3 Songs From 1973 That Prove It Was the Most Experimental Year of the Decade

The early to mid-70s were a time of innovation and experimentation in music. Here are a few experimental songs from the year 1973 that were ahead of their time.

“On The Run” by Pink Floyd

Pink Floyd‘s The Dark Side Of The Moon was definitely a piece of futuristic music. This song, which is considered by many to be an early example of techno music, primarily uses a synthesizer that is sped up to give it a sequenced sound.

“Time” by David Bowie

If David Bowie is anything, it’s experimental, and this song from 1973 proves it. “Time” uses a piano part that is super reminiscent of music from the 20s, and somehow, Bowie pulls it off. According to him, although this song sounds like it’s about time, it actually is very connected to sexuality.

“I’ve written a new song on the new album which is just called ‘Time’, and I thought it was about time,” he explained in Bowie On Bowie. “And I wrote very heavily about time, and the way I felt about time – at times – and I played it back after we recorded it and my God, it was a gay song! And I’d no intention of writing anything at all gay. When I’d listened to it back I just could not believe it. I thought well, that’s the strangest…”

“Frankenstein” by The Edgar Winter Group

This song by The Edgar Winter Group is sonic proof that you don’t have to aim to write a traditional song to have a No. 1 hit. In fact, the original version of this track was about 20 minutes long, before it was cut down. “Frankenstein” was originally composed by Edgar Winter, who pioneered the idea of strapping a keyboard to yourself onstage.

“I had forgotten all about the song until I saw the ARP 2600 synthesizer, a remote keyboard that was connected to the guts of the instrument by a cable,” he explained to Larry Widen. “When I picked it up in the music store, I thought, ‘Hey, this thing is pretty light. If I put a strap on it, I could play it like a guitar.’ I started messing around on it with the old double-drum song, and it began to sound really cool. So we worked it up as a live song for the shows, never intending to put it on an album. It was an instant sensation. I will never forget the first night I walked out onstage with that keyboard. It was a real rock and roll moment.”

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