The 50 best rock songs about fire It’s been quite a summer, instead of everybody talking about wildfire, why don’t we instead sing about it?
A popular metaphor used in popular music is fire, sometimes to the point of it becoming a cliche.
Many rock, country, pop and hiphop songs have been about fire, used as a metaphor, or at least included in a song’s title.
As everyone in the Okanagan has been talking about wildfire for the past 10 days — and as a tribute to our wonderful firefighters and emergency personnel — why don’t we sing about fire instead of talking about it.
Here are my choices for the 50 best songs about fire from the past 100 year. And, I agree, some of them are a stretch.
1. Smoke on the Water (Deep Purple). It was rated the fourth-best guitar riff of all-time by Total Guitar magazine. First included on the 1972 album “Machine Head,” it wasn’t released as a single until 1973 when it rose to No. 4 on the Billboard chart. It has remained relevant ever since. It’s Deep Purple’s signature song. It could also be the unofficial theme song for our Summer of 2018.
2. Ring of Fire (Johnny Cash). Originally recorded by June Carter’s sister, Anita (June received a co-writer credit), they added a mariachi horn section and Johnny’s vocals and a classic was born.
3. Light My Fire (The Doors). During the Summer of Love in 1967, this psychedelic classic spent three weeks at No. 1. When they performed it live on “The Ed Sullivan Show,” Jim Morrison refused to change the line, “Girl, we couldn’t get much higher,” and Sullivan wouldn’t shake his hand.
4. Disco Inferno (The Trammps). When you think of “Saturday Night Fever,” you immediately recall Travolta’s white disco suit and the great music of The Bee Gees. But, forgotten in all of this was an incredibly funky song which repeats “Burn lady burn,” about 92 times.
5. Fire (Bruce Springsteen). Bruce saw Elvis Presley perform in Philadelphia in May 1977. The Boss idolized Elvis and he wrote this song hoping The King would record it. Bruce sent Elvis a demo, but Elvis left the building for good in August 1977. Instead, The Pointer Sisters did a cover and it was the biggest hit of their career reaching No. 2 in 1979 (being boxed out by Rod Stewart’s “Da Ya Think I’m Sexy.”)
6. Great Balls of Fire (Jerry Lee Lewis). The Killer had his career stalled because of the controversy surrounding a marriage to his teenage cousin. Which is too bad, because next to Elton John, he was rock-and-roll’s greatest piano player.
7. Burning Down the House (Talking Heads). It was the band’s biggest hit on this side of the Atlantic (No. 9) and was included in a hilarious scene in “Revenge of the Nerds.” Among those who notably covered this tune were Tom Jones and Bonnie Raitt.
8. Burnin’ for You (Blue Oyster Cult). With Buck Dharma’s spooky vocals, when it was released in 1981 the album-oriented band received wonderful exposure from an unlikely source — MTV.
9. Burn Down the Mission (Elton John). It was never a single, but this classic from “Tumbleweed Connection” is one of the hardest songs for a pianist to play because there are four key changes before it returns to the opening chord, sequence, at the halfway mark.
10. I’m on Fire (Bruce Springsteen). The “Born in the USA” album is highlighted by power rock numbers, but to close out Side 1, The Boss chose this soft and heartbreaking ballad. The flipside of the 45 record was “Johnny Bye Bye,” borrowed from a Chuck Berry song about the death of Elvis. Check YouTube for a killer live version by Matt Andersen of “I’m on Fire.”
11. A View to a Kill (Duran Duran). Still, to this day, the only song from a James Bond movie to hit No. 1 on the U.S. charts (several reached No. 2, including “Live and Let Die”). It’s remembered for a hilarious video where Duran Duran accidentally blows up the Eiffel Tower. The chorus, as you may recall was: “Dance, into the fire.”
12. We Didn’t Star the Fire (Billy Joel). It was a cross between a world history lesson, an essay on pop culture, and a rap song. It was the most unlikely No. 1 song of the Piano Man’s career.
13. Eternal Flame (The Bangles). The all-girl band had some catchy songs that could pack a dance floor, but their softest moment was this No. 1 power ballad sung by a purring Susanna Hoffs.
