There is something just so simply appealing about the acoustic guitar. It’s versatile, it’s bright, it shines. It’s warm and it’s inviting. It’s also an instrument that many people play since it’s easy to buy a cheap acoustic rather than an electric that needs an accompanying amplifier. So, the sound of the instrument is family, too. And when combined with genre of classic rock—chef’s kiss!
Here below, we wanted to explore three classic rock acoustic songs. Three songs that continue to ring out on radio stations, movie soundtracks, and home stereos alike. But wait, there’s more! Each of these three songs is also known as a one-hit wonder—songs from groups that never released another song that quite matched the popularity of their only hit. Let’s dive in! These are three acoustic classic rock one-hit wonders.
[RELATED: No Skips: 4 Classic Rock Albums You’ll Never Have to Fast-Forward]
“Stuck in the Middle with You” by Stealers Wheel from Stealers Wheel (1972)
A quintessential 1970s classic rock song, this rollicking acoustic-driven number earned renewed recognition 20 years later thanks to the 1992 gangster film Reservoir Dogs from director Quentin Tarantino. As for the track itself, this tune from the Scottish rock band hit No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was originally a bit of a parody meant to poke fun at the writing style and delivery of the Bard, Bob Dylan. With lyrics talking about jokers (perhaps a reference to “All Along the Watchtower”) and clowns, lead vocalist Gerry Rafferty sings the words with a nasally, pushed style. And on the offering, which also mocks the music industry, Rafferty croons,
Well I don’t know why I came here tonight
I’ve got the feeling that something ain’t right
I’m so scared in case I fall off my chair
And I’m wondering how I’ll get down the stairs
Clowns to the left of me
Jokers to the right
Here I am stuck in the middle with you
“Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm” by Crash Test Dummies from God Shuffled His Feet (1993)
This song, which blends acoustic guitar with piano lines, hit No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100. Known as much for its hummed chorus as for its deep-voiced singer Brad Roberts, this track was a big hit in the 1990s. The tune tells three separate stories of three young people who endure uncomfortable experiences—ones we all know well like not wanting to change in the school locker room or feeling strange while going to church. But while those stories may not be the thing that jumps out about the song decades later, the oaky voice possessed by the Canadian-born band’s lead singer certainly does. And on the song, Roberts croons,
Once there was this kid who
Got into an accident and couldn’t come to school
But when he finally came back
His hair had turned from black into bright white
He said that it was from when
The cars had smashed so hard
Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm
Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm
“What’s Up” by 4 Non Blondes from Bigger, Better, Faster, More! (1993)
Perhaps more than any other acoustic song on this list, this one is a track that people can belt out at bars or while driving in their cars down the highway. It’s catchy and somehow supremely memorable. Written by the San Francisco-born rock group, this tune hit No. 14 on the Billboard Hot 100. And it continues to show up often in popular culture, most recently in the 2023 animated movie Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem. Just hearing the chorus on the song, which has garnered more than a billion streams on YouTube alone, you almost can’t help but sing. To wit, iconic lead vocalist Linda Perry sings,
And so I cry sometimes when I’m lying in bed
Just to get it all out what’s in my head
And I, I am feeling a little peculiar
And so I wake in the morning and I step outside
And I take a deep breath and I get real high
And I scream from the top of my lungs
“What’s going on?”
And I say, hey-ey-ey
Hey-ey-ey
I said “Hey, a-what’s going on?”
And I say, hey-ey-ey
Hey-ey-ey
I said “Hey, a-what’s going on?”
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