Five classic rock bands who hate their own songs
The whims of rock music are famously very fickle. You can graft away for years, constantly trying to chip away at the stone, without ever coming close to the crown jewel that is fame and fortune.
Meanwhile, others can strike on the formula to glory from their very first attempt – and as unfair and unpredictable as it is, sometimes you just have to accept that musical fame is pretty much akin to gambling, where you have to step out for fresh air before becoming addicted.
While this is admittedly an easy thing to say from the point of view of a band who have made it big, the fact is that the perils of the luck of the draw don’t ever fully escape them, even when they think they have every lavish indulgence already lined up for them. Either the rug can be pulled out from under them or, arguably worse, their status as a rock god becomes cemented in a way they absolutely never intended, and they’re forced to spend the rest of their careers attempting to shake it off.
That’s especially true when it comes to scoring big hits, because there seems to be an uncanny pattern of the songs the band themselves most hate transpiring to be the ones most beloved by the fans, much to the disgruntled disappointment of their original creators. The path they decide to take when that happens can either make or break them – some refuse to play the tune in question altogether, which risks pissing off the masses, while others have no choice but to play along, pleasing others but destroying their own souls.
It can’t be an easy thing to reckon with, but cases of bands hating their own songs are far more common than one might believe, so at least they are not alone in their conundrum. Indeed, although there are countless examples of rock outfits facing that same unfortunate scenario, five bands in particular have emerged at the front of the pack, despising their own tunes so much that it might risk sending them over the edge if they hear it one more time.
Five rock bands that can’t stand their own tunes:
Radiohead – ‘Creep’
Radiohead have a reputation for warbling, intricate sonics and often have sights set on much more niche depths than the mainstream. But as is the way of the world, their biggest critical success came with a song that Thom Yorke, as well as the rest of the band, really couldn’t care less for. Of course, it has to be ‘Creep’.
While this shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone with even a shred of rock intel, Radiohead’s hatred of ‘Creep’ is so strong and longstanding that it has become one of the most well-known examples of rock outfits hating the tune that made them big. In fact, Yorke even went as far as to say in an interview with Rolling Stone, back in 1993: “I wasn’t very happy with the lyrics; I thought they were pretty crap.”
Really, you can’t argue with a statement as decisive as that – because maybe ‘Creep’ isn’t so “fucking special” after all.
Led Zeppelin – ‘Stairway to Heaven’
As has been proven on many occasions over the years, there’s truly no pleasing Jimmy Page or Robert Plant. They may be credited as one of the best bands with one of the best rock songs in history, but what does that actually mean when you don’t like it? That’s certainly how they feel about ‘Stairway to Heaven’, the big hit that has continued to haunt them, even 54 years down the line.
To be fair, much of the issue with ‘Stairway to Heaven’ revolves around Plant, rather than Page, as he has previously branded the song “sanctimonious”. But really, the worst of a bad situation came when it garnered success, because although Plant disliked the song to begin with, owing to its rushed lyrics, he grew to loathe it even more as he tired of playing it decade after decade at every concert tour. Indeed, his ‘Stairway to Heaven’ was more like entering the fiery pits of hell.
The Pretenders – ‘Brass in Pocket’
“This goes out over my dead body,” The Pretenders’ frontwoman Chrissie Hynde told her producer when they’d finished recording ‘Brass in Pocket’, and she was clearly not happy with the result. Imagine her total and utter horror, then, when against her will, the song of her nightmares was released – and not only that, it went to number one. You’d consider quitting the business there and then.
Hynde later told Classic Rock: “I never thought it was that great. Was it pop? Motown? Rock? It didn’t seem to know what it was. I used to cringe when I heard my voice on those early Pretenders recordings, and then that fucking went to number one! I remember walking around Oxford Circus hearing it blasting out of people’s radios. I was mortified.”
As much as she was embarrassed, however, the royalties were likely pretty healthy, so she must have been happy to grin and bear it.
Metallica – ‘Escape’
In fairness, ‘Escape’ by Metallica has always been a song that stokes up a lot of division. Some fans laud it as the band at their best, while others simply see it as a lot of hot air. Unfortunately for some, frontman James Hetfield is much more inclined to go with the latter. After years of saying he hates the song, however, you might imagine the veneer would soften eventually, and he might give in – but some grudges you can never let go.
Hetfield was continuing on his hate train towards ‘Escape’ as recently as 2023, when a Metallica fan posted a video to TikTok which said: “Is Metallica’s ‘Escape’ better than I remember it?”. However, the band’s account hilariously replied underneath in a deadpan comment, “No, it’s not,” firmly putting to bed any hope of ‘Escape’ ever gracing the stage again.
The Who – ‘Pinball Wizard’
You’d think The Who would be more grateful to ‘Pinball Wizard’, given that it not only cemented their success in their own heyday, but went on to serve them well even far into the future, when Elton John decided to give it a whirl and make it into a hit of his own. But instead, Pete Townshend makes one thing clear – he thinks ‘Pinball Wizard’ is an “awful” song, and that’s the end of that.
His venom for the track has been made obvious on many occasions, not least when he even wrote in the liner notes for Tommy, the album it came from: “I’m embarrassed. This sounds like a Music Hall song.” But despite this, either Townshend doesn’t really hate the song that much, or he’s spent the last 58 years gritting his teeth, because if you’re ever going to find a stalwart song on a setlist for The Who, it’s ‘Pinball Wizard’. His real thoughts are up to you to decide.
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