4 Songs From the 70s That Every Generation Can Get Behind

There are some songs that just stand the test of every generation. Here are four songs from the 70s that, I think, we can all agree are permanent classics.

“Imagine” by John Lennon

Especially if you grew up singing in a choir or doing music of any kind, it’s quite possible you had to cover this song at one point or another. This anthem of unity and peace, released in 1971, seems to resonate with not only different generations but also different nations around the world.

“In many countries around the world – my wife and I have visited about 125 countries,” former US president Jimmy Carter once said. “You hear John Lennon’s song ‘Imagine’ used almost equally with national anthems.”

“Heroes” by David Bowie

Similar to “Imagine”, “Heroes” has become quite the anthem over the years. The song follows two lovers: one from West Berlin and one from East Berlin.

As Bowie would later share, “Heroes” was inspired by an affair his producer, Tony, had. Bowie wrote Heroes in Berlin, where it actually happened.

“I’m allowed to talk about it now,” he explained to Performing Songwriter. “I wasn’t at the time. I always said it was a couple of lovers by the Berlin Wall that prompted the idea. Actually, it was Tony Visconti and his girlfriend. Tony was married at the time. And I could never say who it was (laughs). But I can now say that the lovers were Tony and a German girl that he’d met whilst we were in Berlin…”

“Dancing Queen” by ABBA

No song brightens up a room quite like “Dancing Queen”. It’s the quintessential song about being 17, and arguably one of the best songs in ABBA’s catalog. This is easily one of the most recognizable disco songs of the 70s.

“Stayin’ Alive” by Bee Gees

I’m convinced that “Stayin’ Alive” by the Bee Gees can convert anyone into a diehard disco fan.

There’s no doubt that there’s something about the Bee Gees’ sound that feels signature to them. Part of that may be the magic of this group, but part of it might have to do with the fact that several of their songs use the same drum loop.

“Barry and I listened carefully to find a bar that felt really good,” Albhy Galuten, a co-producer on “Stayin’ Alive”, shared with Mark Small. “Everyone knows that it’s more about feel than accuracy in drum tracks. We chose a bar that felt so good that we ended up using that same loop on ‘Stayin’ Alive’, and ‘More Than A Woman’, and then again on Barbra Streisand’s song ‘Woman In Love’.”

Photo by: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

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