# Is there any SONG that we ALL would agree is good (if not great)? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [January 7, 2026, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427 "2026-01-07T11:53:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 14
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/261 "2026-01-12T00:46:10Z")
Feel free to send more floggings my way for duplicating the Dylan cut… Ode to Joy is the last one standing. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/262 "2026-01-12T00:56:11Z")
I’m not wild about Ode to Joy. ---
**Author:** ![ricepad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/263 "2026-01-12T01:00:02Z")
Does that mean you don’t think **Ode to Joy** is good? ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/264 "2026-01-12T01:20:54Z")
> [@ricepad](#): > > Does that mean you don’t think **Ode to Joy** is good?- I’ve been pondering that. I’d have to say it’s good, but not to my taste (since first learning it in 3rd grade and singing it in high school chorus). ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/265 "2026-01-12T01:22:24Z")
What about the 1812 Overture? You might appreciate cannons even if classical music is not your bag. ---
**Author:** ![cieskokid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cieskokid/32/5374_2.png) [@cieskokid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cieskokid)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/266 "2026-01-12T01:24:54Z")
Kashmir- Led Zeppelin Now I know there are some who will disagree, the seeming fate of every other song offered here. But Stairway to Heaven is too obvious & is one of the most divisive songs in terms of opinion re: rock history. Yet even if one doesn’t care for Zeppelin it’s hard to deny the epic level of symphonic composition in which each player is crucial to the otherworldly atmosphere of Kashmir. Also Page, Plant & JP Jones all have said this one, not Stairway, is the definitive Led Zeppelin song. ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/267 "2026-01-12T01:28:06Z")
I’m going to object to Ode To Joy on technical grounds. If we’re talking about Ode to Joy as set by Beethoven in the fourth movement of his ninth symphony, I don’t think it qualifies as a song. It’s far too sprawling and varied, with multiple sections, interludes, musical forms (fugues, marches, chorales), and a whole host of themes beyond the one we’re all familiar with. It’s much more a suite than anything as cohesive as a song. Now, if we’re talking about the use of that theme in another setting, say “Joyful, joyful we adore you”, I could get behind that. ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/268 "2026-01-12T01:30:07Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > What about the 1812 Overture? You might appreciate cannons even if classical music is not your bag. Definitely not a song. ---
**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/269 "2026-01-12T01:49:42Z")
Curve ball: “When Night Comrs” - Joe cocker. It’s hard to resist ---
**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/270 "2026-01-12T01:55:15Z")
From our out-of-left-field-category, may I present “The Salt in your Tears” by Martin Briley. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/271 "2026-01-12T05:11:56Z")
> [@cieskokid](#): > > Yet even if one doesn’t care for Zeppelin it’s hard to deny the epic level of symphonic composition in which each player is crucial to the otherworldly atmosphere of Kashmir. Also Page, Plant & JP Jones all have said this one, not Stairway, is the definitive Led Zeppelin song. Kashmir is long and heavy, and not everyone likes long and heavy. If I had to choose one Zeppelin song that could appeal to everyone, I’d probably go with “Ramble On”. ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/272 "2026-01-12T05:30:15Z")
> [@fachverwirrt](#): > > Definitely not a song. Wrong. Quite stirring with cannons, choral, and bells. [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/ZrsYD46W1U0/hqdefault.jpg "Tchaikovsky : Overture 1812 (Full, Choral) (Sure, best version ever) - Ashkenazy\*") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrsYD46W1U0) ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 10:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/273 "2026-01-12T10:02:07Z")
Did I miss _Something_ in the poll? Or was it nixed here already, and I missed that? ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 11:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/274 "2026-01-12T11:00:13Z")
> [@SuntanLotion](#): > > No one has mentioned anything by Van Halen yet. Nobody has mentioned Tom Petty, either, but what can you do. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 11:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/275 "2026-01-12T11:13:35Z")
> [@Pardel-Lux](#): > > Did I miss _Something_ in the poll? Or was it nixed here already, and I missed that? I had 3 Fabs cuts in there as it was. [Note I like it, personally] ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/276 "2026-01-12T11:47:31Z")
Absolutely no United States-centric, patriotic bullshit. No “America the Beautiful,” which was mentioned upthread, and similar crap. ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/277 "2026-01-12T11:54:33Z")
This may resonate with Monday morning commuters. Yeah offensive but a satisfying groove. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/exHnhpwbBCc/maxresdefault.jpg "King willonius (Ludas UNC )- Move Bitch (1973)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exHnhpwbBCc) ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/278 "2026-01-12T15:16:08Z")
A song needs to be sung, but not all that is sung is a song. There needs to be some sense of coherence to the vocality. Rearranging an orchestral work to include voices doesn’t cut it. Certainly Buketoff’s arrangement _includes_ a song (God Save the Tsar), but the 1812 Overture remains an overture, not a song. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/279 "2026-01-12T15:32:34Z")
So a prog rock song like Genesis’ “Supper’s Ready” also wouldn’t count as a song in your book? What else is it? A suite? A mini-opera? [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/9hKYpNpajpI/maxresdefault.jpg "Genesis - Supper's Ready (Official Audio)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hKYpNpajpI) ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2026, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427/280 "2026-01-12T16:02:47Z")
I think there’s considerable gray area, but there are things that clearly exist outside of those areas. _Das Rheingold_ by Wagner is two and a half hours of continuous music, with a great deal of singing. I don’t think anyone would call it a song. That’s just one example of many. Lots of things clearly are songs. Plenty of examples in this thread. I’m not familiar with the Genesis song and don’t have time right now to listen to it. For the purposes of this thread, I would argue that things like the fourth movement of Beethoven’s ninth and Buketoff’s (and von Karajan’s) arrangements of the 1812 Overture are not “good songs” in that they fail to be good at being songs. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427.md?page=13) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-song-that-we-all-would-agree-is-good-if-not-great/1026427.md?page=15)