Picture it: you’re driving in the car with classic rock on the radio, when suddenly, a song comes on that you’ve heard at least a thousand times. Maybe two thousand times. You know the words, and you can maybe even shred the air guitar to the main riff. Yet, you wouldn’t be able to pick out the band that did the song to save your life.
To be clear, this isn’t for rock ‘n’ roll aficionados—I know most of you will know the bands behind these classic cuts. However, after years of being the de facto classic rock person in my friend group and being asked “Who did this?” every time Mountain comes on the radio, I feel like I have a fair bit of research under my belt.
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And from what I’ve gathered, everyone seems to know these classic rock songs, but no one can remember the bands that did them.
“The Boys Are Back In Town” by Thin Lizzy
Phil Lynott of Thin Lizzy has such a classic rock ‘n’ roll voice that it can be easy to confuse the Irish rock band with any number of groups in that same genre from that same time period. But the anthem for male friend groups everywhere, “The Boys Are Back In Town”, is undeniably a Thin Lizzy track. Now, you can air-guitar easily and carefreely, knowing the band behind the signature harmonized riffs.
“You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet” by Bachman-Turner Overdrive
This might seem like an obvious one for Bachman-Turner Overdrive fans. But for those folks who only listen to whatever classic rock pops up on their radio, they might not know that these Canadian rockers are behind the 1974 track “You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet”. Feel free to say that the next time you’re in the bar and about to impress your friends with your knowledge of the 1970s music playing on the jukebox.
“Mississippi Queen” by Mountain
“Mississippi Queen” is far and away Mountain’s most famous track. Still, the band wasn’t quite popular enough to create an easy name association with their hit single. That’s not to diminish their influence on the late-60s and early-70s rock scene, though. Mountain was not only a Woodstock act. They also helped inspire a new wave of heavier rock ‘n’ roll in the 1970s. And of course, in terms of rock songs with cowbell, it’s one of the best.
“Ready For Love” by Bad Company
Most people could surmise that Bad Company is the band that did “Bad Company”. But the band’s eponymous debut from 1974 (which includes that eponymous title track) is chock-full of great hits that the average rock lover might not realize they wrote. Among those is “Ready For Love”, which some people might assume is by a different rock band with a smooth lead singer and powerful guitar riffs. Other honorable mentions include “Can’t Get Enough” and “Movin’ On”.
“Green-Eyed Lady” by Sugarloaf
Sugarloaf often gets lumped into a group of well-known but not well-identified songs from the late 1960s and early 1970s, which, I suppose, is better than no one knowing their music at all. “Green-Eyed Lady” from 1970 is an absolute classic. Yet that seems to be one band that people—at least the ones I know—have trouble recalling. So, go ahead. Be the person who can correctly identify Sugarloaf as Sugarloaf on your next road trip.
“Radar Love” by Golden Earring
“Radar Love” by Golden Earring has that classic blues-rock feel associated with any number of bands. It’s catchy, driving, and climactic, which are all the makings of a great rock tune. Nevertheless, the name “Golden Earring” isn’t exactly as ubiquitous as, say, Led Zeppelin or The Rolling Stones. Maybe, just maybe, this has to do with the fact that some of the band’s biggest hits come from different decades, like “Radar Love” in 1973 and “Twilight Zone” in 82.
“All Right Now” by Free
Closing out this list of classic rock songs everyone knows but no one remembers the band behind them is “All Right Now” by Free. Ironically, the band wrote this song after a particularly terrible gig where no one in the crowd seemed to know them, either. Still, all that radio play and presence in popular media have to soothe any burns from not being as instantly recognized as other British bands like Pink Floyd or Queen.
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