Ah violin, probably the most emotional sounding instrument around. I can't think of another instrument with the same tonal and dynamic control, save perhaps the human voice. Due to this, you might not think of the Violin as being in the same league as an electric guitar or drum set. But here are ten times that our stringed friends proved they could hold their own in a rock song.
These are in no particular order, because all songs are different and ranking these would be like picking my favorite children!
Point of Know Return - Kansas
This song is absolutely genius. I love how rhythmic the violin playing is, I've honestly never heard another song with violin that sounded quite like this. Even without a dedicated solo, the violin absolutely controls the song.
2.Eleanor Rigby - The Beatles
The Beatles are known for experimenting, but in this case they truly created a completely unique sound. This song could have easily been created with a traditional band layout, but it really shines with strings. This is an excellent song and honestly one of my favorite songs of all time.
3. Sweet Talkin' Woman - Electric Light Orchestra
Any song by Electric Light Orchestra would work on this list. While other 70s artists put strings in the background ELO always uses strings as the primary rhythm and lead instruments.
4. Lady Rain - Hall and Oats
This song has one of the craziest violin solos I've ever heard. A very contemporary style solo, this violinist really explored the sonic pallet of the violin in a very creative way. Beyond the creative playing, it seems to have some sort of effects or processing in post which almost makes it sound like a guitar hiding behind a violin disguise.
5. Lake Shore Drive - Aliotta Haynes Jeremiah
This is another absolutely excellent violin solo. The way the violin fits into this mix with the moody piano chords and persistent guitar is perfect. The solo is very melodic and honestly gets stuck in my head on a regular basis.
6.Baba O' Riley - The Who
As a young lad I would listen to this song in wonderment and awe, wondering how they got a synthesizer to sound like a violin underwater. Then one day I realized that it was, indeed, a real violin solo at the end of the track! That made this song even more impressive! This is a very creative song in general and the outro makes it at least 42 times better.
7. The Devil Went Down to Georgia - The Charlie Daniels Band
Of course, no list of contemporary violin songs could ignore this classic. The way the devils solos contrast in tone with the solos of Johnny is absolutely genius. Charlie Daniels was a legend. He passed away in 2020 at the age of 83.
8. Ants Marching - Dave Matthews Band
Good Ol' Dave Matthews luckily is here to represent some more recent tracks. Ants Marching has some excellent traditional sounding fiddle rhythm parts that really stick out in the mix, without taking over it.
9. Hurricane - Bob Dylan
The Violin is the highlight of this track for me, those bluesy riffs add SO much to the song as a whole. The violin track also adds a lot to the story-telling of the lyrics.
10. Maybe Tomorrow - Badfinger
Speaking of adding emotion to a song... The violin in this Badfinger song adds so much depth emotionally. There is so much variety within the arrangement as well. Some parts sound like the typical 70s string sections you would expect. Other sections sound like a classical arrangement straight from a Mozart piece.
I'm sure I've missed some excellent songs, let me know which ones in the comments! To hear more awesome Violin songs check out my playlist on Spotify here!
I'm the number one fan of the violin! This was an excellent list!