Bands have been known to self-aggrandize a time or two, but very few choose to write music and brand it with their own moniker. Arguably, it’s a risky thing to do. When you name a song after your band, audiences can’t help but assume that the song represents the band’s entire shtick. It becomes the song that all the others revolve around. Today, we’ve compiled a list of musicians that have chosen to take on that challenge. Find six great self-titled songs, below.
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1. “Black Sabbath”
Given that Black Sabbath’s name was borrowed from a horror movie, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that the group would dip into some gothic theatrics for their self-titled song. “Black Sabbath” sounds like it could score a horror story in its own right. The lyrics read, What is this that stands before me? / Figure in black which points at me / Turn ’round quick and start to run / Find out I’m the chosen one.
With a central Tony Iommi guitar riff, morose lyricism, and crashing heavy metal drums, “Black Sabbath” distills down all the hallmarks of the group into four minutes.
2. “Bad Company”
Given that many of the original band members of Bad Company played in different bands prior to joining the outfit, it was important for the group to establish a firm identity. They did just that with an eponymous song in 1974.
“Bad Company” is a moody, piano-led track with lyrics that paint the band as outlaws. The opening verse reads I was born 6 gun in my hand / Behind a gun / I’ll make my final stand / That’s why they call me bad company. Nothing could be more evocative of the band’s early days than this track.
3. “Green Day”
Though their later efforts would earn them a reputation for being a mouthpiece for their generation, Green Day didn’t have quite as lofty goals when they first started out. For evidence of this, look no further than their self-titled song.
The track opens up with the sound of a bong before jumping into the lyric, my lungs comfort me with joy…my eyes itch of burning red. In their early days, frontman Billie Joe Armstrong was a kid who loved two things: rock music and smoking weed. Both are well represented here.
4. “The 1975”
The 1975 opens up each album with an eponymous track. With every new release, “The 1975” gets a bit of revamp, tailored to the sonic evolution of that particular project. Their first three albums featured versions of “The 1975” that all had the same lyrics, but slightly different takes on production.
For their latest albums, the group chose to keep the title of the intro song the same but switched out the lyrics. For their mercurial fourth record, Notes on a Conditional Form, the band tapped activist Greta Thunberg to deliver a spoken word address about climate change. For their latest album, Being Funny in a Foreign Language, the band riffed on LCD Soundsystem’s “All My Friends” for the title track.
The 1975’s self-titled songs mirror the very essence of the band: ever-changing, politically-charged, and introspective.
5. “Motörhead“
In the UK, calling someone a “motorhead” is a euphemism for calling someone a “speed freak.” Something Lemmy Kilmister probably got called a fair few times. At the very least, his former bandmates in the group Hawkwind thought so, prompting them to kick him out for his excessive drug use.
Hawkwind had already released a song called “Motorhead” as a single by that time. Perhaps out of spite, Kilmister went and named his second band after the track. Motörhead later released a version of their namesake song that is far more hard-hitting and aggressive than the earlier take.
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