American Songwriter has highlighted three singles from the 1960s that the writer believes still sound remarkably fresh today, arguing that each track was ahead of its time and helped shape genres that would only emerge years later. The piece is a personal, opinion-led selection rather than a data-driven ranking, drawing on the writer's own listening history to make the case for each song's lasting influence.

– The Kinks' "You Really Got Me" (1964) — its distorted, fuzzy guitar riff, born from Dave Davies slicing his amp's speaker cone, anticipated punk and heavy metal; it hit No. 1 in the UK and No. 7 in the US.
– The Beatles' "Tomorrow Never Knows" (1966) — an experimental Revolver track the writer calls their favourite Beatles song, never released as a single despite outshining much of the album.
– The Velvet Underground's "Sunday Morning" (1966) — a dreamy, minimalist track that foreshadowed indie pop, and remains a fan favourite despite modest chart success.