Finding the hard rock songs of the 60s

[PeterG]

Finding anything before 1964 that isn't leftover rock n roll, R & B covers, beat pop, power pop, boogie, or surf-guitar based is quite difficult.
67 to 69 is reasonably easy...but I'm having problems with 66.

The only thing I ask is that your selections actually sound hard and/or heavy and as such could be made by hard rock, retro rock, blues rock or stoner rock bands today and identified by such current bands as a style of hard rock.

1964
The Kinks - You Really Got Me
The Kinks - All Day and All of the Night

1965
The Kinks - Till the End of the Day
The Who - My Generation
The Rolling Stones - Get Off of My Cloud
The Pretty Things - Get the Picture
Golden Earring - No Need To Worry

1966
Cream - Sweet Wine .... I'm blanking out for 1966. Help!!! Maybe 66 really was the transitional year from pop to rock.

1967
JHE - Purple Haze
PF -Interstellar Overdrive
Cream - Swlabr
Vanilla Fudge - Ticket to Ride
...and many more


1968
Blue Cheer- Parchment Farm
The Beatles - Back in the USSR
Steppenwolf - Faster Than the Speed of Life
Steppenwolf- Born to be Wild
Free - Worry
Iron Butterfly - Are You Happy
Spooky Tooth - Sunshine Help Me
Gun - Race With The Devil
...and many more

1969
PF - Nile Song
JT- Nothing is Easy
GFR - Into The Sun
LZ - Whole Lotta Love
KC - 21st Century Schizoid Man
DP - Bird Has Flown
MC5 - Rocket Reducer No.62
Alice Cooper - Living
Edgar Broughton Band - Love in the Rain
Jeff Beck - Plynth
Vanilla Fudge - Need Love
Free - Woman
Yes - Every Little Thing
Spirit- Dark Eyed Woman
Mott The Hoople - Rock and Roll Queen
Humble Pie - Desperation
Status Quo - Face Without A Soul
...and many more

[PeterG]

Can someone please find something reasonably heavy by The Yardbirds? I've tried but cant.

[Zeuhlmate]

Yardbirds

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adbGT8Rg9OE

No Beatles?

[PeterG]

Yea, have a look at 68! Back in the USSR!

[PeterG]

Yardbirds

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adbGT8Rg9OE

Oh yea man, thanks for that, listening to it now and lovin' it!

[PeterG]

1967
The Doors - Break on Through
The Nice - War and Peace

1968
Status Quo - Technicolour Dream
Status Quo - Auntie Nellie
Jefferson Airplane - Greasy Heart

1969
CCR - Fortunate Son
CCR - Sinister Purpose
Colosseum - The Kettle
Jefferson Airplane - Volunteers
Jefferson Airplane - 3/5 of a Mile in 10 Seconds (live)
Neil and the Horse - Cinnamon Girl

[pb2015]

For 1966 I think "Taxman" is as heavy as some of the other songs mentioned.

Edit: Also "7 and 7 Is" by Love.

[ronmac]

1966 has to include "Paperback Writer" and "Rain." At the very least, "Paperback Writer."

[Zeuhlmate]

Oh yea man, thanks for that, listening to it now and lovin' it!

The also made a version of Back Door man which is a bit to the tough side.

[philsunset]

A few heavies from '66

Hey Joe - The Leaves
Psychotic Reaction - Count Five
Complication - The Monks
You're Gonna Miss Me - The Thirteenth Floor Elevators
Talk Talk - The Music Machine
Children of the Sun - The Misunderstood
Diddy Wah Diddy - Captain Beefheart
Kicks - Paul Revere and the Raiders
Persecution Smith - Bob Seger

66 was the finest year for garage rock so there's many more..
Shadows of Knight, Syndicate of Sound, Rationals....

[Yves]

Yea, have a look at 68! Back in the USSR!

I'd have picked Helter Skelter before Back In The USSR.

