It’s impossible to pin down '70s music as any one particular thing. Across the U.S., folk and protest songs evolved alongside rock, funk, R&B, pop, and soul, while genres such as punk, disco, electronic, and hip-hop arrived on the scene. Clubs and airwaves were flooded with new and exciting sounds, shuffling the top of the music charts on a weekly basis. Hard rock got harder at the same time that jazz got smooth. Horns and strings found their way into emerging dance music, and pop performances grew more elaborate and theatrical with each passing year.
In that eclectic decade, a handful of songs crossed genre boundaries, with lyrics that became embedded in the minds of listeners around the world for decades to come. Even if you were born long after 1979, chances are, the iconic lines of that time are familiar. Here, we’ve collected 20 of the best song lyrics of the '70s, classics that cut to the core of human experience, exploring themes of love, family, and friendship.
Don't it always seem to go / That you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone?Joni Mitchell, “Big Yellow Taxi,” 1970
If not for you, my sky would fall / Rain would gather, too / Without your love I'd be nowhere at all / I'd be lost, if not for you.Bob Dylan, “If Not for You,” 1970
We all have pain / We all have sorrow / But if we are wise / We know that there's always tomorrow.Bill Withers, “Lean on Me,” 1972
It's easy to get buried in the past / When you try to make a good thing last.— Neil Young,"Ambulance Blues," 1974
I hope you hear inside my voice of sorrow / And that it motivates you to make a better tomorrow.Stevie Wonder, "Living for the City," 1973
Made up my mind to make a new start / Going to California with an aching in my heart.Led Zeppelin, "Going to California," 1971
Oh it's such a perfect day / I'm glad I spent it with you.Lou Reed, "Perfect Day," 1972
Freedom's just another word for nothin' left to lose.Kris Kristofferson, "Me and Bobby McGee," 1971
Your time has come to shine / All your dreams are on their way.Simon & Garfunkel, "Bridge Over Troubled Water," 1970
Any way the wind blows doesn't really matter to me.Queen, "Bohemian Rhapsody," 1975
We're just two lost souls swimming in a fishbowl year after year.Pink Floyd, "Wish You Were Here," 1975
And now she's in me / Always with me / Tiny dancer in my hand.Elton John, “Tiny Dancer,” 1971
They say women, they will come and they will go / When the rain washes you clean, you'll know.Fleetwood Mac, “Dreams,” 1977
Well I wouldn't trade my life for diamonds or jewels / I never was one of them money-hungry fools / I'd rather have my fiddle and my farmin' tools / Thank God I'm a country boy.John Denver, “Thank God I’m a Country Boy,” 1974
We are family / I got all my sisters with me / We are family / Get up everybody and sing.Sister Sledge, “We Are Family,” 1979
You've got to know when to hold 'em / Know when to fold 'em / Know when to walk away / And know when to run.Kenny Rogers, “The Gambler,” 1978
Baby, if I think about you / I think about love / Darlin', if I live without you / I live without love.Bad Company, “Feel Like Making Love,” 1975
I got chills, they're multiplying / And I'm losing control / 'Cause the power you're supplying / It's electrifying!John Farrar, “You’re the One That I Want,” 1978
When I find myself in times of trouble, Mother Mary comes to me / Speaking words of wisdom, let it be.The Beatles, “Let It Be,” 1970
Time may change me / But I can't trace time.David Bowie, "Changes," 1972
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