10 Most Underrated Hand Clapping Songs In Rock Music

AVRO, CC BY-SA 3.0 NL <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/nl/deed.en>, via Wikimedia Commons

Our “10 Most Underrated Hand Clapping Songs in Rock Music” article presents a group of songs that are often overlooked when discussing legendary rock tracks with hand claps. Why repeat the same list that every other website offers? Every article we found on this topic featured the same 10 to 20 songs. So no, we’re not going to include “Jack and Diane,” “My Best Friend’s Girl,” “Please Mr. Postman,” or any of the other popular songs that everyone else keeps recycling. For this piece, we went the extra mile, powered up with fresh batteries in our flashlight, and unearthed some tracks you probably wouldn’t have considered. That’s what makes this fun, different, and unique—that’s what makes this ClassicRockHistory.com, baby. What can you come up with?

# 10 – Ain’t That Love – Ray Charles

We open up our list of the 10 most underrated hand clapping songs in rock music by going all the way back to 1957. How many people remember this song that was released on Ray Charles’ debut album, simply titled Ray Charles? The song “Ain’t That Love” was the opening track on Ray Charles’ debut. The album would be re-released a few years later under a different title, Hallelujah I Love Her So. “Ain’t That Love” was released as a single from the record. However, it was probably lost in the shuffle because it was the eighth single released from the album. We thought this was the perfect way to open up this list of hand clapping songs filled with hidden gems.

Read More: 10 Essential Ray Charles Songs

# 9 – 1969 – The Stooges

If you’re a Stooges fan thinking about Stooges songs that begin with hand claps, you might be wondering why we didn’t list the song “No Fun.” Well, that’s because it was more popular than “1969” as far as hand claps go. The song “No Fun” features full-on hand claps right from the start, but in the song “1969,” they’re a bit more hidden than in “No Fun.” Regardless, we could have gone with either one because these aren’t typically songs that are placed on many hand clap songs lists. Plus, it’s always cool to listen to the Stooges whenever we get the chance.

Read More: Top 10 Stooges Songs

# 8 – Roller Skating Rink – The Beach Boys

By the time the Beach Boys released their 21st studio album in 1977, sadly, the group wasn’t as relevant as they were in the 1960s. The music industry had changed dramatically by 1977, and Beach Boys music was no longer played heavily on top 40 radio, besides the oldies stations. Of course, they were still a big draw in concert. But as far as having brand new hits, that era was over—until they hit it big time again with “Kokomo” in the early ’80s. So, there’s a good chance you might not know this song by the Beach Boys from what we believe is a very underrated album. If you’ve got some time, give it a listen; we think you’ll like it.

# 7 – Subway Joe – Joe Battan

This is one that has definitely flown under the radar for most people. However, if you like Chinese food, riding the subways, and are a fan of New York City, then you might really enjoy this song. I was born in Manhattan and grew up in the Bronx, raised on Chinese food and pizza. So, songs like this find a special place in my heart. Joe Bataan’s first album, released in 1967, was titled Gypsy Woman. The man hasn’t stopped; he has released 17 more albums, with his most recent being King of Latin Soul, released in 2009. He’s still recording music, with songs finding their way onto various compilation albums consisting of multiple artists. Check out Joe’s music; you may really dig it.

# 6 – The Secret Life of Arabia – David Bowie

One of our all-time favorite David Bowie songs has always been “The Secret Life of Arabia.” The song was released on Bowie’s twelfth studio album, Heroes. It was penned by David Bowie, Brian Eno, and Carlos Alomar and served as the album’s closing track. What an album closer it was! If you listen to the start of the song, you won’t hear any hand claps. The hand claps don’t start until about halfway through, but once they kick in, they become quite prominent in the mix.

# 5 – Coz I Love You – Slade

At the halfway point on our list of underrated hand clapping songs in rock music, we return to a great Slade song called “Coz I Love You.” This is an interesting one because there’s a lot of echo on those hand claps. At times, it sounds like percussion, but when you listen closely and do the research, they are definitely hand claps—and it works really well. The song was originally released as a non-album single back in 1971. It would eventually find its way onto Greatest Hits compilations and as a bonus track on their 1970 album Play It Loud when it was re-released on CD in 2006.

Read More: Top 10 Slade Songs

# 4 – Six Months In A Leaky Boat – Split Enz

What we love about this song, besides it being a fantastic track, is that the hand claps are placed so perfectly right at the start of the chorus. They’re not overdone; they’re not too loud. It’s just the perfect placement of hand claps that really adds to the song. Split Enz placed this song on the band’s eighth studio album, entitled Time and Tide. The album was released in 1982. “Six Months in a Leaky Boat” was the second single released from the album. The song was very successful in Australia, where it became a top 10 hit. The song was written by Tim Finn.

Read More: Top 10 Split Enz Songs

# 3 – Ev’rybody’s Gonna Be Happy – The Kinks

We’re currently riding a Kinks wave here at ClassicRocketry.com. Following our interview with Dave Davies, we’ve been inspired to include Kinks songs in as many articles as possible. The Kinks may very well be the most underrated band of all time. Considering the vast amount of material they released and the significant impact they had on music, their contributions are truly astonishing.

# 2 – Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood – Santa Esmeralda

And the number two spot on our underrated classic rock songs list goes to a legendary song that’s been covered by many different artists across multiple genres. The song dates all the way back to 1964 when Nina Simone first recorded it. It was written by Bennie Benjamin and Sol Marcus. However, the following year, The Animals took control of the song and had a popular hit with it. But it was in 1977 when Santa Esmeralda recorded the song, and it became bigger than it had ever been. Then, almost ten years after that, our friend Elvis Costello recorded his own version of it. Sections of this song were used in Kill Bill so perfectly. Quentin Tarantino probably stands as a director who knew how to use music almost better than anybody else in film, with maybe the exception of Martin Scorsese.

# 1 – Joe’s Garage – Frank Zappa

I’m sure Frank Zappa fans will be pleased with our selection of Joe’s Garage for the number one spot. There’s a lot of hand clapping in this one. It’s not at the start; it’s in two separate sections, but it’s very prominent. Joe’s Garage was released in 1979 and issued in two separate parts. There are so many classic songs on the Joe’s Garage albums, such as “Catholic Girls,” “Why Does It Hurt When I Pee?” and many more. The musicianship on these records was just extraordinary. How many artists would come up with a character called the Central Scrutinizer? Zappa was such a genius.