31 Rock Songs With Piano

12. “Funeral for a Friend / Love Lies Bleeding” by Elton John

Song year: 1973

This one has piano and keyboards all over it. From the funereal minor chords from the synthesizer to the bouncy, nearly angry piano chords near the end of “Funeral,” Elton John is just showing off on this one.

Once the song shifts to “Love Lies Bleeding,” the backup harmonies are almost as important as the piano notes in making the song work, but it’s an Elton John song, so they never become more important than the piano part.

13. “Piano Man” by Billy Joel

Song year: 1973

This is lower on the list than most might expect simply because it doesn’t exactly rock. A jazz waltz, Billy Joel’s “Piano Man” recounts his time playing in a piano bar under an assumed name.

He sings lyrics that follow the rhythm and rhyme scheme of a limerick, but there’s nothing fun about these sad bar folk. They seem to draw hope from the fact that if someone as obviously talented as the piano player is stuck here in this bar, maybe they’ve got a chance.

14. “Lady Madonna” by The Beatles

Song year: 1968

“Lady Madonna” starts with a driving piano containing both a major and minor third, which gives the riff its honky-tonk feel.

As McCartney sings, unspooling verses and chorus, the guitars and then horn section join, building on, echoing, and mimicking the churning piano line. The walking octave bass line in the piano is cool, but it’s even cooler when the bari sax does it at the same time.

15. “November Rain” by Guns N’ Roses

Song year: 1991

Sometimes, it’s hard to believe that the band that brought us “Welcome to the Jungle” and the opening guitar riff of “Sweet Child O’ Mine” also recorded this piano-driven, heavily orchestrated opus.

Axl Rose plays the iconic piano part countered by Slash’s epic solo, and the two elements combine for a nine-minute suite that goes on and on.

16. “Booker” by Harry Connick, Jr.

Song year: 1994

Harry Connick, Jr. is a stellar pianist, but when he came on the scene with the soundtrack to “When Harry Met Sally,” everyone crowned him the next Sinatra for his velvety vocals.

The man can sing the stars down, but the piano solo in “Booker” cooks like summer in New Orleans. Connick throws in nods to Romantic piano composers while singing the sad tale of Booker, who died of a broken heart.

17. “Fool in the Rain” by Led Zeppelin

Song year: 1979

Like The Police, Led Zeppelin wasn’t exactly known for its tickling of the ivories. Still, “Fool in the Rain” couples a rolling piano riff with the rumbling of John Bonham’s drums and a wicked guitar solo from Jimmy Page.

Then there’s the part then the whole song shifts from a piece of rock music to samba and back. “Fool in the Rain” was Led Zeppelin’s last single.

18. “Maybe I’m Amazed” by Paul McCartney

Song year: 1970

Only Sir Paul could make an ascending chromatic scale sound so cool. At the end of the first phrase of each verse, everything stops, then restarts with that run as if to say, “The verse isn’t done. I’ve got more for you before the guitar solo.”

“Maybe I’m Amazed” employs the mixolydian mode, so the flat seventh of that particular scale gives the song its recurring B-flat major chords. Moving to an unexpected A-flat from time to time is surprising until you’re used to it. After that, it just feels right.

19. “Layla” by Derek and the Dominos

Song year: 1971

You have to listen to more than four minutes of “Layla” before you ever hear a piano. And the lick that comes in at that point isn’t dazzling, hard to play, or particularly complicated. It’s still somehow the perfect sound for the song’s second half.

After Eric Clapton has wailed so pitifully for his unrequited love and brought forth those nearly angry sounds from his guitar, the resigned chords from the piano seem to come in simply to say, “Hey, man, it’s going to be okay.”

20. “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic” by the Police

Song year: 1981

It’s hard to have a piano-centric song when you’re a guitar-bass-and-drums three-piece. Still, The Police had their first top-five US hit with “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic,” a song driven by that syncopated sixteenth-note riff from the piano.

Pianist and arranger Jean Roussel essentially bullied his way into the studio and onto the band’s fourth studio effort, “Ghost in the Machine.” That didn’t make drummer Stewart Copeland very happy, but the album and this single ended up pretty freaking great.

21. “Killer Queen” by Queen

Song year: 1974

The staccato A minor figure that opens “Killer Queen” was the first exposure many Americans had to Queen, as the song was the band’s first US hit.

“Killer Queen” had everything the world came to expect from Queen: intricate harmonies, Brian May’s distorted-yet-somehow-clear guitar sound, Freddie Mercury’s stellar voice, and distinctive piano sounds.