There isn’t much not to love about rock music in the 70s. The decade churned out some of the best classics in rock music, including these three songs. All out in 1973, it’s likely every 70s kid can still sing along to them word for word today.
“You Are The Sunshine Of My Life” by Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder’s third No. 1 single, “You Are The Sunshine Of My Life” is a pop-soul jam with rock elements, written by Wonder. The song, on his Talking Book album, is a feel-good song that Wonder reportedly wrote about his first wife, Syreeta Wright, amid their marital troubles, due in large part to his soaring popularity.
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“You Are The Sunshine Of My Life” says, “I feel like this is the beginning / Though I’ve loved you for a million years / And if I thought our love was ending / I’d find myself drowning in my own tears / You are the sunshine of my life / That’s why I’ll always stay around / You are the apple of my eye / Forever you’ll stay in my heart.”
“Let’s Get It On” by Marvin Gaye
The title track of an album Marvin Gaye also released in 1973, Gaye wrote “Let’s Get It On” with Ed Townsend. It’s a very soulful R&B song with some funk-rock elements that make it worthy of this list.
The sexy song says, “I’ve been really tryin’, baby / Tryin’ to hold back this feeling for so long / And if you feel, like I feel baby / Then come on, oh come on, ooh / Let’s get it on, oh baby / Let’s get it on, let’s love baby / Let’s get it on, sugar / Let’s get it on, whoa.”
“Let’s Get It On” has been part of the soundtrack for several hit movies over the years, including Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, High Fidelity, and The Dictator, among others.
“Sunshine On My Shoulders” by John Denver
John Denver’s first No. 1 hit, “Sunshine On My Shoulders” was written by Denver, Mike Taylor, and Dick Kniss. The soft rock country song first appears on Denver’s Poems, Prayers, and Promises project. But it didn’t become a single until Denver released his John Denver’s Greatest Hits record, also in 1973.
The uplifting song says, “Sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy / Sunshine in my eyes can make me cry Sunshine on the water looks so lovely/ Sunshine almost always makes me high.”
Perhaps no one is more surprised than Denver at how “Sunshine On My Shoulders” came out. He later admits he was not in a happy mood when he wrote it.
“I was so down I wanted to write a feeling-blue song,” Denver says. “[But] this is what came out.”
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