The late 1960s boasted perhaps the best rock music ever. Pound for pound, lyric for lyric, note for note, the era produced classic song after classic song. So much so that it can be difficult to sum up the time period in just a few tracks. Here below, however, that’s just what we’ll attempt to do. These are four tracks from the end of the 1960s that we continue to return to. Indeed, these are four rock songs that define the classic sound of the late 1960s.
“Touch Me” by The Doors from ‘The Soft Parade’ (1969)
No rock group in the 1960s prided themselves on their penchant for psychedelia like The Doors. Not only did the band want to make music that entertained, but they wanted to write songs that wriggled into your psyche. Lead vocalist Jim Morrison wrote poetry to the music the band composed. All for the purpose of opening your mind. For evidence of this, look no further than the 1969 track, “Touch Me”.
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“All Along The Watchtower” by The Jimi Hendrix Experience from ‘Electric Ladyland’ (1968)
Perhaps no song summed up the end of the 1960s quite like “All Along The Watchtower” by The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Originally written by another 1960s hero, Bob Dylan, the track turned into something new altogether when Hendrix, the greatest guitarist ever, took it on. The tune became an anti-Vietnam War classic as well as a rock standard.
“You Can’t Always Get What You Want” by The Rolling Stones from ‘Let It Bleed’ (1969)
You know you’ve made it when language you write enters the everyday lexicon. And that’s just what happened with this tune by The Rolling Stones. Ever since it was released in 1969, people have been repeating the title as if it was wisdom passed down to them by a family member. You probably said it yourself sometime earlier this week. Indeed, truer words were never spoken.
“White Rabbit” by Jefferson Airplane from ‘Surrealistic Pillow’ (1967)
Just as The Doors aimed to bring psychedelia to the forefront in their music, so did Jefferson Airplane. And no track showcased that more poignantly than “White Rabbit”. The 1967 tune takes characters and themes from the famous book, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, and sets the scene with trippy rock music. It’s a fabulous combination and one that has lasted through the ages.
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