Classic Rock Music Mélange Quiz | Rock and Roll

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. On Dire Straits' hit "Money For Nothing", who sang the opening lyrics, "I want my MTV...", sang backup to Mark Knopfler for the rest of the song, and co-wrote the song with Knopfler?

Answer: Sting

"Money for Nothing" was the second track on the highly acclaimed 1985 album "Brothers in Arms"; it is one of the finest moments of lyricism, and musicality, in Mark Knopfler's impressive catalog. Sting's trademark "I want my MTV" vocal, however, is the signature aspect of the song.

2. Guitar virtuosi Steve Morse, Joe Satriani, and Tommy Bolin were all at some time members of what landmark classic British rock band?

Answer: Deep Purple

Mick Box was the acclaimed lead guitarist of Uriah Heep through their entire career. Paul Kossoff played guitar for Free, the band that was a vehicle for the future success of Paul Rodgers as the lead singer of Bad Company. Steve Marriott and Peter Frampton were the main guitarists for Humble Pie.

3. What 1970s band from Los Angeles took its name from a sex toy in the William S. Burroughs novel "Naked Lunch"?

Answer: Steely Dan

The jazz-rock songwriting duo of Steely Dan, Donald Fagen and Walter Becker, were actually members of the backing band of pop group Jay and the Americans for a year and a half near the end of the Americans' career. They also had played in the Bad Rock Group, with Chevy Chase on drums.

4. In what well-known song by the Doors does keyboardist Ray Manzarek briefly quote the song "Carol of the Bells"?

Answer: "Love Her Madly"

An anomaly on the acclaimed Doors album "L.A. Woman", "Love Her Madly" provides a contrast to the blues-oriented rock on the rest of the album; it features an uptempo groove and more poppish feel than most of the other tracks on "L.A. Woman".

5. What was the last Beatles song to reach number one on the US Billboard Top 40 pop charts?

Answer: "The Long and Winding Road"

Phil Spector, who was in no way affiliated with the Beatles, produced the "Let It Be" album, which was the final album released, but not the final album recorded, by the Beatles. The single version of "The Long and Winding Road" was so given the Phil Spector "wall of sound" treatment, with choir, orchestra, and horn overdubs, that it was one of the main reasons that Paul McCartney would give for leaving the group.

The undubbed, original, and much more dignified, version of the song is on the third installment of the Beatles' "Anthology".

6. Who played piano on the original recording of the famed 1964 Shangri-Las' hit "Leader of the Pack"?

Answer: Billy Joel

As the founding member of a New York City band called the Echoes, 16-year-old Billy Joel played piano on the original 1964 recording of "Leader of the Pack", which became a number one hit for the Shangri-Las.

7. What 1970s mellow-rock singer was the subject of Roberta Flack's hit "Killing Me Softly With His Song"?

Answer: Don McLean

"Killing Me Softly With His Song", which hit number one on the Billboard charts in 1973 for Roberta Flack, was inspired by Don McLean's 1972 number-one smash "American Pie".

8. What was the final album for The Who on which drummer Keith Moon appeared?

Answer: "Who Are You"

Best known as the drummer for the Who, Keith Moon did release a solo album in 1975 entitled "Two Sides of the Moon", though it is a mediocre album at best. It did feature appearances by Joe Walsh, Ringo Starr, John Sebastian, Ricky Nelson, and Harry Nilsson, among others. Moon sung for most of the album, displaying a rather harsh, uncharismatic voice.

9. With whom of the following did Stevie Nicks never do a duet?

Answer: Peter Cetera

Stevie Nicks duets with Bruce Hornsby in 1989 on "Two Kinds of Love", with Don Henley on two tracks on her 1981 album "Bella Donna" ("Leather and Lace", "The Highwayman"), and with Tom Petty on "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" and live on "Needles and Pins" and "Insider".

10. What 1980s supergroup featured rock superstars Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, and Robert Plant?

Answer: Honeydrippers

The Honeydrippers released one album, eponymously titled, in 1984, including their smash cover of Phil Phillips and the Twilights' "Sea of Love". The Firm was another 1980s supergroup featuring Jimmy Page, this time with ex-Bad Company frontman Paul Rodgers. Asia was a progressive rock supergroup that featured Yes' Steve Howe, Emerson, Lake & Palmer's Carl Palmer, and King Crimson's John Wetton. Cactus featured former Vanilla Fudge bassist Tim Bogert and drummer Carmine Appice, who played with Jeff Beck briefly in Beck, Bogert & Appice.

11. Rick Derringer, of "Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo" fame, was the lead singer of what pop-rock band who scored one huge hit and two minor hits in the early 1960s?

