The Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll, 421-430

growing old gracefully: I listened to a live Stray Cats show on NPR

Edwin Starr, War

The song that has been used as a punchline for some many a sitcom moment. I'm sorry Edwin, you deserved better. 

Steely Dan, Reeling in the Years

In 1979, I was a 10 year old who listened to American Top 40 religiously and developed a taste for Steely Dan. What kind of 10 year old listens to Steely Dan? I had no idea what they meant by fine Colombian or what Cuervo Gold was, the Benson & Hedges 100 Greatest Bars drink book be damned. I think I can blame it on my dad, who between all the ABBA albums and novelty songs, kept a stash of Leon Russell cassettes and sang along to the Alan Parsons Project as well as the wry offerings of Becker and Fagen. And, Hey Nineteen figures prominently in the courtship of me and the Mr. 

Steppenwolf, Born to Be Wild

Again, another song that has been appropriated by that movie that featured it on the soundtrack. And the Huggies diaper commercial. And the As Seen on TV compilation. And a staple of every unimaginative classic rock program director from the morning zoo down the dial to the hyper 108FM. RAWK. 

And now: a snapshot demonstrating the versatility of three stars - Rod, Iggy, and Brian

Rod Stewart, Maggie May

Oh Rod. His catalog is so very all over the place, from experimental stuff with Faces, to his confessional solo stuff through his sleazy disco era to his sensible pop to the standards he does today. Maggie May is classic rock fare, but where's Do Ya Think I'm Sexy? Young Turks? Forever Young? Oh, and You're in My Heart, which has the most gorgeous lines: you're a rhapsody, a comedy, you're a symphony and a play, you're every love song ever written, but honey what do you see in me? Heart melts. 

Iggy and the Stooges, Search and Destroy

Iggy Pop has already been featured on this list under Lust for Life, so this is his return with the Stooges. He has come back around in his career many times as well, singing Candy with Kate Pierson of the B-52s; a cameo in a children's show breaking the fourth wall, eyebrow cocked to prove he's in on the joke; and of course eating vegetarian after karate lessons with Anthony Bourdain, may he RIP 

The Stooges, I Wanna Be Your Dog

Ok, what's going on here? See above. 

Stray Cats, Rock This Town

Brian Setzer led the Stray Cats, a rockabilly band in the 80s, to significant success by reintroducing the sound to 80s audiences. Stray Cat Strut was moody, sexy. Sexy + 17 was a rousing good time. But he went on to make movie appearances as 50s rockabilly stars in movies such as La Bamba. when the 90s rolled around, he formed the Brian Setzer Orchestra and brought back Big Band. 

Barrett Strong, Money
Not a favorite of mine, but it has been remade, rerecorded, reimagined since its release in the 50s. Glancing at YouTube comments, yep, it's been used in every conceivable way on any number of movie soundtracks about men chasing bank.  

The Sugarhill Gang, Rapper's Delight

An early rap song, credited for introducing hip hop to a wide audience, and of course it's been used on countless movie soundtracks to create a sense of time. Cool fact: Sylvia, from Mickey & Sylvia, singers of Love is Strange, was the producer. This song has made numerous most important music lists, including the Library of Congress. Not bad for a trio of guys from Jersey. Shout out to Wonder Mike, Big Bank, and Master Gee. 

Donna Summer, Love to Love You

Sweet Donna had her moment under the glitter ball when disco was queen. Love to Love You was her big break but she had so much more going on than dance music. She was the lead singer of a psychedelic rock band in the 60s and toured in a production of Hair. She was in a couple of movies, had 42 hit singles, and was a sensation in her music videos. My dad was particularly fond of her version of O Holy Night.