The Best Of 2014: The Classic Rock Playlist
Seventeen (yes, seventeen) playlists – or one massive one if you prefer - highlighting this year's finest songs.

Icons & Legends, Anthems, Hardy Perennials to New Kids On The Block (not literally, mind), there’s something for every discerning rock taste…
Icons & Legends
Still ruling the roost after all this time…
- Be Lucky - The Who * Louder Than Words - Pink Floyd * Rainbow - Robert Plant * 41 Shots (American Skin) - Bruce Springsteen * Fault Lines - Tom Petty * Sue (Or In A Season Of Crime) - David Bowie * Almost Like The Blues - Leonard Cohen * What’s Broken - David Crosby * Belle Fleur - Stevie Nicks * _Dark Sunglasses - Chrissie Hynde _
Anthems
Built for the ages…
- _Something From Nothing - Foo Fighters _ * Play Ball - AC/DC * Open My Eyes - Rival Sons * Me And Mary Jane - Black Stone Cherry * Bent To Fly - Slash * Shakin’ Hands With The Holy Ghost (Live) - Blackberry Smoke * Chemical Rain - California Breed * Body Parts - Ginger Wildheart * Wow - Prince & 3rdEyeGirl * Turn Blue - Black Keys * Gimme Something Good - Ryan Adams
Classic Rock Newsletter
Sign up below to get the latest from Classic Rock, plus exclusive special offers, direct to your inbox!
Hardy Perennials
Things wouldn’t be the same without ‘em…
- Walk Me To The Bridge - Manic Street Preachers * One Minute - Uriah Heep * Gotta Get It Right - Sixx Am * Shore Power - Chris Robinson Band * Speakeasy - Nazareth * Live ’Til You Die - Magnum * Thousand Little Pieces - Dan Baird & Homemade Sin * Somebody Fucked With Me - Buckcherry * Angel Of Mercy - Black Label Society * Valkyrie - Asia
Comeback Kings & Queens
The ones that came in from the cold…
- The L.O.C. - The Tea Party * Postcard From The Past - Billy Idol * Space Invader - Ace Frehley * Do You Ever Think Of Me? - Tim Wheeler * Open Up (That’s Enough) - The Dead Weather * Matamoros - The Afghan Whigs * Underworld - Brody Dalle * Claw Machine - The Datsuns * Eye Of The Storm - Bush
New Kids On The Block
Tomorrow’s stars today…
- Danse Macabre - Purson * Come On Over - Royal Blood * I’ll Be The First - Kill It Kid * Heavy Bells - J Roddy Walston & The Business * Fat Around The Heart - King 810 * Violent Shiver - Benjamin Booker * Fall Into The Party - Twin Atlantic * Jetpack Soundtrack - Lionize * Nowhere To Hide - Crobot * Janice The Stripper Pt1 - Henry’s Funeral Shoe * I Wanna Get Out Of Here But I Can’t Take You Anywhere - Ming City Rockers * Jericho - Preachers Son * Define - Red Racer * Hey I Don’t Know - Kongos * _Aces - Rival State _ * Falling - Cage The Gods * Wallflower - Purple
Collaborations
Two heads are better than one…
- Trouble - Bernie Marsden & David Coverdale * Going Back Home - Wilko Johnson & Roger Daltrey * Working Class Man - Jimmy Barnes & Steven Van Zandt * One Way Out (Live) - Gregg Allman With John Hiatt * Paradise (What About Us?) - Within Temptation Ft. Tarja * Who’s Gonna Shoe Your Pretty Little Feet - Billie Joe Armstrong & Norah Jones * Sonic Attack - Hawkwind Ft. Brian Blessed
The Prog’s Bollocks
All the strangeness you’ll ever need…
- Subway Walls - Yes * Cusp Of Eternity - Opeth * Hometown Blues - Syd Arthur * Mask Machine - Flying Colors * Magnolia - The Pineapple Thief * Named After Rocky - Amplifier * Anathema - Anathema * Alien Frequency - Bigelf * The Perpetual Glow Of A Setting Sun - Messenger * I’ve Been Walking (Part 1) - Gazpacho
Metal Gods
They all go up to 11…
- The Negative One - Slipknot * Down - We Knew Him Well * Dragonaut - Judas Priest * The Devil’s Whip - Orange Goblin * High Road - Mastodon * Sadiowitch - Electric Wizard * Kill The Power - Skindred * Tarquinius Superbus - Corrosion Of Conformity * Rejoice - Devin Townsend * Electric Halo - Kyng
New Blues
Down ‘n’ dirty…
