Guess the '70s Hit Song From its Opening Line Quiz

Estimated Completion Time
3 min
Guess the '70s Hit Song From its Opening Line Quiz
Image: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

About This Quiz

Ah, the '70s. After the tumultuous counterculture of the 1960s, music in the 1970s was more relaxing and danceable. Popular music genres included progressive rock, punk/new wave and, of course, disco. Who can forget those glittering disco balls hanging above the strobe-lighted dance floors? The crush of people clad in platform shoes and silky shirts? Simplistic songs such as "The Hustle," and easy-to-master dance moves like the bump?

The falsetto-y Bee Gees, plus stars like Donna Summer, Diana Ross and Gloria Gaynor, all created some of the era's most iconic disco beats. When it came to progressive rock, with its classical influences, lengthy compositions and keyboard dominance, groups like Electric Light Orchestra, Supertramp and Queen were on top. Then there were groups like Blondie and the Sex Pistols bringing us punk rock/new wave, and Sly and the Family Stone and Kool & the Gang wooing us with funk and soul. It didn't get much better than this.

In retrospect, '70s music formed a bridge between the hippie '60s and yuppie '80s, even if you didn't realize it at the time (or weren't around yet!). Think you know enough about the era's iconic tunes to figure out hit songs from their opening lines? Then take the quiz!

                                                                                                                     

"Once I had a love and it was a gas…"
Go Away Little Girl
Heart of Glass
I Think I Love You
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Debbie Harry co-wrote "Heart of Glass," one of Blondie's biggest hits.

"I've been walkin' these streets so long…"
Rhinestone Cowboy
Convoy
The Hustle
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Glen Campbell sang his version of "Rhinestone Cowboy" in 1975; it was on one of roughly 70 albums that he released.

"Busted flat in Baton Rouge, waitin' for a train…"
I Am Woman
Want Ads
Me and Bobby McGee
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Janis Joplin's 1971 version of "Me and Bobby McGee" wasn't even released until after her death, which helped fuel the song's popularity.

Advertisement

"Stuck inside these four walls, sent inside forever…"
Love You Inside Out
Still
Band on the Run
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

"Band on the Run" was an international hit for Paul McCartney and Wings.

"I know your eyes in the morning sun…"
Making Plans For Nigel
One Way Or Another
How Deep Is Your Love
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

The Bee Gees absolutely owned the 70s charts, thanks in part to songs like "How Deep Is Your Love."

"If you need me, call me, no matter where you are…"
Ain't No Mountain High Enough
I'll Take You There
Superstition
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

In 1970, Diana Ross's version of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" rocketed her to the No. 1 spot on the Billboard charts in 1970.

Advertisement

"Ooh, my little pretty one, my pretty one …"
My Sharona
Mandy
Best of My Love
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

"My Sharona" was a direct reference to a girlfriend of one of the members of The Knack.

"You know, I was wondering, you know…"
My Sharona
Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough
Stayin' Alive
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

"Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" by Michael Jackson came out in 1979, and it stayed at the No. 1 spot for six weeks.

"For so long, you and me been finding each other for so long…"
Le Freak
Shadow Dancing
I Just Want to Be Your Everything
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Andy Gibb's solo career was fueled by love songs like "I Just Want to Be Your Everything."

Advertisement

"My child arrived just the other day…"
You're No Good
Angie Baby
Cat's in the Cradle
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Harry Chapin wrote "Cat's in the Cradle" based on a poem written by his wife.

"Ooh, it's so good, it's so good…"
I Feel Love
The Night Chicago Died
Whatever Gets You Thru The Night
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

"I Feel Love" was a Top 10 hit for Donna Summer in 1977.

"Mother, mother, there's too many of you crying…"
What's Goin' On
Get Down Tonight
Saturday Night
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

The song "What's Goin' On," by Marvin Gaye, is featured on the album of the same name. It's regarded as one of the best albums of the entire century.