Answer: McCoys

Rick Derringer was the lead singer of the McCoys, famed for their big hit, "Hang on Sloopy". The McCoys also had another top ten hit, "Fever", and another Top-40 hit, "Come On Let's Go". The Strangeloves were known for their hit "I Want Candy", the Shadows of Knight for "Gloria", and the Amboy Dukes, featuring axeman Ted Nugent, for "Journey to the Center of the Mind".

12. The Led Zeppelin folk ballad "The Battle of Evermore", from their fourth album, was a duet featuring Robert Plant with what female folk vocal legend?

Answer: Sandy Denny

The late Sandy Denny is widely acclaimed to be the premier English folk-rock singer, the lead singer for the respected folk band Fairport Convention. The other three singers mentioned here, however, deserve acclaim in their own right; Maddy Prior sang with the legendary folk-rockers Steeleye Span, June Tabor was a fine solo artist, and Jacqui McShee gained fame as lead singer of the eclectic British folk band Pentangle.

13. It has been widely agreed that "the jester" in the lyrics of Don McLean's hit "American Pie" referred to whom?

Answer: Bob Dylan

In "American Pie", "the jester on the sidelines in a cast" referred to Bob Dylan's being laid up for a few months by a motorcycle accident in 1966. Elvis Presley, of course, was "the king"; Mick Jagger was "Satan", at the Rolling Stones' infamous concert at Altamont ("And as the flames climbed high into the night/To light the sacrificial rite/I saw Satan laughing with delight/The day the music died"). McCartney himself is not given a persona in the song, but the Beatles are the "quartet in the park" and "the marching band (who)refused to yield."

14. Who was the second-to-last act of Woodstock '69, directly preceding Jimi Hendrix' historic performance?

Answer: Sha Na Na

The Butterfield Blues Band performed as the first of the three bands on day four, before Sha Na Na. Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young were the last act of day three, and the Band performed on day three, right after Ten Years After and right before Johnny Winter.

15. On a 1966 album recorded under their original name, the record company printed a phrase on the cover in order to try to imply to record buyers that the band pictured might be the Beatles. Though they weren't, the phrase stuck as their name, and they went on to a successful career. Who is this band in question?

Answer: Guess Who

Chad Allan and the Expressions released an album in 1966 entitled "Shakin' All Over"; when their record company released it, they printed "Guess Who?" on the cover to imply that the group, which sounded like a British Invasion group, may be the Beatles. They, of course, were not, and the name "The Guess Who" stuck.

16. What solid color was the cover of Spinal Tap's album "This Is Spinal Tap"?

Answer: black

"This Is Spinal Tap", the famed 1984 rock mockumentary, actually featured some good musicianship on its soundtrack. It was dead-on with its parodical lyrics and music, meant to send up everything from '60s flower-power music to heavy metal. The director of the film, Rob Reiner, actually co-wrote all of the songs with the three actor-members of the band, Michael McKean, Christopher Guest, and Harry Shearer.

17. What seminal art-rock band has had two of its drummers also play for Yes and Mr. Mister, and has had two of its bassists play for Emerson, Lake, and Palmer and Peter Gabriel's band?

Answer: King Crimson

King Crimson drummer Bill Bruford would also have a successful career with Yes, and Pat Mastelotto would do the same for Mr. Mister. King Crimson bassist Greg Lake, of course, was a member of the immensely successful group Emerson, Lake, and Palmer, and Tony Levin is a highly skilled bassist who has toured with Peter Gabriel.

18. What was the famed nickname of the 1959 Gibson ES335 guitar played by quick-fingered Alvin Lee as a member of Ten Years After?

Answer: Big Red

Alvin Lee was one of the most underrated guitarists of his era. Ten Years After was, until Woodstock '69, primarily known around Britain; their breakthrough performance at Woodstock closed with a legendary twelve-minute performance of "I'm Going Home".

19. "Jesus is Just Alright" was made a hit by the Doobie Brothers in 1972. But what very influential folk-rock band first brought this gospel classic into the annals of rock, in 1969?

Answer: Byrds

"Jesus is Just Alright", an old Arthur Reynolds gospel standard, was a huge hit off the Doobies' 1972 album "Toulouse Street", but it first appeared on a rock album with the Byrds' classic 1969 LP "Ballad of Easy Rider".

20. Jack Bruce, former bassist for Cream, played bass on the title track of what landmark 1974 Frank Zappa album?

Answer: Apostrophe (')

A spur-of-the-moment jam based on a theme written by Zappa, Bruce, and Jim Gordon, his drummer then, it is the opener to side two of Frank Zappa's 1974 album "Apostrophe". The title of the song, "Apostrophe'" actually includes an apostrophe after the title.

Source: Author fonkijomaniac

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor Bruyere before going online.
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Classic Rock Music Mélange Trivia Quiz

As the title suggests, this is a hodgepodge of trivia from the classic rock era. I have tried to make this challenging, but not impossible, so good luck on it.

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