Billy Joel - “Vienna”. No question about it
:D:D:D Oh wait. . . you’re serious?!?:eek:
Led Zeppelin - “Ramble On”. It’s soft, hard, whimsical, bluesy and Tolkienesque - all of the band’s qualities in one song.
Although I’m sure plenty will disagree.
Great song, but I can’t really pick a piano-and-conga driven to represent the Stones. I think “Satisfaction” is a better choice.
For The Pixies, I’d nominate “Bone Machine.” Only thing it’s missing is a couple random lines in Spanish, and it’s otherwise got all the Pixies hallmarks.
Eagles - Peaceful, Easy Feelin’
Dylan is another one of those “Which Dylan?” artists? Early? Mid? Late? Christian? Too long a career and too varied. But you can play someone “Blowin’ In the Wind,” “It’s All Over Now Baby Blue” and “Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts” and they’ll have a pretty good idea of what he was all about. Play them “Like A Rolling Stone” and they will know him cold.
Not Hotel California?
The Beach Boys: Good Vibrations
But it doesn’t show off his piano chops.
Whole lotta love has got to be THE song.
Its not my favourite (though I like it a lot).
Much prefer Black Dog or the Immigrants song.
Ref upthread, Jethro Tull, We Used to know, or Living in the Past.
King Crimson- “Starless”
Note: this is not necessarily the BEST King Crimson song, just the one that would give a newcomer the best feel for what they were all about and what they could do.
Crimson went through so many phases with so many different lineups and so many different sounds that it’s hard to come up with just one that embodies their essence. But this one mixes heavy metal, jazz AND the orchestral mellotron sound more fully and completely than any of their other songs.
“Schizoid Man” better showed their metal and jazzy side, while “Epitaph” better showed their orchestral side… but “Starless” is one of the few songs that showed all their sides.
Hotel California was my second choice, especially because of that opening chord.
The Eagles didn’t have just one sound… but if I had to describe them, I’d say that, in essence, they were a country-rock band, built around harmonies, that started to veer toward hard rock.
Hence, while “Hotel California” is a great song, I wouldn’t say it embodies their sound.
The essential Eagles song’ needs both a country feel, multivoice harmonies and some hard rock guitar.
Ergo, to me, if I wanted to show a newcomer what the Eagles were about, I’d play him something like “Already Gone” or “Take It Easy.”
Don’t get me wrong, I like “Hotel California” a lot more than either of two songs. I just think those two songs are a better illustration of the basic Eagle sound.
For that you need “Piano Fighter.”
Personally, I’d go for either “The Envoy” or “Hasten Down the Wind.”
See I think if you were to summarize Zeppelin, you would have to use both Whole Lotta Love AND Ramble On. The first is the hard rockin’ kick-ass Zeppelin and the other is the soft, bluesey, whimsical Tokenesque Zeppelin (is that the song where Plant is singing about getting cock-blocked by Gollum and Sauron?)
Like Eminem can be summarized in two songs:
Lose Yourself - angry, serious Eminem singing songs of empowerment
Real Slim Shady - humerously psychotic Slim Shady singing songs about causing problems
U2 needs about four:
I Will Follow - 80s new wave college rock U2
Pride (In The Name of Love) - late 80s wanabee Bruce Springsteen Americana heartland rock U2
Mysterious Ways - 90s electro alternative U2
City of Blinding Lights - 2000s “best rock band in the history of the world” U2
OTOH:
Foo Fighters - Learn to Fly
Whatever song you pick for Led Zeppelin has to be one they ripped off from somebody else. 
Who - “Who Are You?”
Renaissance - “Song of Scheherazade”
Emmylou Harris - “Pancho and Lefty”
Lots of good ideas everyone! I’m glad we’re observing the distinction that it need not be the best thing, just the one that best captures that certain something about the band.
I like pulykamell’s suggestion of Bone Machine for the Pixies. That or perhaps Monkey Gone to Heaven?
“Somebody’s Crying” - Chris Isaak.
And definitely concur on “Learn to Fly”.
Days of the Phoenix by AFI
Perfectly blends their punk rock roots with their developing goth esthetic which eventually lead to a more mature, less gothy style from their most recent album Crash Love
But this song is a great missing link between their old and new stuff, plus it’s fantastic.
I have to add that The Leaving Song Part II is pretty awesome and sums them up nicely as well
If I was wanting to let someone know that Warren was more than “Werewolves of London”, I’d probably pick “Accidentally Like a Martyr”, one of his few pre-“The Wind” songs that really moved me.
Also a good choice.
Definitely Sara
Or Lay Lady Lay