14. Fire and Rain (James Taylor). From “Sweet Baby James,” the song was inspired by the suicide of a childhood friend and Taylor’s problems with drug addiction.
15. Burning Love (Elvis Presley). Originally recorded by soul singer Arthur Alexander, it was The King who made it a hit, taking it to No. 2 on the pop charts (being held out of No. 1 by another musical legend, Chuck Berry with “My Ding-aLing.”) It was Elvis’s final top 10 single during his lifetime, released about five years before his death.
16. Cat People (Putting Out Fire), (David Bowie). The movie was forgettable and Bowie had so many outstanding songs, this one was more or less ignored until it was featured in the climax of the Quentin Tarantino’s “Inglourious Basterds.”
17. Paper in Fire (John Mellencamp). With fiddles and other unique instruments, it’s about what happens when your dream burns out ... like paper in fire.
18. Fields of Fire (Sting). The former lead singer of The Police had a mellow solo career and this song remains one of his best.
19. All Fired Up (Pat Benetar). From her 1988 album “Wide Awake in Dreamland,” to date it remains Benetar’s last song to make the top 40 in both the UK and U.S.
20. Fight Fire With Fire (Metallica). It even included a verse from the bible, but overall the lyrics were very grim... yet unforgettable.
21. Fire Lake (Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band.) The lead single from the 1980 album, “Against the Wind,” it was different from anything Bob had ever recorded. It’s a song about taking chances and it landed him in the Top 10.
22. Fire and Desire (Drake). One of 20 tracks from the Toronto hiphop artist’s masterpiece album, “Views.”
23. Fire on the Mountain (The Marshall Tucker Band). The song about the California gold rush had a sad ending — the narrator’s wife is left a widow holding a useless claim after he’s shot and killed. It was written with the intent of Charlie Daniels recording it, which he didn’t, so George McCorkle kept it for himself. 1. Earth Wind and Fire 2. Arcade Fire 3. Alexis on Fire 4. Fire House 5.The Fireman (featuringYouth and Paul McCartney)
24. Hang Fire (The Rolling Stones). For an album built around outtakes and unreleased tracks, “Tattoo You,” was one of The Stones’ best-selling and criticallyacclaimed works in their 50-year career. Released in 1981, it’s best known for “Start Me Up.”
25. The Unforgettable Fire (U2). The title track of a 1984 album, the band drew inspiration from the atomic bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima for its content.
26. Setting the World on Fire (Kenny Chesney, featuring Pink). It was a country/pop crossover hit in 2016 earning the two a Grammy nomination.
27. Heaven’s on Fire (Kiss). During the 1980s, Kiss took off their make-up, changed drummers and lead guitarists, and reinvented themselves as glam rockers. This was arguably their best single between the glory days of the 1970s and their unlikely comeback in the mid-1990s.
28. The Flame (Cheap Trick). Lead singer Rick Nielsen hated this song when he first heard the demo. Fortunately, the band reluctantly recorded it and it went all the way to No. 1. It was the comeback the band so desperately wanted.
29. Beds Are Burning (Midnight Oil). A protest song about Australian land that belonged to the Pintupi people, Midnight Oil is best known outside of Australia for this song. Lead singer Peter Garrett, who went on to hold a seat in the House of Representatives for nine years, sounded angry on the track... because he was angry.
30. Love Is Fire (The Parachute Club). A duet with John Oates, it was a top 40 hit in Canada and a Juno Award-winning track for this Canadian band, which included Julie Masi, who now makes her home in Kelowna.
31 Rooms on Fire (Stevie Nicks). Like most of Stevie’s solo catalogue, it was spooky. It reached No. 16 in the UK which, surprisingly, remains her highest-charting solo single to date on the British charts.
32. Something’s Burning (Kenny Rogers and the First Edition). One of the many hits Mac Davis wrote for other artists in, and around, 1970. It reached No. 11. Kenny soon left the band to pursue a solo career.
