Thirteen songs that invented entire genres, according to BBC Classical Music

Forget just "seminal". Some songs have truly helped give birth to entire musical genres. With an ambitious selection of thirteen tracks, the British magazine BBC Classical Music has attempted to pinpoint a few of them. "There are songs that don't just become huge hits: they change the course of music forever," notes Steve Wright in the introduction. "A riff, a rhythm, a vocal style or a production technique can give rise to an entirely new language, destined to influence generations of artists. Some of these songs had an immediate impact, others were only understood with time, becoming the starting point for entire musical movements. From folk-rock to grunge, by way of prog, heavy metal and electronic dance music, these songs represent the true 'big bangs' of their respective genres: works that redefined what rock and popular music could become."

So here is the list of the thirteen songs that invented entire musical genres, according to BBC Classical Music (full feature here).

Folk-rock
The Byrds – "Mr. Tambourine Man" (1965)
The famous reworking of the Bob Dylan classic, with the band's signature 12-string Rickenbacker sound and vocal harmonies, turned folk into electric music, officially kicking off folk-rock.

Disco
Manu Dibango – “Soul Makossa” (1972)
The irresistible groove, the fusion of afrobeat and funk, and the famous chorus made this track one of the foundational blueprints from which disco - and, later, much of dance music - would emerge.

Rock 'n' Roll
Bill Haley & His Comets – “Rock Around The Clock” (1954)
Blowing up thanks to the film “Blackboard Jungle”, the track turned rock'n'roll into the symbol of youth culture and kicked off rock's first great revolution.

Psychedelia
The Beatles – “Tomorrow Never Knows” (1966)
Tape loops, drones, Eastern influences and studio experimentation gave birth to the manifesto of psychedelia, destined to influence countless artists from Pink Floyd to Chemical Brothers.

Prog rock
King Crimson – “21st Century Schizoid Man” (1969)
With complex structures, virtuosity, jazz influences and dystopian lyrics, the track marked the birth of progressive rock, pushing rock beyond the boundaries of psychedelia.

Punk
Richard Hell And The Voidoids – “Blank Generation” (1976)
A concentrate of rage, cutting guitars and rejection of the previous generation's values that anticipated and inspired the British punk of Sex Pistols and Clash.

Jazz-rock
Blood, Sweat & Tears – “Spinning Wheel” (1969)
The fusion of rock energy, jazz horns and sophisticated arrangements paved the way for jazz-rock, influencing bands like Chicago and Steely Dan.

Dance music
Donna Summer – “I Feel Love” (1977)
Produced by Giorgio Moroder, this was the first major hit built almost entirely on synthesizers. Brian Eno called it “the sound of the future”: house, techno and modern electronic music all trace back to this.

Grunge
Green River – “Come On Down” (1985)
Years before Nirvana broke through, this Seattle band combined metal, punk and hard rock into a raw blend that would become the template for grunge.

Heavy metal
Black Sabbath – “Black Sabbath” (1970)
Dark riffs, an unsettling atmosphere, use of the tritone and horror-inspired lyrics defined, for the first time, the sonic and thematic language of heavy metal.

Art rock
The Beatles – “A Day In The Life” (1967)
More than a song, an artistic construction built in the studio: sound collages, orchestration and experimentation redefined the very concept of rock as an art form.

Hip-hop

Fatback Band – “King Tim III (Personality Jock)” (1979)
Released just weeks before “Rapper's Delight”, it's considered the first commercial rap record, bringing the MC culture born in Bronx block parties onto vinyl.

Garage rock
Link Wray – “Rumble” (1958)
With its deliberately distorted guitar and the aggression of its power chords, it laid the groundwork for garage rock and influenced everything that came after, from proto-punk to rock's rawest edges.

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