Oldies: Sound That Rocks

The 50’s kicked off rock and roll. Bill Haley and his Comets got it jump-started in 1955 with their jukebox hit Rock Around the Clock – and we’ve been rockin’ ever since!

Take a step into the land of oldies with the sound that rocks from the 50’s through the 80’s. Load these classic rock treasures into your favorite listening devices or watch them on YouTube. Some of them are lost hits or one-hit wonders.

Pictures of Matchstick Men was the only hit by Status Quo, an English rock quintet. It’s seldom heard on the airwaves, but it’s a haunting rock love song that’s timeless. Rock And Roll Hoochie Koo was Rick Derringer’s only solo hit (1974). Derringer formed the rock band The McCoys in the mid 60’s. The McCoys gave us solid, infectious hits like Hang On Sloopy and Fever.

Little Richard, Chuck Berry, Wilson Pickett and many others were early rockers, paving the way for hard-edged groups of the 60’s like the Rolling Stones, the Animals, the Spencer Davis Group and so many more.

The 70’s kept us rockin’ along with groups like Aerosmith, Bad Company and Foreigner. The 70’s and the 80’s also sealed those decades with fiery, flambouyant groups like AC/DC, Def Leppard, Metallica, Cinderella and Kiss. Hard rockin’ women got into the act too – Pat Benatar, Chrissie Hynde (The Pretenders), Tina Turner and Patti Smith were just a few of the female forces to be reckoned with.

Feel like “rockin’ out”? Then let the oldies list below of sound that rocks get your fire started:

Rock Around The Clock – Bill Haley ‘55

Long Tall Sally – Little Richard ‘57

Johnny B. Goode – Chuck Berry ‘58

Hang On Sloopy – The McCoys ‘65

Fever – The McCoys ‘65

Let’s Hang On – The 4 Seasons ‘65

In The Midnight Hour – Wilson Pickett ‘65

We Gotta Get Out Of This Place – Animals ‘65

Psychotic Reaction – Count Five ‘66

Gloria – Shadows of Night (written by Van Morrison) ‘66

Shake, Rattle and Roll – Arthur Conley ‘67

Gimme Some Lovin’ – Spencer Davis Group ’67

Pictures of Matchstick Men – Status Quo ‘68

Jumpin’ Jack Flash – Rolling Stones ‘68

Magic Carpet Ride – Steppenwolf ‘68

Nobody But Me – The Human Beinz ‘68

Hush – Deep Purple ‘68

Bang A Gong (Get It On) – T. Rex ‘72

Rock and Roll – Gary Glitter ‘72

Love Is The Drug – Roxy Music ‘76

Golden Years – David Bowie ‘76

Rock’n Me – Steve Miller ‘76

Back In The Saddle – Aerosmith ‘77

Calling Dr. Love – Kiss ‘77

Because The Night – Patti Smith Group ‘78

Hot Blooded – Foreigner ‘78

Rock “N” Roll Fantasy – Bad Company ‘79

Cocaine – Eric Clapton ‘80

You Shook Me All Night Long – AC/DC ‘80

Stomp – Brothers Johnson ‘80

Brass In Pocket – Pretenders ‘80

Rock The Casbah – The Clash ‘83

Rock of Ages – Def Leppard ‘83

She Bop – Cyndi Lauper ‘84

One of the Living – Tina Turner ‘85

Invincible – Pat Benetar ‘85 (from the film: Legend of Billie Jean)

Jungle Love – The Time ‘85

Lover Girl – Teena Marie ‘85

Rock Me Amadeus – Falco ‘86

You Give Love A Bad Name – Bon Jovi ‘86

Sledgehammer – Peter Gabriel ‘86

Nobody’s Fool – Cinderella ‘87

Rock Steady – The Whispers ‘87

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