- Friday Night - Hat Fitz And Cara Robinson * Different Shades Of Blue - Joe Bonamassa * Howl - Long John Laundry * Runnin’ - No Sinner * Ain’t Got No - Black State Highway * Bottom Of The River - Walter Trout * I’m Your Baby Now - Ian Mclagan & The Bump Band * It’s Good To Be Alive - Imelda May * Outlaw Angel - Joanne Shaw Taylor * World Blues - Royal Southern Brotherhood * I Refuse To Lose - Jarekus Singleton
Sheer Art Attack
The in sound from way out…
- August - North Atlantic Oscillation * Talk To God - Goat * Thank You - Gong * The Candy Man - Primus * Herod - Sunn 0))) & Scott Walker * Délivrance - Alcest * Counting Out - Blueneck * Destroy The World We Love - Knifeworld * Screen Shot - Swans * The Zodiacal Light - Earth
Highway Stars
The finest in Americana and roots…
- Burning Bridges - Lucinda Williams * State I’m In - Needtobreathe * Drinking - Sheryl Crow * The No-Hit Wonder - Cory Branan * Saturday’s Eyes - Hiss Golden Messenger * Hanging On - Drive-By Truckers * Blue Sky - Marc Ford * Harvest Home - Mark Lanegan Band * Worried Bout The Weather - Justin Townes Earle * The No No - Baskery
Left Of The Dial
Alt.rock’s greatest hits…
- Temporary Ground - Jack White * One And All - Smashing Pumpkins * Indie Cindy - Pixies * People Are Strange Machines - Buzzcocks * Left For Dead - Bass Drum Of Death * Stitch Yourself Up - Little Matador * I Don’t Know You Any More - Bob Mould * Back To The Shack - Weezer * Himalayan - Band Of Skulls * A Million Random Digits - …And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead
Hard Rock Heaven
Big, big tunes…
- Tearing Down The Walls - H.E.A.T * _Time To Let Go - Work Of Art _ * So Divine… - Tesla * Cold Hearted - FM * Midnight Driver Of A Love Machine - Winger * High Road - Night Ranger * Alone In The Dark Tonight - Ten * All Or Nothing - Vega * Does It Feel Like Love - In Faith * Reality Bites - Brother Firetribe
Guitar Heroes
It’s all about those six-strings…
- Levitation - Circa Zero * Blood Run Cold - Bernie Tormé * Morpheus - Steve Rothery * Phantom In The Valley (Live) - Howlin’ Rain * The Soundmaker - Rodrigo Y Gabriela
Party Hard
For when you need to let your hair down…
- Hadal Zone Express - Märvel * Your Hour Of Darkness - Urban Voodoo Machine * If You Ever Leave Me I Will Find You - Wilson * Sweet Mary C - Electric Mary * Running With The Dogs - The Treatment * Rub It To Death - Nashville Pussy * Keep Moving On - Blackwolf * We Are The Ones To Fall - Santa Cruz * Payback’s A Bitch - Kory Clarke * Trainwreck 1979 - Death From Above 1979
Blue-Collar Heroes
Hearts of grit…
- Gimme Something Good - Ryan Adams * Cruel City - Augustines * Get Hurt - The Gaslight Anthem * Molly Drove Me Away - The People The Poet * Spinners - The Hold Steady * Backroads - Lonely The Brave * Elvis Went To Hollywood - Counting Crows * _Let’s Get Drunk And Get It On - Old 97’s _ * Come Down - Gentlemen Husbands
Under The Covers
Old classics, done new…
- Thriller - Chuck Billy * Ain’t No Sunshine - Brent Hinds * The Wizard - Brownout * Kickstart My Heart - Rascal Flatts * Long Train Runnin’ (Live) - Thunder * Stand - The Winery Dogs * Elements And Things - Blues Pills * We Used To Be Friends - Alejandro Escovedo * Sweet Child O’ Mine - Scott Bradlee & Postmodern Jukebox * Straight Up - Me First & The Gimme Gimmes
THE COMPLETE 2014 PLAYLIST
The best songs of 2014. In one giant playlist…
Classic Rock is the online home of the world's best rock'n'roll magazine. We bring you breaking news, exclusive interviews and behind-the-scenes features, as well as unrivalled access to the biggest names in rock music; from Led Zeppelin to Deep Purple, Guns N’ Roses to the Rolling Stones, AC/DC to the Sex Pistols, and everything in between. Our expert writers bring you the very best on established and emerging bands plus everything you need to know about the mightiest new music releases.