Ten Great Universal Music Group Songs

The Universal Music Group is one of the world’s leading record labels. I am a fan of Elton John & Bob Seger who are both part of the Universal Music Group. There are many other songs I enjoy that are part of the Universal Music Group. This article is a collection of Universal Music Group songs. It features a 50/50 mix of British & American artists.

Reelin’ In The Years - Steely Dan (1972)

This jazz rock song opens with the incredible guitar playing by Elliott Randall whose guitar is prominent throughout the song. Singer Donald Fagen gives a good piano part with the piano being the main instrument in the verses. The guitar part in the verses is subtle so you almost can’t hear it. This reminds me of Elton John’s 1973 song “Grey Seal” where guitarist Davey Johnstone does not play guitar during the verses. Elliott also plays two intense and powerful guitar solos.

 

Ramblin’ Man - The Allman Brothers Band (1973)

This is a southern rocker written and sung by guitarist Dickey Betts. Chuck Leavell’s piano drives the song with good organ support from Gregg Allman. There are intense guitar parts which come throughout the song. There is a guitar solo a little after the one minute mark. The guitars are played by Dickey and Les Dudek. The last two minutes of the song feature guitar soloing by them.

Still The Same - Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band (1978)

This ballad shows us Bob Seger at his best. Bob does double duty playing piano and acoustic guitars. The song features those two instruments in the intro. The other instruments join in and Bob starts singing. Bob sings from his heart. Bob plays the piano well providing a good selection of musical notes and he gives a moving piano solo. Keyboardist Robyn Robins gives good organ accompaniment.

Promises - Eric Clapton (1978)

This is a country leaning song featuring electric piano. The guitar parts are a mix of acoustic and electric. Eric sings “la la la la .. ” in the chorus. It’s nice how there’s an electric guitar part doubling it which could be played by Eric himself. Eric sings gently on this song. Keyboardist Dick Sims also plays organ in addition to electric piano.

Twisting By The Pool - Dire Straits (1983)

This is a good, fun rock & roll song. Mark Knopfler wrote, sang and played lead guitar on this song. Keyboardist Alan Clark provides a jolly piano part. As this is a rock & roll song, Mark’s guitar solo sounds like one you’d hear in 50s music. There are a few brief drum solos. The backing vocals offer adequate support to Mark.

I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues - Elton John (1983)

It opens with Elton’s warm melodic piano. The other instruments slowly come in, with it becoming a full band song once Elton starts singing. The most prominent instrument alongside Elton’s piano is Davey Johnstone’s guitars. Davey co-wrote the song with Elton and his lyricist Bernie Taupin. This song seems like blues pop to me. Stevie Wonder gives a touching harmonica solo.

That’s All - Genesis (1983)

This is a piano driven rock song. It opens with piano and soft drumming. Phil Collins sings this song and also plays drums on it. The drumming gets more intense close to the one minute mark. There is an organ solo a bit before the halfway mark. There is an interesting guitar solo in the last section of the song. Phil does some subtle singing during the guitar solo.

Dancing On The Ceiling - Lionel Richie (1986)

While Lionel Richie is a soul artist, he has done some songs which went in a rock direction such as this one. I’d classify this as both a pop rock song and a soul song. It opens with cheering, Lionel talking and John Robinson’s drum intro. The piano and guitars give off a rock vibe. There are many glissandos on the piano. A rocking guitar solo is given. This song seems to be influenced by rock & roll music. This is a fun, energetic song.

Alone - Heart (1987)

This is an epic arena rock song. The song opens with a piano with some synth. The verses are slow and the choruses go into intense rock mode with strong guitar and synth parts. Ann Wilson sings powerfully in the choruses. There is a guitar solo three quarters of the way in the song. This is a pure 80s power ballad.

Roll With It - Steve Winwood (1988)

This song has a soul and blues feel. Steve Winwood plays all the instruments on this song except for the horns and some keyboards by Mike Lawler. The main keyboard parts of piano & organ are played by Steve. It opens with drumming, a horn intro and then the lead instrument of piano comes in. Steve sings powerfully. Nice organ parts first appear in the chorus and are used throughout the song. There is a soulful saxophone solo.

I featured a diverse collection of songs I like from the Universal Music Group. Their musical styles are a mix of rock, pop, soul, blues, jazz and country.

Ten Great Songs Featuring David Paich

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David Paich is a keyboardist and founder member of the American rock band Toto. He sang their most popular song “Africa”. Toto is a band of session musicians, thus David has a prolific session career playing on numerous albums. In this article, I am featuring ten songs David has played keyboards on including one song by his band Toto. David is joined by most of his original Toto bandmates on some of the non-Toto tracks on this list. I had previously featured two songs David Paich played on in my article “Ten Great Piano Rock Songs by Ten Different Singers”. 

