The thrilling, buzzy electricity of Led Zeppelin. The fabulous and glamorous music of David Bowie. The sticky and sublime songs from Fleetwood Mac. These are each sonic delicacies that are worth listening to daily, worth diving into again and again.
And that’s just what we wanted to do here below. In today’s music world with millions of tunes at your fingertips, it can be hard to remember just where your heart is most comfy. Let us help. Indeed, these are three one-word classic rock songs from 1975 that are worth remembering again.
“Kashmir” by Led Zeppelin from ‘Physical Graffiti’ (1975)
Once you hear the opening rhythms of this song, you know exactly what you’re getting into. This is one of the heaviest, most propulsive songs of the 1970s. It’s also one of the most powerful tunes Led Zeppelin ever wrote. It looms, it forebodes. It broods and builds. It’s like a volcano and lead vocalist Robert Plant’s singing is like the hot lava spilling out over the rocky sides. Released smack-dab in the middle of the decade, Led Zeppelin continued to set the tone of the 1970s.
“Fame” by David Bowie from ‘Young Americans’ (1975)
If there’s one thing that the British-born singer David Bowie knew about, it’s fame. The man was famous. He couldn’t walk down the street without being recognized (maybe that was because of his platform shoes and giant sunglasses, but we digress…) and this 1975 song from the artist explicates that dynamic in an entertaining and thoughtful manner. At the height of his fame, many would likely have said they’d want to trade places with Bowie. But in reality, that might have been too big a burden!
“Rhiannon” by Fleetwood Mac from ‘Fleetwood Mac’ (1975)
Speaking of fame, in the 1970s there may not have been a band more famous than Fleetwood Mac. Fans followed them for their sonic compositions like the slinky tune “Rhiannon”, and for the internal drama within the band. Elicit romances were as much a part of Fleetwood Mac’s story as key changes or playful lyrical metaphors. With them, it’s impossible to separate the melodrama from the music. And we’d never want to try!
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