Signature Songs 01 Trivia Quiz

Answer: Janis Joplin

Kris Kristofferson wrote "Me and Bobby McGee" back in the late 1960s and released the song on his debut album in 1970.

Roger Miller first recorded the song for the album "Roger Miller 1970". Kenny Rogers & The First Edition, Ramblin' Jack Elliott, Gordon Lightfoot, Bill Haley & His Comets, and Sam The Sham all put out versions of the song in 1970, before Janis Joplin recorded her version.

Kristofferson sang the song to Joplin, and Bob Dylan's friend Bobby Neuwirth helped her learn the material. Joplin recorded the song just a few days before she died for her famous "Pearl" album. In 1971, Joplin's version hit was Number One on Billboard Top 100, and Joplin has been a seminal rock goddess ever since.

Answer: Otis Redding

Shortly before he died in 1967 Otis Redding recorded "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay". He co-wrote the song with guitarist Steve Cropper. Redding recorded the song on November 22, 1967, and did some over dubs on December 8. Two days later, a plane Redding was on crashed, killing him and six additional people. The Doors recorded a tribute song ("Running Blue) to Redding on the album "The Soft Parade".

In January 1968 the single was released, and was instantly successful. It has long become a pop culture standard.

Answer: Deep Purple

"Smoke on the Water" features one of the most famous guitar riffs in the rock canon. Richie Blackmore plays the riff. In early 1972, Deep Purple released the album "Machine Head". Over a year after they had released the album, the record company released "Smoke on the Water" as a single. The track peaked at Number Four on the Billboard Top 100.

Black Sabbath have covered the song live in concert, which is a rarity as Black Sabbath does not normally include cover songs in their live setlists.

Answer: Bob Dylan

Dylan wrote and recorded "All Along the Watchtower" for the late 1967 album "John Wesley Harding". Hendrix, who had closely followed Dylan's career (as evidence by Jimi recording a rather obscure single release of the Dylan song "Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window"), felt he had to record the song.

Hendrix's version is markedly different from the original Dylan recording. It is notable that after Dylan heard Hendrix's version, in concert he abandoned the original arrangement of the song, playing the song similar to Hendrix.

Although "Like a Rolling Stone" is probably Dylan's most famous song, Dylan has performed "All Along the Watchtower" in concert more than any other song in his vast repertoire. Dylan has said he performs the song in tribute to Hendrix, and he felt Hendrix should have recorded more of Dylan's material.

On a personal note, the Hendrix cover of "All Along the Watchtower" was my first real exposure to the work of Bob Dylan.

Answer: Whitney Houston

Parton released the song as a single in 1974 about her business partner Porter Wagoner. She recorded the song a second time in 1982 for the film "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas". Elvis Presley also stated interest in recording the song before he died in 1977.

In 1992, Houston was recording songs for the soundtrack to "The Bodyguard", her debut film. Originally she was going to record "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted", but declined as the song was slated to appear on the soundtrack to "Fried Green Tomatoes". Kevin Costner brought Houston a copy of Linda Ronstadt's album "Prisoner of Disguise" which had the song "I Will Always Love You". Houston recorded that song and the rest is history.

Houston's version became one of the biggest selling singles of all time, selling over fifteen million copies.

Dolly Parton has publicly praised Houston's version. Parton received numerous royalties from this song.

Answer: Celine Dion

The 1997 film "Titanic", directed by James Cameron, proved to be the most successful film of its time, grossing over a billion dollars. Only "Avatar", another Cameron film, would top "Titanic"'s revenue records.

James Horner wrote the music and Will Jennings wrote the lyrics. The single debuted at Number One on the Billboard Top 100, spending a total of ten weeks in that position. It also won the 1997 Academy Award for Best Original Song. Originally Cameron did not want to use a song at the end, but Jack Horner convinced Cameron to include the song in the final film, as the music was already present in the original score for the film.

Answer: Van Halen

In 1978 when Van Halen was recording their debut album, Eddie Van Halen played "Eruption". The band's producer, Ted Templeton, liked the solo so much he said they needed to put that recording on the record.

"Eruption" introduced the world to finger tapping, a method of guitar playing. The solo is a perfect snapshot of what has made Eddie Van Halen such an influential rock guitarist. The song encapsulates the very essence of his style.

While the solo may be famous, Eddie made this statement about "Eruption" in an interview.

"I didn't even play it right. There's a mistake at the top end of it. To this day, whenever I hear it, I always think, 'Man, I could've played it better.'"

Answer: Nirvana

"Smells Like Teen Spirit" is often seen as the definitive recording from the grunge alternative rock movement of the early 1990s. The recording hit Number Six on the Billboard Top 100, propelling the album "Nevermind" into the stratosphere as a major charting success. "Nevermind" started a musical revolution, with the hair pop metal of the late 1980s being largely abandoned for grungier, edgier material with new bands and new faces.

In 1994 interview with Rolling Stone Kurt Cobain made this statement regarding "Smells Like Teen Spirit":

"I was trying to write the ultimate pop song. I was basically trying to rip off the Pixies. I have to admit it. When I heard the Pixies for the first time, I connected with that band so heavily that I should have been in that band-- or at least a Pixies cover band. We used their sense of dynamics, being soft and quiet and then loud and hard."

Answer: Michael Jackson

"Billie Jean" has long been one of the staple songs from the early 1980s. However, though massively popular, Quincy Jones, Jackson's producer, vehemently disliked "Billie Jean", and did not think it was strong enough to be on the album. Jackson insisted the track to be on the album, and the rest is history. Jackson said: "A musician knows hit material. Everything has to feel in place. It fulfills you and it makes you feel good. That's how I felt about 'Billie Jean'. I knew it was going to be big when I was writing it."

"Billie Jean" became one of the biggest hits of 1983. Bruce Swedien mixed the song ninety one times before Jackson was satisfied.

Answer: Don McLean

The 1971 song "American Pie", depending on how you interpret the lyrics, is largely a recounting of rock music history from 1959 to 1971. The song references Ritchie Valens, the Big Bopper, Buddy Holly, Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Charles Manson, The Byrds, The Rolling Stones, Janis Joplin, and the notorious Altamont Free Concert where people were killed during The Rolling Stones' performance of "Under My Thumb". The Hells Angels motorcycle gang was the security for that show.

There are various interpretations of the lyrics, none of which McLean has endorsed. When asked about the song's meaning, McLean famously said ""It means I never have to work again." He later on said the following:

""You will find many interpretations of my lyrics but none of them by me... sorry to leave you all on your own like this but long ago I realized that songwriters should make their statements and move on, maintaining a dignified silence."

Madonna recorded a (rather bad) version of the song, with about half the lyrics removed, in 1999.

It has long been one of my favorite songs. Hope you enjoyed the quiz!