I was born in the early 1960’s. As such, it is natural that much of my favorite music was made in the 1970’s and the 1980’s. Make no mistake though, the 1990’s and all of the 2000’s have brought thousands of great rock n roll songs as well.
Is it possible to choose one song, that for you personally, defines each decade in which you were alive? No, I don’t think there really could be just one song that stands out above the rest. But I’ve been listening to copious amounts of rock and roll on a daily basis for a very long time, and I’ve decided to give it a try. My choices will be entirely personal and not meant to be truly representative of a decade for anyone else. And please don’t mistake this for my picks of the best song of the decade. That would be a ridiculous and impossible mission. These are songs that I picked based upon what defines the decade for me. What was my life about during any given ten-year span, and what song takes me back there? I will pick one song for each decade during which I have been alive. That song will be one that is a good representation of what the decade was all about for me. A couple of my choices were easy, but for the most part, I really could have picked any one of hundreds of songs. But what fun is there in that?
Let’s start with the 1960’s. My pick is…drum roll please…..
1960-1970 “Louie Louie” by Paul Revere and the Raiders
Released in 1967 on Paul Revere and The Raiders Greatest Hits
I was only alive for the last two thirds of the 1960’s. I listened to bands like The Monkees. I did not listen to The Beatles. Sorry, but I missed that boat and never got on it even later in life. I really feel like the proper choice for many would be a Beatles song, but they meant nothing to me in the 1960’s. So why does this cover of “Louie Louie” define the 1960’s for me? Well, I heard the song played by my best friend’s older brother. It blew me away as a young child, and I had to have it. I had purchased 45 rpm singles at the dime store, but this was my first full album ever. I bought the record with nickels and dimes at Korvettes Department Store. This is the one song that probably helped propel me into my lifetime love of all things rock and roll. Relatively easy choice for me. “I’m a Believer” by The Monkees could have been an optional choice.
1970-1980 “Another Girl, Another Planet” by The Only Ones
Released in April, 1978 from the album Special View
This song was written by rhythm guitarist and vocalist Peter Perrett. I love the song based upon the fact that it has great lyrics, a killer guitar lead and unique vocals. I have heard it a million times by now and it still makes me freeze up and listen intently every time it plays. The lyrics are almost certainly about heroin, although Perrett has denied it. The “space travels” referred to in the lyrics suggest being high and the reference to getting “under my skin” fits the heroin narrative, but you can be the judge. Personally, I think Perrett had both drugs and a girl on his mind when he wrote it and he used the two to create an amazing metaphor (am I using the term metaphor correctly?). Wikipedia tells me that Andy Claps of AllMusic describes the song as "Arguably, the greatest rock single ever recorded.” I don’t know who that guy is, but at least I’m not totally on an island with my deep adoration of this song. But why does it define the decade for me? In my mind, the 1970’s decade has two distinct parts. My big sister driving me around, buying us beer (although she was also under age), and listening to classic rock was part one. She took me to see my first concert - Aerosmith. For that part of the 70’s, I would pick Cheap Trick, “Surrender” as a good decade definer. Even though that song is also from 1978, it captures the era I am talking about. But the 1970’s also brought us The Cars. It brought us The Sex Pistols and The Clash. Punk-rock changed my life. Power-pop by bands like 20/20 was just starting to really brew. I think “Another Girl, Another Planet” is a good overall representative of the decade as a whole for me. And it’s one of my favorite songs of all time.
1980-1990 “She Sells Sanctuary” by The Cult
Released May 1985 from the album Love
The 1980’s could be defined by any number of bands. How about The Replacements for goodness sakes? For me, the list is long. The Neighborhoods would be an excellent choice. So would Enuff Z’Nuff, but they were so late into the decade, and what they represent only covers about a year or two of the 1980’s. But I gotta pick one song, so I’m taking “She Sells Sanctuary.” I was an avid skateboarder and this song was popular in that culture. The song came out in 1985, the middle of the decade. I was finishing up college and made all new friends who were all locals fully immersed in the rock n’ roll scene around Charlottesville, VA. Those friends changed my life forever, and certainly for the better. This is a great rock and roll song that holds onto that left of the dial college radio sound I, but maybe it’s also is a transition toward the glam-metal era that I also came to love in the late 1980’s. I’m happy with the pick. It seems to be a solid representative of the whole decade, but it really is tempting to pick a Neighborhoods or Replacements song. Those bands had a major impact on me. (editor’s note; JCE probably wouldn’t be aware of this, but “She Sells Sanctuary” was Watershed’s 2:15 am last-call cover of choice all through the 90’s, and as late as last year at the Rumba Cafe.)
