5 Feel-Good Songs From 1974 That Every Baby Boomer Can Still Sing by Heart

The 1970s were chock-full of feel-good songs that stick with the listener long after the needle lifts from the vinyl. That includes these five iconic cuts from 1974 that every baby boomer can still sing by heart.

“Come And Get Your Love” by Redbone

Redbone released “Come And Get Your Love” as the lead single from their fifth album, Wovoka. Songs with call-and-response sections like these are always ripe for singalongs, and this career-defining Redbone cut is certainly no exception. The track peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and also enjoyed moderate success in Canada and parts of Europe.

“Hey (hey!), what’s the matter with your head, yeah / Hey (hey!), what’s the matter with your mind and your sign?”

“Bennie And The Jets” by Elton John

“Bennie And The Jets” was the third single off Elton John’s massively successful seventh album, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. With futuristic imagery and a plodding strut of a beat, every baby boomer alive can likely still sing along to the chorus of this chart-topping song (bonus points if you go up to your falsetto with John).

“She’s got electric boots, a mohair suit / You know I read it in a magazii-iine, oh, oh / B-B-B-Bennie and the Jets.”

“Hooked On A Feeling” by Blue Swede

The first version of “Hooked On A Feeling” was by B.J. Thomas and came out in the late 1960s. Then, in 1974, Swedish pop-rockers Blue Swede reenvisioned it into their best-known song with a distinctive “ooga-chaka, ooga-ooga-ooga chaka” introduction. This tribal-like vocal feature has been practically ingrained into the minds of the baby generation en masse.

“I’m hooked on a feeling / I’m high on believing / That you’re in love with me.”

“The Joker” by Steve Miller Band

Steve Miller Band’s “The Joker” has the kind of approachable, laid-back confidence that makes the listener want to relate to at least one of the identities Miller lays out in his career-defining track. Most of us can relate to feeling like a lover and a sinner at some point, and who doesn’t love doing the classic cat-call whistle after the name Maurice?

“I’m a picker, I’m a grinner, I’m a lover, and I’m a sinner / I play my music in the sun / I’m a joker, I’m a smoker, I’m a midnight toker / I sure don’t want to hurt no one.”

“Jungle Boogie” by Kool & The Gang

A good song doesn’t need flowery prose to be memorable. In fact, more often than not, the opposite is better suited for rote memorization. Repeat a hook enough times, and you’re bound to remember it forever. At least, that seems to be the technique Kool & The Gang utilized with one of their most successful songs from 1974.

“Get down, get down, get down, get down…”

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