In the world of 1970s pop rock and hard rock, nobody was more down with the then-new evolutions and sounds of music than teens. If you were a 70s teen, the following three songs likely were part of the soundtrack of your youth; and they are likely still favorites, even if they have been overplayed to death by classic rock radio in the decades since.
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“More Than A Feeling” by Boston (1976)
This song still gets played multiple times daily on just about every classic rock radio station across America. And diehard fans of Boston, many of whom were teens in the 70s, aren’t complaining. “More Than A Feeling” is one of the hard rock band’s biggest hits. It made it to No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 after it was released in 1976.
Fun fact: This iconic rock tune took songwriter Tom Scholz a whopping five years to complete.
“Hotel California” by Eagles (1977)
Well, there was no avoiding this one. “Hotel California” by Eagles might just be one of the Top 5 most memorable rock songs of the 1970s, particularly the late 1970s. And teens who loved prog-leaning riffs, harmonizing vocals, and the era’s bespoke brand of classic rock music helped propel it to the top of the charts. “Hotel California” peaked at No. 1 on the Hot 100 chart and did similarly well globally. It’s one of the most-played songs on classic rock radio today. And if you were a teen in California in the 70s, this entry on our list of overplayed songs that teens loved might just still be in your regular rotation. Nobody forgets their adolescent anthem, after all.
“Carry On Wayward Son” by Kansas (1976)
Here’s another excellent example of progressive rock with a hard edge. “Carry On Wayward Son” by Kansas was quite the hefty hit, one that had a tinge of Southern rock to it. A classic rock radio staple for the ages, “Carry On Wayward Son” peaked at No. 11 on the Hot 100 chart. The song did even better on the Canadian charts. Teens in the 70s loved it. Millennial teens also came to love it, too. The track was used as the theme song for the popular television show Supernatural in the 2010s.
Photo by Ron Pownall/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
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