5 Rock Songs That Will Transport Boomers Right Back To Their High School Graduations

Music can be a powerful catalyst for remembering precious memories. That's not just sentiment talking: According to a 2022 article in the Journal of Applied Research in Memory and Cognition, hearing music can actually be more effective at bringing back positive recollections of one's past than verbal cues or associated sounds can. So, it shouldn't be surprising that certain songs from the '60s and '70s can make baby boomers in the United States think about when they graduated high school (roughly from 1964 to 1982), particularly if they're songs with an appropriate academic-related theme or that revolve around a rite of passage of sorts.

With that said, just because these boomer-era bangers are potential reminders of stepping up from secondary school doesn't necessarily mean that they're songs that would actually be played during such a ceremony. Much like how we assembled our list of songs that take boomers back to their first high school party, we focused on selecting songs that truly captured the essence of the event: lyrics and melodies that evoke triumph, freedom, hope, impermanence, and even uncertainty. Moreover, even though these five songs belong to a specific period, they also possess an enduring quality that has enabled them to stay relevant in modern times. 

From Queen's loud and booming battle hymn to Bob Dylan crooning about choices and changes, this list will have what Pew Research Center called "the gloomiest generation" reminiscing about the moment they truly stepped out of their senior classrooms and into the real world.

Few songs evoke that powerful sense of indefatigable grit (and the reward that comes with it) quite like Queen's 1977 hit "We Are The Champions." If persistence were a song, this would be it. It also happens to be the perfect song for any battle-hardened student who has just realized, while marching toward their high school diploma, that all those years of seemingly endless homework, lectures, and tests have finally paid off.

"We Are The Champions" embodies every determined high schooler's resolve to get through all those lessons and finally move on to bigger and better things (e.g., college, a long break, their first job, or real life in general). It's also such an infectious, inspiring anthem; it's hard to imagine teenagers — or just about anyone who successfully got through a difficult ordeal — managing to fight the urge to sing with Freddie Mercury as he belts out, "I consider it a challenge before the whole human race/And I ain't gonna lose."

Indeed, proof of the timelessly universal appeal of "We Are The Champions" is the fact that despite reaching the fourth spot — its highest position on the chart — nearly four months after its debut, it still managed to stay on the Billboard Hot 100 for a staggering 41 weeks. That's why "We Are The Champions" deserves to be one of the champions of this list — and honestly, it's proof that there will never be another band like Queen.

It would be difficult, nay, impossible to make this list while excluding arguably the most famous example of a song that was written specifically because the artist was so in love with the idea of school ending. That's exactly what Alice Cooper's "School's Out" is (aside from being a high school hit from the '70s that will stir up emotions in every boomer). As the legendary rocker told Mojo (via Ultimate Classic Rock), the final minutes before the school year comes to a close are "like a slow fuse burning," a gloriously unparalleled feeling — and, as Cooper himself admitted, the greatest three minutes of his life — that he and his band wanted to capture in this banger released in 1972.

With that in mind, it's no wonder "School's Out" managed to stay in the Billboard Hot 100 for 13 weeks, peaking at the seventh spot. Brimming with wild, rebellious energy, "School's Out" is the anthem for every impatient high schooler who has ever wanted to just storm out of the classroom, perhaps even tossing their books and papers up in the air as they dash past the school gates. The song even gives a rough, youthful edge to the age-old rhyme "No more pencils/No more books/No more teachers' dirty looks," punctuated by the possibility (or maybe threat?) that the students who'll be gone for the summer "might not come back at all" — which is precisely the case for graduating high school students.

The next entry on this list is a radical departure from the loud, high-energy music that one would typically associate with a significant life development. Released in 1969 as part of the album "Abbey Road," "Here Comes The Sun" is a mellow, uplifting song, with lyrics that promise sunshine after what seemed to be a long period of darkness and difficulties.

That's not far at all from the real meaning behind "Here Comes The Sun" – a reflection of George Harrison's mindset on the lovely, sunny afternoon when he wrote the song — and that's precisely why it's pretty much a tailor-made song for a high school graduation. With its positive lyrics and simple yet iconic melody, "Here Comes The Sun" perfectly encapsulates the feeling of a high school student finally making it through the mountains of schoolwork that cast a shadow over the past few years like a dark rain cloud. Rather than communicating excitement, victory, or even freedom, "Here Comes The Sun" emphasizes the comfort and relief that come with the end of a long, tiresome academic journey (among other things in life).

In 2023, more than half a century after its release, "Here Comes The Sun" became the first song by The Beatles to reach a billion streams on Spotify. Indeed, this is one of those songs that would hit every graduate in the feels, though perhaps not as hard as those from the generation that grew up with it.

Much has been said about David Bowie's "Changes" — how it's a song about artistic reinvention, how its mix of musical influences made it unique for its time, and how it would eventually mirror the renowned artist's own creative evolution. Released in 1971 as part of "Hunky Dory" (the album that also contained that one song Bowie wrote to get revenge on Frank Sinatra, "Life On Mars?"), "Changes" only managed to reach the 66th spot on the Billboard Hot 100. Yet despite not being a record-breaking hit, something about "Changes" deeply resonated with fans, particularly the youth.

Akin to how "Hunky Dory" (and, to an extent, "Changes") marked a significant turning point in Bowie's career, "Changes," with its symphony of styles and pensive lyrics, could be considered a symbolic song of sorts for the impetuous, daring graduates of that generation who were growing up as they figured out their own identities in the next phase of their lives. In a way, "Changes" also captured the uncertainty and fear that came with the adventure: Even as Bowie sang about how time would catch up with those who came before him, he also acknowledged that he himself would not come out of his journey the same man he was when he started. Ultimately, "Changes" turned out to be a well-suited anthem for the boomers who were fresh out of high school, determined to live life on their own terms regardless of what ch-ch-ch-ch-changes were to come their way.

Released in 1964, "The Times They Are a-Changin'" (which is also one of our best 5 Bob Dylan songs that aren't "Blowin' in the Wind") peaked at the 9th spot and spent 11 weeks on the U.K. Singles chart. This song came at a time when the U.S. was undergoing a massive cultural and political shift. Appropriately enough, it captured both the feeling of dread that accompanied the unknown and the sense of hope and conviction that, no matter what the future holds, one can only hang tight and keep marching on. It's a '60s song that really nailed the meaning of life, which was exactly the kind of music that helped steel the high school graduates of that generation.

Admittedly, it's easier to imagine this song being sung by protesting high school students than played at a graduation ceremony, but that doesn't make it any less inspirational and reassuring. It even dispenses a meaningful piece of advice that applies in many life situations ("You better start swimmin'/Or you'll sink like a stone"). The song also spoke to the parents of the boomer generation, asking them to "[not] criticize what [they] can't understand" and reminding them that their children were free to make choices "beyond [their] command."

While one can argue that "The Times They Are a-Changin'" is no less relevant to today's listeners, this is absolutely a song that will make all the boomers come gather 'round, wherever they roam.