The Best Classic Rock Hits That Still Get Boomers In Their Dancing Shoes

Though classic rock may be associated with epic ballads and extended guitar solos, those of a certain age know that the genre also has its fair share of dancefloor-filling jams. In this article, we reach back to the '60s, '70s, and '80s to select classic tracks that those of the Boomer generation will remember from the first time around, and which have become embedded in the collective consciousness of the listening public as riff-heavy rock classics that you can't help but get up and dance to.

From the joyous Thin Lizzy hit "The Boys are Back in Town" to the cool, era-defining "Born to Be Wild" by Steppenwolf, these tracks have all remained timeless radio favorites and party anthems thanks to their upbeat tempo, catchy hooks, memorable riffs, and easily singable choruses. In fact, one look at this list and we guarantee you'll have these songs in your head for the rest of the day — if not the whole week.

Dublin rockers Thin Lizzy were one of the hardest working bands of the 1970s, with their acclaimed "Live and Dangerous" album giving some sense of the party-like atmosphere of their incendiary live shows. And the jewel in the band's discography is undoubtedly their most famous song, "The Boys are Back in Town," a fun and danceable track chronicling a night on the town for a group of "wild-eyed boys that have been away."

Buoyed by the charisma of the band's vocalist and frontman Phil Lynott, the track features instantly recognizable riffs, a tale reportedly inspired by a diner the group encountered in Los Angeles on their first American tour, and a sing-along chorus that makes it a perfect dance floor filler. The song wasn't a chart-topper, peaking at No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1976. But it has enjoyed a long afterlife, notably being used in the trailer for the movie "Toy Story" in 1995 and being used regularly in ads and other soundtracks as a go-to song for feel-good party scenes.

Van Halen's biggest single, "Jump," was the defining hit of the band's David Lee Roth line-up. Penned by Roth and guitarist Eddie Van Halen, it opens with a now iconic synthesizer riff that Van Halen wrote two years prior to recording the single, but which was rejected by the rest of the band, who were afraid that it went against their identity as a guitar band. But the guitarist stuck to his guns, and in 1983 the riff was at the center of the band's only Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 single. Of course, it isn't all synth; Van Halen's incendiary guitar is still present, as are driving drums from Alex Van Halen, while Roth's vocal performance is both playful and joyous.

The song has remained a radio staple, while its iconic video also made it a mainstay on MTV for years. Though Roth would leave Van Halen in 1985, breaking up the lineup, "Jump" remained a cornerstone of the band's live concerts even during the Sammy Hagar era and is today considered the band's signature song.

Canadian rockers Bachman-Turner Overdrive were founded by former Guess Who guitarist Randy Bachman, partnering with his brothers and their friend C.F. Turner, and the band hit the big time with their hard rock classic "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet." The band had been laboring for several years under the name Brave Belt in the early 1970s, touring extensively with little commercial success in terms of record sales before changing their name to Bachman-Turner Overdrive and beginning their chart breakthrough with the Top 20 hit "Takin' Care of Business" in 1973. But it was "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet" that truly put the band on the map, striking No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 the following year.

The track features Bachman's idiosyncratic, stuttering vocal — which arguably takes its cues from the Who's "My Generation" — as interspersed with power chord riffs that build toward the end of each verse, ramping up the excitement. A surefire foot-stomper if ever there was one.

Steppenwolf's 1968 classic "Born to Be Wild" is the ultimate biker anthem, having featured prominently in the soundtrack to the 1969 movie "Easy Rider." Originally, the song was only a B-side, but the movie appearance quickly made it iconic, with the opening lyrics "Get your motor running / Head out on the highway" representing the romance and freedom of a life spent on the open road.

The hard-rocking track was written by Mars Bonfire, a songwriter who wrote the track after buying his first car. He shopped it around various publishers with little success before it wound up in the hands of Steppenwolf, with Bonfire first hearing their version when it came on the radio. "I just thought they did a superb job. John Kay really had the right voice for it, and their new guitar player Michael Monarch took the basic guitar riff I had given him on my demo and gave it a totally iconic sound," Bonfire told the National Music Centre.

And, of course, he's completely right. After more than half a century, during which time "Born to Be Wild" has become one of America's most beloved songs, not only is it a song every boomer needs on their road trip playlist, but it also still has the ability to get people up from their seats.