Advertisement

"Holly came from Miami, F.L.A…."
Southern Nights
Walk On The Wild Side
Boogie Fever
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

The mishmash of characters in "Walk On The Wild Side," are inspired partly by people that Lou Reed met in real life.

"We could hide away in daylight…"
Black Water
Heroes
Fire
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

David Bowie and Brian Eno shared songwriting credits on "Heroes," which is now regarded as one of Bowie's best-known songs.

"We all came out to Montreux, on the Lake Geneva shoreline…"
Smoke On The Water
Angie
Delta Dawn
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

"Smoke On The Water," a 1972 song by Deep Purple, has one of the most recognizable guitar riffs in classic rock.

Advertisement

"I ain't got no money…"
I Wanna Be Your Lover
My Sweet Lord
September Girls
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

"I Wanna Be Your Lover" became Prince's first hit song when it was released in 1979.

"Living easy, living free…"
Highway to Hell
Hot Child in the City
Night Fever
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

"Highway to Hell" was one of AC/DC's best known songs, and it was on the last album that the band made before Bon Scott's death.

"I've been really tryin', baby…"
Miss You
Rapper's Delight
Let's Get It On
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On" traded the political activism of his previous album for a more personal theme.

Advertisement

"In the day we sweat it out on the streets of a runaway American dream…"
Rock Your Baby
Born to Run
My Hometown
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Bruce Springsteen wrote "Born to Run" dreaming of commercial success; the hit propelled him to stardom.

"Sittin' here, eatin' my heart out waitin'…"
Hot Stuff
Burning
You're So Vain
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Donna Summer's "Hot Stuff" was a step away from disco in the direction of rock, and it become a crowd favorite.

"Finished with my woman 'cause she couldn't help me with my mind…"
Hot Stuff
Play That Funky Music
Paranoid
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Black Sabbath included "Paranoid" as an afterthought, not anticipating that it would become one of the most famous songs in metal.

Advertisement

"Listen to the ground, there is movement all around…"
Best of My Love
Night Fever
The Way We Were
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

"Night Fever" was just one more example of a decade dominated by the Bee Gees.

"So many nights I'd sit by my window…"
Torn Between Two Lovers
I'm Your Boogie Man
You Light Up My Life
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Somewhere, Debby Boone is still waiting by the window and singing "You Light Up My Life."

"Loving you, isn't the right thing to do…"
Sister Golden Hair
Lovin' You
Go Your Own Way
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

"Go Your Own Way" still burns with all of the desperation Fleetwood Mac could summon on their 1977 album "Rumours."

Advertisement

"I want to live, I want to give…"
Heart of Gold
Mandy
Best Of My Love
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Linda Ronstadt and James Taylor provided backing vocals for "Heart of Gold," Neil Young's only No. 1 single.

"Right now, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha…"
Rock Your Baby
The Loco-Motion
Anarchy in the U.K.
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

The Sex Pistols had your 70s rebellion right here, with "Anarchy in the U.K.," which was later featured on "Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols."

"A long, long time ago, I can still remember…"
Photograph
Me and Mrs. Jones
American Pie
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

It was only No. 1 for four weeks, but Don McLean's "American Pie" is a cultural icon.

Advertisement

"Now here you go again, you say…"
Touch Me In The Morning
Dreams
You're So Vain
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Stevie Nicks wrote "Dreams" amidst Fleetwood Mac's infamous personal upheavals in the 1970s.

"Early one mornin' the sun was shining'…"
Tangled Up In Blue
One Bad Apple
The Love You Save
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

"Tangled Up In Blue" is one of Bob Dylan's classics from 1975's "Blood on the Tracks."

"Hey, ho, let's go! Hey, ho, let's go!"
Then Came You
The Streak
Blitzkrieg Bop
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

This song, "Blitzkrieg Bop," by the Ramones, is nearly ubiquitous at stadiums all over the world during big sporting events.

Advertisement

You Got:
/30
Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images