Sometimes, genuinely talented and famous classic rock musicians will drop songs that very clearly should have gotten fan attention, but somehow slipped past everybody’s radar. I think the following tunes fit that description, and they deserve way more love today.
“I Can See For Miles” by The Who from ‘The Who Sell Out’ (1967)
Everything on The Who Sell Out seems surprisingly underrated to me. The Who’s third album was a bit of a bump in the road of their discography, peaking at No. 13 in the UK, while the albums that sandwiched it (A Quick One from 1966 and Tommy from 1969) peaked at No. 4 and No. 2, respectively. It’s not fair, because songs like “I Can See For Miles” are honestly great. I just can’t explain the lack of fan love. Even the band was surprised when this song only made it to No. 10 in the UK and No. 9 in the US.
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“The Truth” by Prince from ‘The Truth’ (1997)
This acoustic rock song with an unusually folky vibe for the often synth-soaked songs of Prince seemed to slip through the cracks when it came to the Purple One’s fans. It’s a rare, almost unplugged version of the kind of music that made Prince such an incredible star, and I’m surprised that more fans don’t talk about how intimate and stripped down of an experience “The Truth” (and the whole of the album of the same name) was in the later years of Prince’s career. Not only was this song not particularly successful, but Prince only performed it live once single time in 2002.
“Desperado” by Eagles from ‘Desperado’ (1973)
Alright, I wouldn’t say this song is ignored by fans today. In fact, despite never being released as a proper single, this song became one of the band’s most well-known songs. But back in the day, it was just another cut on an album that produced no hit songs. Desperado remains their lowest-charting album. That’s a huge bummer, because “Desperado” is a remarkable country rock gem on par with Eagles’ bigger works. This entry on our list of classic rock songs may not have charted, but it definitely should have.
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