Hazel Motes

Back in Black-ACDC

Hokeyboy

The entire album, really.

Enter Sandman needs to die a swift, painful death already.

rw2516

Lunatic Fringe is another

Hokeyboy

"In The Air Tonight". Christ, that song makes the pigeon population call up Abe Foxman

statcat

whoa no mention of Stairway to Heaven yet

Boston's More Than a Feeling is up there too.

majorjoe23

Check post 3.

TimeandTide

Don't Stop Believin' by Journey is the obvious answer. It's everywhere.

And I'll add Boys of Summer by Don Henley.

I currently share a classroom with a couple other teachers during my summer school gig and one of them insists on having the radio set to a soft rock station, so about four times a day I'm forced to listen to Hotel California, Old Time Rock and Roll, Piano Man, and I'm Still Standing.

inri222

majorjoe23

I agree with this, I was driving around one day and it was playing on the oldies and classic rock stations at the same time. I felt like I was on the Sopra.

EddieMoney

My Kinda Lover - Billy Squier

JeffTheAlpaca

Anything by Fall Out Boy if you consider them rock.

Ozzy - Crazy Train

I like Ozzy but a little overplayed.

Any rock song used in a commercial or played at a sports arena is overplayed.

Matt925

No Welcome to the Jungle? Not a bad song, but I don't think sports events are allowed to go on if that song isn't played.

Decker

Like the boy's name "Michael", Stairway to Heaven was the correct answer for most over-used every year for like 40 years.
Now I agree it's easily "Don't Stop Believing" which is such a mediocre song anyway. When The Sopranos immortalized it, we all thought "Huh? Well that's an odd choice". Now six years later, it's totally unavoidable and such a tired cliche. Remarkable how quickly things can change. It's now the musical equivalent of "Aidan" or "Mason".

Hiro11

I heatily disagree that "Don't Stop Believing" is "mediocre". It's a top notch pop song flawlessly delivered and pretty much the definitive example of a song that can rock an entire stadium of people. Melodramatic, over-the-top, bombastic, showy and slightly cheesy? Sure. It also works.

Supermallet

creekdipper

All good choices.

If we include partial songs, I'd say that those used as intros/bumpers to radio shows & songs used in commercials are the most overexposed. Consider the following:

"My City Was Gone" by Pretenders (AKA "Rush Limbaugh" theme...at least the first 30 seconds). This intro has been played literally thousands and thousands of times over decades; as far as I know, it's still being used.

"Like a Rock" Segar
"Lust For Life" Iggy
"The Boys Are Back in Town" Lizzy
"Should I Stay Or Should I Go?" Clash
"Dust in the Wind" Kansas

Right now we have to endure repeated playing of the remixed excerpt from Bowie's "Let's Dance" (the "serious moonlight" lines) used for the KIA commercial. Unfortunately, watching shows On Demand means you have to see the same commercial 5-6 times PER EPISODE...very annoying when fast-function mode is disabled for network shows.

I think both these were already mentioned, but where would NBA be without Glitter's "Rock and Roll" or Queen's "We Will Rock You/We Are the Champions"?

creekdipper

Also consider songs used during political "campaigns" (sic).

I thought I'd throw up if I heard "We Take Care of Our Own" one more time. Besides being the weakest track on the album, it was painful to hear Bruce repeatedly mispronounce "cavalry", especially in front of all of those school kids being used as props.

I think there should be a ban on all songs used as themes for political efforts to get elected (whether "Born in the USA" or "We Won't Get Fooled Again"). The groups spend billions of dollars; let them hire people or bands to create original songs. If artists want to go out and do benefits or make appearances with candidates, fine...just don't play the same canned music at every stop.

I'd make an exception for "Should I Stay Or Should I Go?", "Satisfaction", "Money", and "Help!"

creekdipper

I agree on all counts with your assessment, but Sopranos and Glee have left a bad taste in a lot of people's mouths.

creekdipper

But it was so funny hearing people merrily (and cluelessly) singing a ditty about cocaine addiction.

kd5

The songs that make me cringe when I hear them on the radio, ultimately changing the station or just turning the damned thing off:

Angie ~ Rolling Stones (christ! I hate that song)
Beast of Burden ~ Rolling Stones
Start Me Up ~ Rolling Stones
Stairway to Heaven ~ Led Zeppelin


Also:

Don't Fear the Reaper & Burnin' For You ~ Blue Oyster Cult (doesn't anybody realize that BOC has about a thousand other songs out there that they can play? Why does it ALWAYS have to be those 2???)

EddieMoney

Well, sometimes they play "Godzilla."

inri222

Sweet Child of Mine & Paradise City

The Infidel

Truthfully, anything by Guns 'n' Roses.

dvdjunkie32

All Along the WatchTower - Hendrix
Old Time Rock n Roll - Bob Seager
Tush - ZZTOP

Pretty much any hit by Creedance.

JeffTheAlpaca

But I miss the days when Mike Cofer the former Niners kicker would line up the ball on the tee just before kickoff and Start Me Up would start playing.

KISS - Rock N Roll All Night