What are the classics every rock band simply must be able to play?

Chicago Tribune ^ | June 21st, 2018 | Randy Blaser

[Mariner]

I have a theory about rock ’n’ roll bands that I haven’t really expressed to many people, but I will offer it here.

I think any rock ’n’ roll band that wants to consider itself serious needs to be able to competently perform a certain set of standard rock songs. If they can’t play these songs, they should just stop the music and get day jobs.

I’m talking about classic songs that are basic to the genre.

Let me explain.

Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi were not blues musicians. However, they knew enough about music to know any band worth its salt had to be able to perform certain standards at any time.

Thus The Blues Brothers were born. The idea led to a hit album called “Briefcase Full of Blues,” which contained the standards, and a hit movie. The song “Soul Man,” was immortalized thanks to The Blues Brothers.

So it should be with any competent rock band. If you want to be good, if you want to entertain, there are certain basics which must be mastered.

But which songs are the songs that must be part of any competent band’s repertoire.

[dfwgator]

What I Like About You

[1FreeAmerican]

Little Wing. But by Stevie Ray Vaughn.

[To-Whose-Benefit?]

Yessir!

But,since we seem to be equating Rock with the earlier stuff on this thread,

Tony Williams Lifetime
Mr Spock https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtD8IQLlfqU

Red Alert https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_Qb4DTmLsg

Dixie Dregs
Blood Sucking Leeches
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MfwsR1shno8

Sleaze Factor
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7RoPQLfbaU

[deadrock]

All Right Now should be in the band’s repertoire.

[Rebelbase]

I’ve been watching some Foo Fighters live videos on Youtube lately. Not a big fan of them but Dave Grohl puts on a good show.

He claimed they knew 70 classic rock songs then qualified it by saying “but we only know about the first 70 seconds of them.”

[Spruce]

Boom boom out go the lights

Day tripper

The locomotion

Slow ride

Jonnie b Goode

[Billthedrill]

Ooh, yeah. I don't think the Dregs actually wanted to be a mainstream band and just sort of got sucked into it...

We're gittin' old. Buckethead has a heart issue and Tony McAlpine is recovering from colon cancer surgery.

[Will88]

The French Armenian kid who got into somebody's 1950s record collection. Many videos over several years of varying production quality and he's visited Tupelo and Graceland. Also a contestant on the French The Voice this year.

Roffi Arto

[eyedigress]

Amazing Grace...

[Alas Babylon!]

I came here to post that. Thank you, Irish Juggler!

All bands, whenever there’s a lull in the music and crowd noise, get asked to play Freebird!

[glorgau]

Rock Lobster

[To-Whose-Benefit?]

Yeah.

KHIT Radio!

Where we play all the hits.

All Day Every Day.

All 5 of Them.

[mrsmith]

Louis louis, Gloria, Wipeout, and that slow song.

[virgil]

I saw Foghat at a county fair last year. They sang Slow Ride. They were pretty good.

[Fiji Hill]

One of the first songs any band should learn to play is a simple thing called “Gloria.”

Good choice!

Gloria--Arthur Lee Maye & the Crowns (1956)

[Responsibility2nd]

I used to think rock was dead too. When all I listened to was commercial radio. Do a little research. Modern contemporary rock music is very much alive and well.

Hey, hey, my, my.....

[DaxtonBrown]

“Candyman” by Sammy Davis Jr.

[smokingfrog]

Suzie Q

[Migraine]

Proud Mary
Johnny B Goode
My Girl
Hush

[Responsibility2nd]

Get some early Eric Clapton. Cream. Derek and the dominoes. Clapton has influenced hundreds if not thousands of musicians.