“Paradise by the Dashboard Light” by Meat Loaf
“Pinball Wizard” by the Who
You seriously think more people recognize A Hard Day’s Night from its intro than recognize Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony? For real?
If we’re talking guess the song with only one note, I’ll throw in Steely Dan’s Hey Nineteen.
Drum beat and then one guitar note bent nearly to the point of breaking before laying down the groove.
Dylan’s Rainy Day Women #12 & 35 is pretty unmistakable.
Honky Tonk Women and Satisfaction are my other top choices.
I place in nomination the police sirens that open Paper Lace’s “The Night Chicago Died” and the drums and “son of a gun” at the start of Carly Simon’s “You’re So Vain”.
Is “recognizable” the same thing as “identifiable”? For example, the Dave Brubeck tune in post #26. I certainly recognized it, but I couldn’t put a title to it.
I nominate My Girlby The Temptations.
That’s one of the ones I thought of as well.
Not bad, try this one.
(Maybe he’ll get a two-and-a-half minute youtube ad, too.)
“Sweet Home Alabama” - Lynyrd Skynyrd
See post #43.
I’d say Brown Sugar by the Stones. after 2 chords most people would know it.
Also after the very first sound I’d say most people growing up of age in the 80’s could guess The Police’s Synchronicity II
Da da dum du-du DUM dum
(Super Mario Brothers)
Not really a chord, but
“Oh. My. God. Becky, look at her butt”
Nice!
I dunno about recognizable when you’re not one of the biggest bands in the world, but you’ll never forget the intro to:
The JSBX’s Full Grown.
Do not click on that motherfucking link at work. Do not.
Seriously. You cannot turn down that track fast enough when your elderly parents are in the car.
When I saw Jimmy Page and the Black Crowes I kept waiting to hear those first few bass notes of Dazed and Confused. Though, I’ll grant you, those aren’t exactly ‘most recognizable’ to people that aren’t familiar with Led Zeppelin’s catalog.
Take Five
Another one I thought of, though it’s not as well-known (at least I don’t think it is), is The Who’s “The Kids Are Alright”. First strum and you know what the song is (assuming you are familiar with it.) For me, it’s kind of interesting to know what songs are identifiable from the first simultaneous or near-simultaneous collection of notes, and nothing else.