3 Acoustic Songs From the 1960s That Actually Rock

There are many ways one might write an acoustic song. You might play basic chords to support the voice, emphasizing the vocal melody and the story in the lyrics. A strum-and-sing approach, as one might do around a campfire. Or you can craft an iconic riff. Something as identifiable as any vocal hook. The songs on this list contain the latter approach. And although they are acoustic songs, I think you’ll agree that they also rock. Feel free to throw the horns while cranking these unplugged bangers.

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“Angie” by Bert Jansch from ‘Bert Jansch’ (1965)

The closing track on Bert Jansch’s self-titled debut showcases why Neil Young, Nick Drake, Paul Simon, and Johnny Marr all praised the Scottish folk guitarist. “Angie” is a fingerstyle guitar piece written and first recorded by Davy Graham as “Anji”. Inspired by Jansch’s interpretation, Simon recorded his own version, which appeared on Simon & Garfunkel’s 1966 album Sounds Of Silence. But there’s a slight recklessness to the way Jansch plays that makes his version the definitive take.

“Ballad Of Hollis Brown” by Bob Dylan from ‘The Times They Are A-Changin’’ (1964)

The bleakness that covers the South Dakota farm in “Ballad Of Hollis Brown” is felt in Bob Dylan’s hypnotically dark acoustic guitar riff. Writing in the second person, Dylan’s “you” puts the listener right up front in a tale of poverty, desperation, and murder. Dylan had perfected the folk ballad on his third album, and he was only a year away from going electric and leaving his folk audience with a sense of betrayal. He released Another Side Of Bob Dylan before Bringing It All Back Home. But the heaviness in “Ballad Of Hollis Brown” had already foreshadowed the loose electric blues of “Maggie’s Farm”.

You looked for work and money
And you walked a rugged mile
You looked for work and money
And you walked a rugged mile
Your children are so hungry
That they don’t know how to smile.

“Space Oddity” by David Bowie from ‘David Bowie’ (1969)

In “Space Oddity”, inspired by Stanley Kubrick’s 1968 sci-fi film 2001: A Space Odyssey, David Bowie tells the story of a lonely astronaut, Major Tom, who’s cut off from ground control and floats alone “far above the world.” Around the four-minute mark, Bowie plays an upbeat riff, backed by handclaps. For a moment, it feels as though Major Tom’s luck has changed. Unfortunately for Tom, the track fades out in a swirling haze of dissonant strings. Like a spacecraft drifting aimlessly through the cosmic abyss.

For here, am I sitting in a tin can
Far above the world.
Planet Earth is blue
And there’s nothing I can do.

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