3 Pop Songs From 1973 That Give Me Instant Goosebumps Every Time

Just because pop music is, well, popular doesn’t mean it’s devoid of sentimentality or meaning. Some of the most mainstream songs can also be the most emotionally moving, as proven by these three pop songs from 1973 that give me instant goosebumps, no matter how many times I listen to them.

“Tie A Yellow Ribbon Round The Ole Oak Tree” by Tony Orlando and Dawn

I love love, and “Tie A Yellow Ribbon Round The Ole Oak Tree” is one of the sweetest testaments to the enduring nature of love to come out of the 1970s. The 1973 pop song follows a former inmate who was just released from a three-year prison sentence. He told his lover to tie a yellow ribbon around the oak tree in their front yard if she wanted him to come back home. If he didn’t see one on the tree, he wouldn’t have the bus stop in front of the house. The man is so afraid to look that he asks the bus driver to check the tree instead, after which the entire bus cheers because there are 100 yellow ribbons tied around the tree. So sweet. So many goosebumps.

“Killing Me Softly With His Song” by Roberta Flack

Next up on my list of goosebump-inducing pop songs from 1973 is the Roberta Flack version of “Killing Me Softly With His Song”, which came out one year after Lori Lieberman released the original version. Flack’s rendition breathed new life into the folk song, giving the track a new groove that allowed Flack to weave in and out of the beat with ease. Two decades later, Lauryn Hill would do the same thing with the Fugees’ version of this classic track. For whatever it’s worth, that version never fails to leave me with goosebumps, either.

“Live And Let Die” by Paul McCartney & Wings

Paul McCartney had long proven his ability to write emotionally moving music in the prior decade, but his goosebump-inducing songs continued well into 1973 and beyond, including his James Bond theme song, “Live And Let Die”. The retrospective verses giving way to a fierce, cinematic instrumental break is always chill-inducing, no matter how many times I’ve heard it. Just like the action franchise itself, “Live And Let Die” sweeps the listener up into its intensity.

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