33. The Fireman (George Strait). A 1985 country hit, this man can “cool off” any angry woman.
34. Mrs. O’Leary’s Cow (Brian Wilson). This instrumental written back in 1967 and included on “The Smile Sessions,” Wilson later won a Grammy Award when he finally released “Brian Wilson Presents Smile,” one of the most critically-acclaimed albums the millennium. (As you may recall, legend has it that the cow was blamed for starting the Great Chicago Fire of 1871.)
35. The Fire Inside (Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band). When it was released in 1991, it was Seger’s first album of all-new material in five years. The song failed to spark any interest beyond fans of adult contemporary music, but it still remains a good track.
36. Fire (The Jimi Hendrix Experience). Released in the Summer of Love, this psychedelic funk song was a staple in many of Hendrix’s live performances. It was later remade by the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
37. Play With Fire (The Rolling Stones). Released as a ‘B’ side of “The Last Time” in 1965, the song was overshadowed by “Satisfaction,” which was on the same album. Only Mick Jagger and Keith Richards appear on the recording which was built around the cliche that “if you play with fire, you’re going to get burned.”
38. Hairdresser on Fire (Morrissey). A great title! From the English singer’s 1988 debut album, according to the song’s lyrics, this stylist was busy and had an established client list.
39. The Wheel’s On Fire (The Band). Co-written by Bob Dylan, it appears on the classic album “Music from Big Pink,” with Rick Danko on lead vocals. It was part of “The Last Waltz” concert, but the song didn’t make the final cut of the film or the soundtrack.
40. Fireman (Lil Wayne). Released as the lead single to his album “Tha Carter II,” it was a minor hit when released in 2005, but firefighters loved it.
41. Keep the Fire Burning (REO Speedwagon). Somewhere between “Keep on Loving You” and “Can’t Fight This Feeling,” was this top 10 song from 1982, which the band never plays live.
42. Don’t Let the Flame Burn Out (Jackie DeShannon). She’s best known for writing hit records for other artists (“Bette Davis Eyes,” “What the World Needs Now Is Love,” “Put A Little Love In Your Heart”), but this was a minor hit from her 1977 solo album, “You’re the Only Dancer.”
43. Does My Ring Burn Your Finger (Lee Ann Womack). Another hit for the country superstar, it was described by Billboard as “a haunting hillbilly treatise on the pain of betrayal.” Eat your heart out Carrie Underwood.
44. Burn My Candle (Shirley Bassey). This was the first single ever released by the future “Goldfinger” singer, way back in 1956. The format she released it on was — believe it or not — a 78-record. (Remember those?)
45. Old Flame (Juice Newton). A 1986 song that only die-hard Juice Newton fans will remember, it made it to No. 5 on the Billboard country charts. Unlike “Queen of Hearts,” which was just fun and poppy, “Old Flame” was a tearjerker.
46. I’d Rather Be Burned as a Witch (Eartha Kitt). People best remember her as The Catwoman on a few episodes of the campy TV series “Batman,” but Eartha was a wonderful soul and R&B singer.
47. Baby I’m Burning (Dolly Parton). Released in 1978, just before she became a mega-superstar, it was a crossover hit on the disco chart and was later used as the theme song to her short-lived variety show “Dolly!” in 1987.
48. Smoke Smoke Smoke that Cigarette (Tex Williams). It was a hit way back in 1947, before people knew that smoking was bad for them... not to mention a major cause of forest fires.
49. Smokin’ in the Boys Room (Brownsville Station). Cause everybody knows that smokin’ ain’t allowed in school. This was the only significant hit for the Michigan-based band (they had a few other singles.) It reached No. 3 in 1973 and a decade later, Motley Crue remade it which kickstarted their career.
50. On Top of Old Smokey (The Weavers). A traditional folk song, The Weavers had a No. 1 hit way back in 1951 about what’s believed to be a high mountain somewhere in the Appalachians. Thanks to Springsteen, the song received new life in 1980 when he performed it in concert in recognition of the Mount St. Helens eruption.
James Miller is valley editor for Okanagan Newspaper Group who enjoys studying classic rock. To contact the writer: james.miller@ok.bc.ca.