The 1970s was known as the decade of rock. Hard rock, soft rock, alternative rock, progressive rock—the list goes on. In the midst of conflicts like the Cold War and the Vietnam War, much of the music in the ’70s had themes of darkness and anger. The music that came out of the ’70s is now considered classic and is still widely recognizable in the entertainment industry. From the transformation of rock to the moving nature of songs, the 1970s was certainly a significant era for music.
Some of the best-selling artists of the ’70s were Pink Floyd, Queen, and Fleetwood Mac. Pink Floyd’s 1973 album Dark Side of the Moon spent 962 weeks on the Billboard 200 list, and is easily one of the most popular albums of modern entertainment. Artists like Fleetwood Mac and Rolling Stones went into the 1970s already famous and left as some of the decade’s most influential artists. Rock was split into numerous subgenres, including hard rock (Van Halen and Rolling Stones), progressive rock (David Bowie and Pink Floyd), and the beginnings of alternative rock (U2 and The Cure, both of which were big bands in the 1980s but were formed in the mid-’70s).
Many artists fit into multiple of the rock subgenres. Progressive rock and alternative rock were both combinations of rock and pop, and many artists moved between the different genres. Rock was categorized from soft (closer to pop) to hard, with the most extreme of hard rock being metal and heavy metal. However, all these subcategories later became known as classic rock. Rock in the 1970s set the scene for the coming decades, creating a standard sound for vocals and instrumentals.
Without a doubt, my favorite song of the 1970s, as well as one of my favorite songs from any decade, is “Heroes” by David Bowie. The 1977 song tells a story of two lovers separated by the Berlin Wall, fearing death yet hoping for the day of freedom where they can finally be together. In the song, he prays that the two lovers “can be heroes, just for one day,” asking for one day of freedom. Bowie also pays tribute to the East Germans who drowned in the Spree River while attempting to escape the oppressive rule they were under: “I, I wish you could swim / Like the dolphins, like dolphins can swim.”
In 1987, a decade after the song’s release, Bowie returned to West Berlin where the song was recorded to perform it. Bowie placed his concert immediately next to the Wall, playing “Heroes” loud enough to be heard in East Berlin. He also allowed radio stations to broadcast the entirety of the concert—a rarity due to the possibility that recordings of the broadcast cut into album sales—so that citizens in East Berlin could listen to the rock concert, typically forbidden in East Germany.
A Vox article on the performance states that Bowie’s concert “allow[ed] these two halves of the city to hear the same show, divided but together.” Bowie would later say that “it was one of the most emotional performances I’ve ever done. I was in tears.” A week after the concert, President Ronald Reagan visited West Berlin, calling for the Wall to be torn down. This renewed outrage around the Berlin Wall, and to this day, many people attribute Bowie’s “Heroes” performance to helping the Berlin Wall come down in 1989.
The first time I heard “Heroes” was in the 2012 movie adaptation of Stephen Chbosky’s The Perks of Being a Wallflower. As Charlie, Sam, and Patrick drive through the Fort Pitt Tunnel in Pittsburgh, “Heroes” plays on the radio, and the three share an intimate moment of joy and peace. When I watched the scene, I immediately fell in love with the song. I’ve listened to other Bowie songs, including “Fame” (1975), “Suffragette City” (1972), “Under Pressure” (1981), and “Space Oddity” (1969), but “Heroes” is by far my favorite. The progressive rock song features Bowie on the piano, George Murray on bass, Dennis Davis on drums, and Carlos Alomar on rhythm guitar. Bowie’s voice is immediately recognizable, and the song is incredibly moving.
A close runner-up for my favorite song of the ’70s is “Mr. Blue Sky” (1977) by Electric Light Orchestra, famously known for being played at the beginning of Marvel’s 2017 film Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. On the softer side of the genre, the song ends with a minute-and-a-half long feature of the orchestra, perfectly culminating the track.
The 1970s was a transformative decade of rock, known for its classic style while also redesigning the stage for subgenres like progressive rock, hard rock, and more. With the influence of unforgettable bands and artists, the 1970s was an innovative decade , undoubtedly influencing music as we know it today.
