharp contrast is part of what makes both songs so interesting. On the front side, you have the shiny, glittering temptations of the music industry. Flip it over, and the dark reality comes out.

“Sugar Daddy” by Fleetwood Mac

Speaking of hard lefts—Fleetwood Mac’s “Sugar Daddy” is nowhere near as cynical as the previous Pink Floyd B-side. But it still provides an interesting converse to its A-side, “Rhiannon”. Stevie Nicks wrote both songs, but they have vastly different moods. Given what we know about Nicks’ financial situation when she started in Fleetwood Mac, it’s likely the B-side was more rooted in reality than her vibey ode to a Welsh witch.

“New World Rising” by Electric Light Orchestra

Electric Light Orchestra’s B-side to “Strange Magic”, “New World Rising”, might not be the most well-known ELO track. But it’s still a bop and beautifully encapsulates the band’s signature sound, from the dreamy synth to Jeff Lynne’s falsetto vocals. In his native United Kingdom, the B-side to his international hit was a live version of “Showdown”, which first appeared on the band’s third album, On The Third Day.

“Midnight Ride” by Styx

With smash hits like “Renegade” and “Too Much Time On My Hands”, it’s unsurprising that some of Styx’s better rock ‘n’ roll B-sides go unnoticed. “Midnight Ride” is one such track. The opener to the flipside of Equinox is a rousing, driving blues number that holds its own amongst Styx’s better-known tracks and the rest of the rock soundscape at the time. The song’s A-side, “Lorelei”, also enjoyed success, peaking at No. 27 on the Billboard Hot 100.

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