Annotation

For the first time in 17 years, Rolling Stone Magazine completely remade list of the best songs ever. More than 250 artists, writers, and industry figures helped choose a brand-new list full of historic favorites, world-changing anthems, and new classics.

Nearly 4,000 songs received votes. Where the 2004 version of the list was dominated by early rock and soul, the new edition contains more hip-hop, modern country, indie rock, Latin pop, reggae, and R&B. More than half the songs here — 254 in all — weren’t present on the old list, including a third of the Top 100. The result is a more expansive, inclusive vision of pop, music that keeps rewriting its history with every beat.

Annotation last modified on 2021-09-17 03:20 UTC.

Recordings

#NameArtistISRCsRatingLength
1Respect (stereo)Aretha Franklin3.92:26
2Fight the Power (album version)Public Enemy3.74:39
3A Change Is Gonna Come (original stereo studio mix)Sam Cooke3.83:13
4Like a Rolling Stone (officially released stereo studio recording)Bob Dylan4.56:10
5Smells Like Teen SpiritNirvana4.355:01
6What’s Going On (original LP version)Marvin Gaye4.353:53
7Strawberry Fields Forever (original stereo studio mix)The Beatles54:10
8Get Ur Freak On (explicit)Missy Elliott43:57
9DreamsFleetwood Mac4.254:17
10Hey Ya!OutKast43:55
11God Only Knows (mono)The Beach Boys4.152:51
12Superstition (album version)Stevie Wonder4.854:26
13Gimme Shelter (original studio mix)The Rolling Stones3.954:33
14Waterloo SunsetThe Kinks4.33:16
15I Want to Hold Your Hand (original mono studio mix)The Beatles4.22:27
16Crazy in Love (album version)Beyoncé feat. Jay‐Z4.653:56
17Bohemian RhapsodyQueen4.555:55
18Purple Rain (live with overdubs, 1983-08-03: First Avenue, Minneapolis, MN, USA)Prince and The Revolution4.28:41
19Imagine (original studio mix)John Lennon4.43:04
20Dancing on My OwnRobyn44:48
21Strange Fruit (1939-04-20 recording)Billie Holiday43:13
22Be My BabyThe Ronettes42:40
23“Heroes”David Bowie4.556:10
24A Day in the Life (original stereo studio mix)The Beatles45:34
25Runaway (explicit)Kanye West feat. Pusha T3.99:08
26A Case of You (Blue version)Joni Mitchell3.754:23
27Born to Run (version 5a)Bruce Springsteen4.44:30
28Once in a LifetimeTalking Heads4.54:20
29Nuthin’ but a “G” ThangDr. Dre3.53:58
30RoyalsLorde3.93:10
31(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction (mono version)The Rolling Stones4.153:45
32Juicy (explicit)The Notorious B.I.G.4.655:03
33Johnny B. Goode (original release, take 3, without overdub)Chuck Berry4.252:40
34Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag (part 1)James Brown3.652:07
35Tutti Frutti (original specialty recording (1955))Little Richard4.42:25
36Seven Nation ArmyThe White Stripes3.953:52
37When Doves CryPrince and The Revolution4.15:54
38(Sittin’ on) The Dock of the BayOtis Redding4.52:42
39B.O.B.OutKast4.755:04
40All Along the WatchtowerThe Jimi Hendrix Experience4.54:01
41Love Will Tear Us ApartJoy Division4.53:26
42Redemption SongBob Marley & The Wailers43:48
43My GirlThe Temptations4.652:45
44Billie Jean (album / single version)Michael Jackson4.154:54
45Alright (explicit)Kendrick Lamar3.953:39
46Paper PlanesM.I.A.4.053:24
47Tiny DancerElton John3.56:16
48IdiotequeRadiohead3.85:09
49Doo Wop (That Thing)Lauryn Hill4.555:20
50GasolinaDaddy Yankee3.13:14
51Walk On ByDionne Warwick4.752:55
52I Feel Love (album version)Donna Summer3.85:53
53Good Vibrations (stereo)The Beach Boys4.23:37
54The Tracks of My Tears (mono)Smokey Robinson4.252:56
55Like a PrayerMadonna4.155:41
56Work ItMissy Elliott3.34:59
57Family AffairSly & the Family Stone4.63:04
58The Weight (album version)The Band44:35
59The Message (original version)Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five4.87:11
60Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)Kate Bush3.955:00
61Stairway to HeavenLed Zeppelin4.28:02
62OneU24.254:36
63JoleneDolly Parton4.252:41
64Blitzkrieg Bop (single version)The Ramones4.652:13
65SeptemberEarth, Wind & Fire4.553:36
66Bridge Over Troubled Water (original stereo mix)Simon & Garfunkel44:53
67Tangled Up in Blue (original studio)Bob Dylan3.555:43
68Good TimesChic53:43
69All Too WellTaylor Swift4.55:28
70Suspicious Minds (live, 1969-08-26: International Hotel, Las Vegas, NV, USA)Elvis Presley
7:40
71Fast CarTracy Chapman4.64:57
72Yesterday (original stereo studio mix)The Beatles4.752:07
73Formation (explicit)Beyoncé43:26
74HallelujahLeonard Cohen4.154:39
75Common People (full length version)Pulp4.75:51
76I Walk the LineJohnny Cash and The Tennessee Two4.152:45
77RoadrunnerThe Modern Lovers44:06
78Reach Out I’ll Be There (stereo)Four Tops42:59
79Back to Black (explicit)Amy Winehouse4.354:01
80What’d I Say, Parts 1 & 2Ray Charles3.56:28
81I’m Waiting for the Man (original stereo studio mix)The Velvet Underground3.654:39
82Rolling in the DeepAdele4.553:48
83Desolation Row (officially released stereo studio recording)Bob Dylan3.8511:20
84Let’s Stay TogetherAl Green4.53:17
85Kiss (single version)Prince and The Revolution3.43:46
86Tumbling Dice (original studio mix)The Rolling Stones3.753:47
87All My FriendsLCD Soundsystem47:40
88Sweet Child o’ MineGuns N’ Roses4.555:56
89Hey Jude (original stereo studio mix)The Beatles47:08
90(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural WomanAretha Franklin4.22:44
91Int’l Players Anthem (I Choose You)UGK feat. OutKast54:19
92Good Golly Miss MollyLittle Richard
3.752:09
93Since U Been GoneKelly Clarkson3.853:09
94I Will Always Love YouWhitney Houston4.54:31
95WonderwallOasis4.24:19
9699 ProblemsJay‐Z3.753:55
97GloriaPatti Smith45:54
98In My Life (original stereo studio mix)The Beatles4.352:26
99Stayin’ AliveBee Gees3.94:45
100Blowin’ in the Wind (officially released studio recording)Bob Dylan4.52:48

Relationships

official homepages:https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-songs-of-all-time-1224767/ [info]