Music experts and critics will often try to tell everyone what the best songs are in this genre or that one, but there is one sure-fire way to determine how great a song truly is.
Spend a few days and nights on Broadway in Nashville and see which songs are requested over and over, and which songs bands play that everyone is excited to hear and sing along with. What songs do people love, no matter the genre or the generation of the audience?
No matter what those experts and critics say, it always boils down to whether people know a song and enjoy hearing it. That is what makes a great song.
Popular songs you can hear in numerous bars in Nashville
During a recent trip to Nashville, I visited a variety of bars along Broadway. No matter the bar, there were many songs that nearly every audience wanted to hear and paid the various bands to play them.
Some of the songs were not all that surprising. Certain tunes seemed to be staples, including “Sweet Home Alabama” by Lynyrd Skynyrd, “Don’t Stop Believin’” by Journey, “Friends in Low Places” by Garth Brooks, “Rock Star” by Nickelback, “Fishin’ in the Dark by Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, and various other tunes.
Some of the songs were more surprising. Audiences requested these songs often, and everyone sang along enthusiastically to “All the Small Things” by Blink-182, “Stacy’s Mom” by Fountains of Wayne, “What’s Up?” by 4 Non Blondes, “Panama” by Van Halen, and “Kryptonite” by Three Doors Down.”
Three songs, however, will cost you if you want to hear them. Up and down the strip, bands proclaimed that three songs would cost $100 for them to play. These songs are “Freebird” by Lynyrd Skynyrd, “Devil Went Down to Georgia” by The Charlie Daniels Band, and “Dicked Down in Dallas” by Trey Lewis.
It’s obvious why “Freebird” would be included on this list because of its 12-minute length and its grueling guitar solo at the end. “Devil Went Down to Georgia” can also be easily explained, with its manic and powerful fiddle riffs. Why “Dicked Down in Dallas” is on the list isn’t nearly as clear as the other two.
Other songs seemed to be widely popular too, including classics like “Pour Some Sugar on Me” by Def Leppard, “Livin’ on a Prayer” by Bon Jovi, “Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy)” by Big & Rich, and “Sweet Child O’ Mine” by Guns N’ Roses. For female singers, anything by Pat Benatar or the Cranberries was always popular.
One surprising thing was that there were just as many rock songs being played as country songs. While Nashville is often considered the country music capital, Broadway is a hub for all genres of music.
Nashville also embraces numerous generations, and the truly great songs were those known by all audiences. Genres and generations are often blurred on Broadway, and it was a joyous sight to see so many people enjoying a wide range of music.
A great song is simply one that many people want to hear played and sing along with. Those songs that cross genres and generations and are enjoyed so enthusiastically stand out, and critics be damned!