Posting to Reddit's popular "Ask Reddit" forum on Thursday, a person under the screenname u/jimmisjumbobumbo wanted to know: "what is a song you consider to be a masterpiece?"
The now-viral post has received more than 12,000 votes and over 13,000 comments, and Redditors have covered a variety of genres, including rock, blues, classical and soundtrack.
Here are some of the top answers, as voted on by Reddit:
"Clair de lune," Claude Debussy
Debussy's beloved "Clair de lune"—which is French for 'Moonlight'— is the third movement of a four-movement piano suite titled Suite bergamasque, said Britannica. The piece was reportedly inspired by a poem of the same name, written by Paul Verlaine in 1869, according to Genius.
"Absolute perfection, I can listen to it every day," said Redditor u/ChippyVonMaker.
"This song makes me cry in a beautiful way. Makes me reflect on the bad and good things in life," added u/Zolo106.
"A Day in the Life," The Beatles
"A Day in the Life" is the final track on The Beatles' 1967 Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album, and is said to be "perhaps one of the most important single tracks in the history of rock music," reported Genius. According to Rolling Stone, the death of Tara Browne—heir to the Guinness fortune and friend of the band—inspired some of the song's lyrics.
"Yes! I swear, the McCartney/Lennon pairing produced so many instant classics and masterpieces. Songs like "A Day in the Life" and "Hey Jude." Beatles at their best," commented u/Lucky_Owl_444.
"My writing professor played this for us when I was in school as an example of great writing. I've always been a big Beatles fan, but I didn't really listen to that song until then. Now I love it," explained u/Majestic_Bullfrog.
"Landslide," Fleetwood Mac
Stevie Nicks wrote "Landslide" while in Aspen, Colorado, at the age of 27, said Genius. Speaking to Q Magazine in 2004, the singer reportedly said of the song: "I wrote it ("Landslide") for Lindsey [Buckingham]—for him, about him. It's dear to both of us because it's about us. We're out there singing about our lives."
Redditor u/invisiblette said: "Yes! ['Landslide' is] poetic, it's melodic, it rises to sparkling heights then glides blood-rushingly down—with an intensely human message."
"One of several perfect songs by Fleetwood Mac. Such a timeless classic, one of the greatest band dynamics ever," added u/SnooHabits4991.
"God Only Knows," The Beach Boys
"God Only Knows" is the eighth track on The Beach Boys' 1966 Pet Sounds album. Rolling Stone reported that the song—which was written in under an hour—was dubbed by Paul McCartney as the "greatest song ever written."
"In my opinion, America's greatest song. I can't even think of a close second," commented Redditor u/Robby777777.
"Brian Wilson's sense of melody and how it interacts with those chord changes would make Mozart throw his quill pen across the room in anger. Just absolute genius," added u/AllG0nePeteT0ng.
"Rhapsody in Blue," George Gershwin
According to Britannica, Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue" premiered in 1924 at New York's Aeolian Concert Hall. The encyclopedia added that the piece is "one of the most performed of all American concert works, and its opening clarinet glissando is one of the most recognized musical passages in the world."
"The opening clarinet gives me chills every time," said u/larreyn77.
"F*** yes. This is truly a rollercoaster of a piece—amazing listen," commented u/IrishP.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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