Songs are like journal entries; peeks into the story of our favorite artists. When we look back on a musician’s career, we can trace a course through their lives just as well as their artistry. So, when an artist gets older, we can still hear what their younger selves felt through their songwriting. The three 1970s songs below have only gotten more meaningful as their artists have gotten older. Like telling us a story from their childhood, these songs feel like sage wisdom passed down from aging legends.
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“Landslide” — Fleetwood Mac
Even a 25-year-old Stevie Nicks had plenty of wisdom to offer, earning this era-defining hit. Hearing “Landslide” feels like finding an old photograph of an elder. It’s one of the most nostalgic and educational tracks ever.
“But time makes you bolder / Even children get older / And I’m gettin’ older, too,” Nicks sings in this 1970s song. These lines, as well as the rest of this song, are endlessly relatable. No matter what stage you find yourself in life, there is something to learn from “Landslide”. Its effects have only grown stronger now that Nicks is at a stage of life where everything she says feels like hard-earned wisdom.
“Ooh La La” — Faces
The Faces’ “Ooh La La” is all about looking back on your life. “I wish that I knew what I know now / When I was younger,” the lyrics to this 1970s song read. What lines have been truer than that? These lyrics are ones we all instantly understand, underscoring their universality.
Now that the members of Faces—Ronnie Wood, Rod Stewart, etc.—have all gotten older, we can only assume the lyrics to this song hit even harder for them than they did back in 1973.
“Let It Be” — The Beatles
The Beatles’ “Let It Be” is one of the tenderest songs ever. A young Paul McCartney seemed wise beyond his years when he wrote this plaintive, advice-ridden classic. When an aged McCartney sings “When the broken-hearted people living in the world agree / There will be an answer, let it be,” it feels all the more inspired than it did when it was first released.
This is one of the most enduring songs of all time. You don’t earn the kind of lifespan this song did without being something that every listener can take to heart. This song is certainly that.
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