5 Rock Songs With Vocals That Give Me Instant Goosebumps Every Time

So much of rock ‘n’ roll is dominated by the instruments: screaming guitar, pulsing bass, powerful drums, and, in some cases, melodic keys. A good rock vocalist will be able to push past the (literal) noise and remain front and center in the mix. And this is certainly no small feat. Electric instruments are machines designed to make noise. Vocalists utilize fragile human anatomy to make noise. Trying to legitimately outsing a guitar amp would be like trying to outrun a car. It’s just not humanly possible.

Still, some singers have come awfully close. From soaring ballads to driving rock classics, these four iconic rock songs have vocals that give me instant goosebumps every time (and the first two weren’t even permanent band members).

“Great Gig In The Sky” by Pink Floyd

I’ll begin this list of rock vocals that give me instant goosebumps with a lifelong favorite of mine: “Great Gig In The Sky” by Pink Floyd. The Dark Side Of The Moon interlude features Clare Torry on lead vocals with a prominent piano feature by Richard Wright. The band asked Torry to embody the idea of the worst pain imaginable during her vocal take. When she was done improvising, the band’s lackluster reaction made her believe they weren’t even going to use her take. How wrong she was.

“Gimme Shelter” by The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones enlisted Merry Clayton to sing backup vocals for their iconic track “Gimme Shelter”, but I’d argue she ended up stealing the show. Mick Jagger holds it down on lead, of course. However, there’s something especially emphatic about the way Clayton sings it, and it’s impossible to underestimate just how much of that emotion comes from Clayton singing from her personal experiences as a Black woman. To truly emphasize just how incredible Clayton’s vocal take was, she was also pregnant at the time. And it was the middle of the night. Just astounding.

“Turtle Blues” by Janis Joplin

Janis Joplin could manipulate her voice to sound sultry, tender, pleading, or like nails running down a chalkboard. And in each instance, her recordings leave me with instant goosebumps up and down my arms. Joplin seemed to embody the blues in a way that most musicians can only hope to. She wasn’t just singing them; she was living them. You could tell by how deep from within her the music always came. “Turtle Blues” is a particular favorite of mine, though “Piece Of My Heart” could have just as easily made it on the list.

“Dazed And Confused” by Led Zeppelin

Part of what makes Robert Plant’s vocal delivery in “Dazed And Confused” so incredibly goosebump-inducing is the band. That’s just the magic of Led Zeppelin. Still, for as theatrical and impactful as Jimmy Page’s guitar playing may be, Plant’s wailing is just as important. The way Plant brings in the whole band on the line “soul of a woman was created below” is one of the most satisfying drops in rock ‘n’ roll history, in this writer’s humble opinion.

“Somebody To Love” by Queen

Finally, what kind of rock vocal list would this be if there weren’t any mention of Freddie Mercury? One of the all-time greats across virtually all parts of the musical spectrum, Mercury’s generational talent shines in songs like “Somebody To Love”. Mercury had a vast color palette at his disposal, able to croon in his falsetto just as easily as he was able to put grit behind his rock vocals. “Somebody To Love” uses a little bit of all of it, which inevitably gives me chills no matter how many times I listen.

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