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3 Songs From the Late 70s That Helped Usher in 80s Rock
The article identifies three late-1970s rock songs it argues helped shape the sound and commercial direction of 1980s rock. It presents Aerosmith’s cover of “Come Together”, Foreigner’s “Hot Blooded” and Journey’s “Lovin’, Touchin’, Squeezin’” as early examples of the punchier, arena-ready style later associated with the decade.
– Aerosmith’s 1978 “Come Together”, a Top 30 hit and Beatles cover, appeared on the Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band soundtrack. – Foreigner’s “Hot Blooded” was a Top 5 single from 1978’s Double Vision and was written by Lou Gramm and Mick Jones. – Journey’s 1979 “Lovin’, Touchin’, Squeezin’”, from Evolution and written by Steve Perry, became the band’s first Top 15 single.
In short
- Three late-1970s hits are presented as precursors to 1980s rock.
- Aerosmith’s Beatles cover brought an edgy, pulsating sound.
- Foreigner and Journey scored major breakthrough singles.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
These songs demonstrate the polished, radio-friendly aesthetic that became the template for 1980s rock dominance. Aerosmith's cover, Foreigner's arena-ready construction, and Journey's blend of hard rock with emotional accessibility exemplify the production sophistication and commercial appeal that characterised the decade's most successful acts. These commercially successful tracks revealed the direction in which rock music would profitably move.
The case against
These songs are unmistakably products of 1970s rock tradition, not precursors to an 80s aesthetic. The decade's actual stylistic break emerged from punk's influence on new wave, synthesiser integration, and fundamentally different artistic principles—not from incremental refinements to arena rock. These tracks exemplify what made late-1970s rock commercially successful; identifying them as heralds of the 1980s conflates commercial continuity with genuine artistic innovation.
Explained simply
The article examines three rock songs from the late 1970s that it argues helped establish the sound of 1980s rock music. These tracks from Aerosmith, Foreigner and Journey shared a punchier, stadium-ready approach that differed from typical rock music of the earlier 1970s, suggesting an important shift in how the genre was evolving.
Aerosmith released a cover of "Come Together" in 1978, which became a Top 30 hit and appeared on the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band soundtrack. That year, Foreigner released "Hot Blooded" from their Double Vision album, achieving greater chart success as a Top 5 single. Journey's 1979 single "Lovin', Touchin', Squeezin'" from their Evolution album became the band's first Top 15 hit.
These tracks show how rock music was gradually shifting during the late 1970s toward the arena-focused, commercially oriented sound that came to define the 1980s. The article suggests that significant musical changes often develop gradually, with artists from one era helping to pioneer the styles of the next.