# What was the greatest song of the 1970s? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 22, 2013, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968 "2013-01-22T01:27:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/21 "2013-01-22T03:05:20Z")
I don’t know any of those songs. In fact, I only recognise the names of four of the artists… Loretta? Dolly? Charley Pride? Tanya Tucker? ONJ? ---
**Author:** ![Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/face_intentionally_left_blank/32/288_2.png) [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/22 "2013-01-22T03:51:11Z")
> [@notfrommensa](#): > > My first thoughts were _Stairway to Heaven_ and _Freebird_. > > Also partial to _Someone Save My Life Tonight_, that song was playing when I first got laid. _[Someone Saved My Life Tonight](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZRRd4bW91c)_ is my favorite Elton tune. If I’d nominate one of his tunes, this would be it. Beautiful piano, great lyrics, great melody, and my it’s favorite vocal performance of his. I wish he’d done an intimate, live version early in his career like those BBC performances from the early 70’s, before his voice was blown. For example, this version of _[Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2e4NlnLr28)_ ---
**Author:** ![installLSC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/54ee81/32.png) [@installLSC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/installLSC)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/23 "2013-01-22T04:25:37Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > I vote for Bowie’s “Suffragette City”. Catchy and way ahead of its time. Right artist, wrong song. The best song of the 70s was [“Station to Station”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZY77zDzNmYw), just your basic ten minute prog/punk/funk/disco epic. And, depending to who you listen to, is either about the Signs of the Cross or taking tons of cocaine. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/24 "2013-01-22T04:34:06Z")
I can think of many better candidates. “Won’t Get Fooled Again” – Who “Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys” – Traffic “Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters” – Elton John “Stairway to Heaven” – Led Zeppelin “Sunday Papers” – Joe Jackson “Life During Wartime” – Talking Heads “I Want to Be Sedated” – Ramones “Surrender” – Cheap Trick “Cool for Cats” – Squeeze “Allison” – Elvis Costello “Here Comes the Weekend” – Dave Edmunds “Cruel to be Kind” – Nick Lowe “I Do the Rock” – Tim Curry “Bohemian Rhapsody” – Queen ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/25 "2013-01-22T04:40:52Z")
What no Bat out of Hell? ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/26 "2013-01-22T04:57:35Z")
I lived through the entirety of the 70s, and yet I only know one of those songs. This poll sucks. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/27 "2013-01-22T05:14:41Z")
You’ve got Blondie’s _Hangin’ on the Telephone_ up for best '70’s song? _Hangin’ on the Telephone_ wasn’t even the best Blondie song! That was _Heart of Glass_, obviously! They built a whole carnival ride called the Himalaya out of it! ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/28 "2013-01-22T05:16:25Z")
_Bonds with Don Draper_ ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/29 "2013-01-22T05:17:34Z")
I’ve opened a new thread for [nominations](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=15924058#post15924058). ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/30 "2013-01-22T05:43:35Z")
I can’t see the poll since I’m on my phone, but I bet there’s no Alice on there… ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/31 "2013-01-22T06:00:29Z")
I listened to a lot of music in the '70s (especially the mid to late '70s) and I don’t recognize a single song on that list. I’ve added some nominations on the other thread. ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/32 "2013-01-22T06:56:32Z")
Pfft. A hipster’s list. ---
**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 22, 2013, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/33 "2013-01-22T07:58:09Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > I can think of many better candidates. > > “Won’t Get Fooled Again” – Who > “Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys” – Traffic > “Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters” – Elton John > “Stairway to Heaven” – Led Zeppelin > “Sunday Papers” – Joe Jackson > “Life During Wartime” – Talking Heads > “I Want to Be Sedated” – Ramones > “Surrender” – Cheap Trick > “Cool for Cats” – Squeeze > “Allison” – Elvis Costello. > “Here Comes the Weekend” – Dave Edmunds > “Cruel to be Kind” – Nick Lowe > “I Do the Rock” – Tim Curry > “Bohemian Rhapsody” – Queen What **Chuck** said. Seriously, no “Bohemian Rhapsody”? No Who? No Ramones? No Cheap Trick? No Elton John? Kids today… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Art\_Rock](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/art_rock/32/525_2.png) [@Art\_Rock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Art_Rock)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 10:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/34 "2013-01-22T10:17:00Z")
I was a teenager in the seventies, still love the music, and would not put ANY of these songs in the poll on my MP3 player (the Kate Bush one only in the re-make from the mid eighties). I would pick Pink Floyd’s Shine on you crazy diamond or Genesis’ Mad man moon. ---
**Author:** ![RikWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/49beb7/32.png) [@RikWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RikWriter)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 10:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/35 "2013-01-22T10:55:55Z")
None of the ones in your poll. My opinion would be More Than a Feeling by Boston. But Kashmir by Led Zeppelin would be a close second. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/36 "2013-01-22T11:48:12Z")
I’m surprised by the number of people who don’t know the sons in the poll. Admittedly they are a dreadful selection but, nonetheless, I remember every one of them. As to the correct answer, I’ll give you 3 “Aussie” songs: [Cold Chisel’s “Khe Sanh”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTjvG4WJD_A) [AC/DC “It’s a Long Way To The Top”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFlNo1NjAEQ) [Eric Bogle’s “The Band Played Waltzing Matilda”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdzotnAwqDU) ---
**Author:** ![GovernmentMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e9c0ed/32.png) [@GovernmentMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GovernmentMan)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/37 "2013-01-22T12:03:04Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > I lived through the entirety of the 70s, and yet I only know one of those songs. This poll sucks. I think that’s more of a problem with you than the poll. ---
**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 22, 2013, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/38 "2013-01-22T13:21:51Z")
Putting it in the other thread, but with all due respect “Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding” is Elton’s best. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/39 "2013-01-22T13:48:44Z")
> [@GovernmentMan](#): > > I think that’s more of a problem with you than the poll. I completely disagree. You’ve limited your representation of the 70’s to 10 songs, two of which are Bruce Springsteen. It’s all about _your_ very limited tastes, and not at all to do with one of the most musically diverse decades in history. ---
**Author:** ![Suil\_Dubh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/85f322/32.png) [@Suil\_Dubh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suil_Dubh)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968/40 "2013-01-22T13:51:00Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > I lived through the entirety of the 70s, and yet I only know one of those songs. This poll sucks. > [@GovernmentMan](#): > > I think that’s more of a problem with you than the poll. Were you of adolescent age or older during the '70s? [edit: to **GovernmentMan** and not **GuanoLad**] > [@drastic\_quench](#): > > Pfft. A hipster’s list. That was the impression that I first got. Unless the OP meant “What is the greatest song from this list of songs of the 1970’s?”, it seems to me that the list wasn’t written by someone who actually experienced the period. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-greatest-song-of-the-1970s/647968.md?page=3)