Opening lines of famous rock songs can be the hook that catches the listener’s attention, but the closing lines are what will burn into their memory long after the song is over. There are a few very memorable closing lines in famous rock songs throughout history, and I’m particularly fond of the following four. Let’s take a look and get inspired!
“Thunder Road” by Bruce Springsteen
“It’s a town full of losers, and I’m pulling out of here to win.”
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Bruce Springsteen’s 1975 ode to wanting to get out of one’s hometown is a classic, and those closing lines wrap up this album opener beautifully. That final line makes the listener want to root for the narrator, and also sparks some hope for our own futures, in a way.
“Fade To Black” by Metallica
“Yesterday seems as though it never existed / Death greets me warm, now I will just say goodbye.”
This 1984 Metallica tune is a classic heavy metal track, and those closing lines are particularly poignant. “Fade To Black” is a dark yet sympathetic tune about someone who is contemplating ending it all. It’s bleak, to say the least, and that closing line is still completely devastating to hear, years after this song was released.
“The End” by The Beatles
“And in the end, the love you take / Is equal to the love you make.”
“The End” was the final song on the final record that the Fab Four recorded together, Abbey Road. And there’s a finality to that closing track that is almost haunting, in a particularly heartwrenching and yet positive way. It calls back to the title of the song and offers listeners words of wisdom to millions of fans who adored The Beatles.
“Won’t Get Fooled Again” by The Who
“Meet the new boss / Same as the old boss.”
Simple and direct, and almost meaningless if you don’t understand the context of the song. The closing line to the 1971 rock anthem “Won’t Get Fooled Again” by The Who is a reference to revolution, which is a core theme of the album Who’s Next. The group that led an uprising in this record’s story ended up ruling society just as terribly as the regime before them. With that in mind, those closing lines are brilliant.
Photo by Gijsbert Hanekroot/Redferns
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