[mogrooves]

The Creation - "Making Time"
The Who -"Substitute"
"Yardbirds - "Shapes..." & "Happenings Ten Years Time Ago"

[Facelift]

1961 - Jack the Ripper (Link Wray)

1966 - East-West (Paul Butterfield)
1966 - As a Judgement, Man With the Harmonica (Sergio Leone - Once Upon a Time in the West Soundtrack)

[ronmac]

I'd have picked Helter Skelter before Back In The USSR.

Not to split hairs, but that's more like heavy metal. How about "Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey"? Certainly "Revolution" from the single.

[ronmac]

1966 - East-West (Paul Butterfield)

Great song and interesting choice. Seems more like a bluesy jazzy thing than pure hard rock to me.

[Facelift]

Seems more like a bluesy jazzy thing than pure hard rock to me.

Well, he did say something that could be made by a blues-rock band today... I admit it's borderline.

Another borderline one from 1966 - I Hate You (The Monks). Possibly not heavy enough. Same with Trouble Every Day (MOI)

[rcarlberg]

With all due respect, looking at the examples Peter posted, his definition of "hard rock" seems a bit fluid.

He should be looking at bands like The Sonics, the Kingsmen, The Imperials, Frantics, Artesians, Paul Revere & The Raiders, Don and the Goodtimes, Dick Dale, Davie Allen, gawd there are TONS of them!

[Joe F.]

A few heavies from '66

Complication - The Monks

This one came to mind to me as well. Black Monk Time is a great record, imo. March of '66!

[The Dark Elf]

Various years, very heavy:

Captain Beefheart - Zig-Zag Wanderer (1967)
Amboy Dukes - Baby Please Don't Go (1968)
Small Faces - Song of a Baker (1968)
MC5 - Kick out the Jams (1968)
Frank Zappa - Willie the Pimp (1969)
The Stooges - I Wanna Be Your Dog (1969)
Frijid Pink - House of the Rising Sun (single, 1969)
Santana - Soul Sacrifice (1969)
Black Sabbath - When I Came Down (demo, 1969)
Fleetwood Mac - Rattlesnake Shake (1969)

[PeterG]

1961 - Jack the Ripper (Link Wray)

mmm.....naah.....sorry but that's rock n roll surf guitar. Lots of bands were playing that sort of stuff but's its not hard or heavy.

[PeterG]

Finding anything before 1964 that isn't leftover rock n roll, R & B covers, beat pop, power pop, boogie, or surf-guitar based is quite difficult.

The problem will always be that your own preferences in musical styles will dictate to you what you think is heavy or hard based on what you usually listen to.


The same problem arose in the late 80s/early 90s with many of the indie/alt power pop and grunge bands when the music press, mostly unaware of and mostly disliking hard rock and metal, initially tried to term them hard rock or heavy metal, while the metal press and metal fans distanced themselves from such bands.

A few examples:
Terrorvision
Pavement
Soundgarden
Soul Asylum
Nirvana

etc.

[Lopez]

Twenty-one posts and no mention of Blue Cheer's "Summertime Blues" (1968, recorded in '67)?

[Digital_Man]

Imo, one of the hardest songs from 1966 is "tax man" by the Beatles (of course). If it wasn't for the complicated bass line this could almost be considered proto metal.

Also, Jeff Beck's "Becks Bolero" was recorded in 1966. You can't get much heavier than that for that year.

Cream was already mentioned but I think some stuff from their debut was pretty heavy for the time. I'm not that familiar with most of the Yardbirds but I would guess they had some heavy stuff too for back then.

[PeterG]

Twenty-one posts and no mention of Blue Cheer's "Summertime Blues" (1968, recorded in '67)?

But I did mention Parchment farm, which is I feel is heavier. But I must admit that I was trying to avoid covers when I created my opening list, but a couple managed to slip through anyway

[PeterG]

Imo, one of the hardest songs from 1966 is "tax man" by the Beatles (of course). If it wasn't for the complicated bass line this could almost be considered proto metal.

Also, Jeff Beck's "Becks Bolero" was recorded in 1966. You can't get much heavier than that for that year.

Cream was already mentioned but I think some stuff from their debut was pretty heavy for the time. I'm not that familiar with most of the Yardbirds but I would guess they had some heavy stuff too for back then.

+1