3 Acoustic Songs From the 1970s That Actually Rock

We might disagree on what technically makes a song “rock”. But not every rocking tune requires electric guitars or a loud band. Heavy lyrics bring their own kind of weight to a track, regardless of the volume. There have been various folk revivals in music history, and many rock musicians recorded their most iconic tracks with acoustic guitars.

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I think you’ll agree: These three acoustic songs from the 1970s do indeed rock.

“Pink Moon” by Nick Drake

Nick Drake’s albums weren’t big sellers during his lifetime. And each time I listen to “Pink Moon”, as I do with much of Drake’s recordings, I’m never not amazed at how anyone can hear this track and not be moved. This remains one of my favorite songs, but I’m not alone. Drake’s folk music has influenced The Cure, R.E.M., and The Black Crowes, to name a few. A 1999 Volkswagen commercial featuring “Pink Moon” introduced him to a wider audience. Though the singer suffered from depression, his most popular song gives a sense of hope. Like the springtime flowers that gave the moon its pink nickname.

“The Needle And The Damage Done” by Neil Young

Even when Neil Young croons in a soft falsetto over gently plucked chords, grunge’s godfather still manages to rock. His ode to ruinous addiction appears on his masterpiece Harvest. “The Needle And The Damage Done” was recorded live and finds Young lamenting all the great musicians lost to drugs. He sings, “But every junkie’s like a setting sun.” A heartbreaking line, with the word “junkie” transforming a person into a thing. The shell of who they used to be. Same as Young’s Crazy Horse bandmate, Danny Whitten, who died from a drug overdose in 1972.

I hit the city and I lost my band
I watched the needle take another man
Gone, gone, the damage done.

“My Sweet Lord” by George Harrison

George Harrison’s triple album, All Things Must Pass, finds the ex-Beatle reckoning with the end of his band while also continuing his spiritual curiosity. This is the gospel according to George. A philosophical quest for something other than earthly matters. Harrison borrows from multiple religious traditions, putting the quest in non-parochial terms in “My Sweet Lord”. Phil Spector’s wall of acoustic guitars features Harrison joined by Eric Clapton, Peter Frampton, and others. The lyrics are searching, and Harrison’s weeping slide guitar sounds bittersweet. The Beatles, too, were a thing that had to pass.

Photo by Gijsbert Hanekroot/Redferns