50 Iconic Songs Of All Time, According to Science

If you're a music fan, you've probably had this conversation before: "What are the greatest songs of all time?" It's a question that's been debated for decades, and there are as many answers as there are people who love music. But now, a computer scientist from Goldsmiths University has tried to answer it once and for all.

According to Daily Mail, Dr Grierson looked at the songs that appeared on "all-time top" lists compiled by well-known music publications including Rolling Stone, VH-1, NME, and Q magazine. With the help of analytical software, he examined the parameters of these songs, including the beats per minute, lyrical content, chord variety and many more. When the results came back, “Teen Spirit” by Nirvana was found to have ticked the most boxes. The study was conducted in 2015.

This is what all iconic songs have in common:

• they use sound in varied and dynamic way, which makes the record exciting
• around 80% are in a major key
• the average tempo is 125BPM
• they have low chord changes
• certain words appear regularly such as ‘Baby’, ‘Feel’, ‘Love’
• high spectral flux (how the power of a note from one to the next varies)
• high timbral dissonance

Here's the full list of 50 iconic songs of all time. The results may surprise you: some of your favorites are on here—and some of them might even be new to you!

The Top 50 most iconic songs of all time

1. Smells Like Teen Spirit - Nirvana (1991)
2. Imagine - John Lennon (1971)
3. One - U2 (1992)
4. Billie Jean - Michael Jackson (1982)
5. Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen (1975)
6. Hey Jude - The Beatles (1968)
7. Like A Rolling Stone - Bob Dylan (1967)
8. I Can't Get No Satisfaction - Rolling Stones (1965)
9. God Save The Queen - Sex Pistols (1977)
10. Sweet Child O'Mine - Guns N' Roses (1987)
11. London Calling - The Clash (1979)
12. Waterloo Sunset - The Kinks (1967)
13. Hotel California - The Eagles (1976)
14. Your Song - Elton John (1970)
15. Stairway To Heaven - Led Zeppelin (1971)
16. The Twist - Chubby Checker (1960)
17. Live Forever - Oasis (1994)
18. I Will Always Love You - Whitney Houston (1974)
19. Life On Mars? - David Bowie (1971)
20. Heartbreak Hotel - Elvis Presley (1956)
21. Over The Rainbow - Judy Garland (1939)
22. What's Going On - Marvin Gaye (1971)
23. Born To Run - Bruce Springsteen (1975)
24. Be My Baby - The Ronettes (1963)
25. Creep - Radiohead (1992)
26. Bridge Over Troubled Water - Simon & Garfunkel (1974)
27. Respect - Aretha Franklin (1965)
28. Family Affair - Sly And The Family Stone (1971)
29. Dancing Queen - ABBA (1976)
30. Good Vibrations - The Beach Boys (1966)
31. Purple Haze - Jimi Hendrix (1967)
32. Yesterday - The Beatles (1965)
33. Johnny B Goode - Chuck Berry (1958)
34. No Woman No Cry - Bob Marley (1975)
35. Hallelujah - Jeff Buckley (1994)
36. Every Breath You Take - The Police (1983)
37. A Day In The Life - The Beatles (1967)
38. Stand By Me - Ben E King (1962)
39. Papa's Got A Brand New Bag - James Brown (1965)
40. Gimme Shelter - The Rolling Stones (1969)
41. What'd I Say - Ray Charles (1959)
42. Sultans Of Swing - Dire Straits (1978)
43. God Only Knows - The Beach Boys (1966)
44. You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin’ - The Righteous Brothers (1964)
45. My Generation - The Who (1965)
46. Dancing In The Street - Martha Reeves and the Vandellas (1965)
47. When Doves Cry - Prince (1984)
48. A Change Is Gonna Come - Sam Cooke (1964)
49. River Deep Mountain High - Ike and Tina Turner (1966)
50. Best Of My Love - The Emotions (1977)

Why a lot of people haven't heard at least one of the listed songs?

Most of these recognizable songs were released before the 2000s, so no surprise they are the most iconic songs of all time as the times passes by and we're only getting older (sad!).

Time is also the reason why nowadays teenagers haven't heard about iconic singers such as Ray Charles or Dolly Parton. Probably, if the case study were re-run, Taylor Swift with her "Shake It Off" hit or Pharrell Williams with his "Happy" song would be highly listed. And very likely is that in the future, the list will be updated with the current popular artists and top songs. But that doesn't mean that Micheal Jackson with his Billie Jean title track or John Lennon's "Imagine" melody will be forgotten. These are, definitely one of the most popular tracks that will stay with us forever.

How to keep the music alive forever?

But hey, if you want to keep John Lennon and Dolly Parton alive altogether with Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber, or The Weeknd why don't you create a playlist that contains all the popular tracks? Come up with the perfect title for your playlist, add your favorite tunes, and voila! And if you don't have an idea for the ideal playlist name, we also have your back – check out the 260+ Spotify Playlist Names for Every Mood.

Some of your favorite artists or songs are not supported on your streaming platform? Don't worry! Now you can move your music between streaming services, to create the perfect flow of your music taste with the FreeYourMusic app.

Combine your playlist with FreeYourMusic

This app does not only help you transfer playlists between music platforms, but you can also combine it with the others. Don't wait until someone else does it for you! Create the perfect music flow and share with the world. Download the app and enjoy your music journey through the decades!