1990-2000 “Ball and Chain” by Social Distortion
Released in 1990 from the album Social Distortion
This song is just barely a 1990’s song, and in fact I believe it was written in 1989. But the release date is in 1990, and the song kicked off a great decade for me. It rises to the top when I think of my life in the 1990’s. My wife and I started dating in 1990 and we were married in 1991. We bought our first house in 1992. We did not start a family for another ten years. Our decade was spent immersed in music. We amassed a collection of thousands of CD’s and went to countless rock & roll shows. There are plenty of songs that we latched onto, but “Ball and Chain” is one that we both loved, and one that endured the entire decade and beyond as one of our favorites. The song is about vocalist Mike Ness’ battles with alcohol. It is to this day my favorite Social Distortion track, although they have a ton of great songs to their credit. Bottom line, the 1990’s was all about my wife and I. We spent the decade carefree and enjoying each other. I had to pick a song that we both love, or it wouldn’t really represent the decade at all. We both love the band and the song, so it’s my pick.
2000-2010 “Obvious” by Watershed
Released in 2005 from the album The Fifth of July
I discovered Watershed when I stumbled upon Three Chords and a Cloud of Dust in 1994 when it was released. I have been a devoted fan since then. My favorite record by the band is The Fifth of July, and “Obvious” is my favorite song by the band. For me, the first decade of the 21st century was all about raising a child. My wife and I did not attend too many shows during the 2000’s, but we listened to a lot of music. This was a hard decade to try to “define” with one song. I’m going with this one simply because over time, well beyond this particular decade, I have come to love the band even more. I’ve made a couple of pilgrimages to Columbus to see them. I’ve met the band members, I’ve become close to Ricki C. and I write blogs for this website. It makes sense to me to pick one of their songs to represent a decade in which I listened to their records as much as anyone’s. I spent the decade either working, or spending time with my wife and young child. But the music never stopped playing, even if the visits to rock and roll clubs dwindled to nothing.
2010-2020 “Masochist” by Palaye Royale
Released in May 2020 from the album The Bastards
If the 2000’s was all about raising a small child, the 2010’s was all about raising a teenager. My daughter grew up in a house where the music was always playing. She took to music like her parents, and our shared love of rock and roll is something I treasure. During this decade, we were able to return to the clubs and once again see live rock and roll fairly regularly. Of course, my daughter developed her own musical tastes and began to find her own bands to follow. She bought CD’s and she started seeing shows she wanted to see. And who took her to those shows? Me, and her Mom. And many times, just me. Going to shows became a daddy/daughter thing for us. Most of the time, the bands she liked were just as enjoyable for me as they were for her. The first club show she asked to attend was to see a band called Royal Thunder, a hard-rocking, female-fronted band that I thought was great. I’m picking Palaye Royale for this decade because my daughter turned me onto the band, and I’m certain that I liked them way more than she did right from the start. One of my favorite things I’ve ever done with my daughter, just me and her, was attend a Vans Warped Tour. We saw so many bands that day I can’t recall them all. But I know Palaye was on our must-see list. And on that day, they played “Masochist.” It blew me away. This was well before 2020. They didn’t record and release it for a few more years after that show, but once they did, it hit heavy rotation for me, and it’s still played regularly at my house. It’s a perfect song to make me think of the 2010’s, and the relationship I have with my amazing daughter.
2020-Present “Witches Burn” by The Pretty Reckless
Released in 2021 from the album Death by Rock And Roll
The 2020’s are only half way over, but I suspect this song may still be my choice five years from now. My wife & daughter and I all love The Pretty Reckless. We’ve all seen them play live together. My wife and I have seen them four or five times (we’re empty nesters now). The album Death by Rock and Roll was my pick for best record of 2021. “Witches Burn” is my favorite track from the album, and I think it’s my favorite track from any Pretty Reckless album. The song plays constantly at my house. This was kind of an easy choice for the 2020’s.
There you have it. Seven songs to capture the emotions of a lifetime lived during seven decades…so far. Give these videos a listen.
Paul Revere & the Raiders
The Only Ones (listen to the guitar solo from 1:45 to 2:20…..)
The Cult
Social Distortion
Watershed
Palaye Royale
The Pretty Reckless
JCE, or John to his friends, is a lifetime rock and roll addict. He enjoys contemplating, debating and writing about the music he loves, and he is thankful to have Pencil Storm as a platform for his ramblings.