These Days - Jackson Browne (1973)

This song begins with just Jackson and his acoustic guitar with some slide guitar parts. It continues that way until just before the chorus when David Paich’s piano comes in at just under a minute. David’s piano is a welcome addition that makes the song whole. He gives good accompaniment including being a good match for David Lindley’s slide guitar. 

Put Out the Light - Joe Cocker (1974)

This is a soulful rocker featuring David Paich’s piano, wacky guitars, horns and powerful backing vocals. Joe Cocker sings with such passion. While the piano isn’t the loudest instrument, it has a great presence including some glissandos. The saxophone is there throughout a lot of the song including some solos. 

Doctor Wu - Steely Dan (1975)

This is a piano driven soft rock song with a jazz influence as Steely Dan are a jazz rock band. David stated that he played on this song, so I’m assuming that the piano part is his. David is joined by his future Toto bandmate Jeff Porcaro who also plays on the next two songs. There is a saxophone through sections of the song including a solo. The guitar part is subtle. The piano playing is cool and melodic. The sax and piano goes in a more jazz direction towards the end of the song.

Lido Shuffle - Boz Scaggs (1976)

This is a popular song by Boz Scaggs which is co-written with David Paich. Elton John is an influence of David Paich which comes through in this song as it sounds like an Elton John song including its piano. The song features the bass and drums in the first twenty seconds until all the instruments come in. There are horns which are most prominent during the chorus. David is playing all the keyboards on this song which include piano and synths. He is joined by another future Toto bandmate, bassist David Hungate. Boz sings powerfully with his high voice. There are prominent synth parts in the last minute of the song which David doubles with his piano. Having both piano and synths gives a foreshadow of Toto’s sound. 

Manuela Run - Toto (1978)

I’m now including a song by David Paich’s band Toto. This is a song from their 1978 debut album (which also features their hit song “Hold the Line”) which he wrote, played on and sang lead vocals. It opens with David’s piano riff which is played throughout the song. David sings “round” in an interesting way. Bobby Kimball sings good backing vocals. It also features good synthesizer playing by Steve Porcaro and a guitar solo by Steve Lukather. It has a unique end with a few piano notes followed by a closing door. This song is both pop rock and progressive rock.  

The Retreat - Elton John (1980)

This is a great Elton John ballad about the American Civil War. The guitar is played by fellow Toto member Steve Lukather. It has Elton’s piano and singing for up until the end of the first verse. The full band comes in from the first chorus featuring prominent organ by David Paich and interesting guitar parts by Steve Lukather. The organ continues throughout the song and adds to it. There is a synthesizer by James Newton Howard which comes in during the last minute of the song. The synthesizer goes back and forth with the organ and then with the guitar. 

Allies - Heart (1983)

This song features David Paich on piano and synth. It was written by Journey keyboardist Jonathan Cain and this song is somewhat reminiscent of the Journey hit “Don’t Stop Believin’” with its combination of piano and intense guitars. It opens with the piano and is soon joined by Ann Wilson’s voice. The strong guitars come in as brief interjections in the first verse before fully coming in during the chorus. Ann sings powerfully on this song, especially in the harder rocking parts. The verses are piano driven. There is a section with David’s piano playing with his synth which reminds me of Toto. This is an intense ballad featuring powerful rock piano. 

New York Minute - Don Henley (1989)

This is an epic six and a half minute song which has a jazz influence. It opens with an orchestra that’s arranged by David Paich with flourishes of his piano. Following that there are keyboard notes which are soon joined by Pino Palladino’s bass and David’s piano. Jeff Porcaro’s drums and Pino’s bass have some jazz vibes. David’s piano too does this in the verses. Close to the two minute mark, Danny Kortchmar’s guitar brings rock to the song which goes away in the second verse and comes back for the chorus. African-American Christian vocal group Take 6 provide backing vocals during the chorus. At around the three minute and forty five second mark, the trumpet appears and has some notes throughout the remainder of the song. 

There Is No Greater Love - Wayne Watson (1992)

As a Christian, I was pleased to find out that David Paich played on a Christian song. The opening orchestra notes are similar to the previous song. This song has the simple arrangement of piano and orchestra. Piano and orchestra without any guitar, bass and drums is not my favourite arrangement as that runs the risk of it being a boring ballad for me. Thankfully, that is not the case here. David plays his piano powerfully. 

Please Forgive Me - Bryan Adams (1993)

David Paich’s acoustic piano comes for a short moment at the start of the song. What appears to be an electric piano replaces it until the chorus where the acoustic piano comes back. The acoustic piano is powerful when it returns. The chorus rocks with strong guitars and some hard hitting piano. This is a powerful rock ballad.  

David has played on a variety of different rock styles featured here being pop rock, soft rock, hard rock, progressive rock, jazz rock and rock & roll. There is also a Christian song featured. These songs cover a twenty year period from 1973 to 1993. I’m a fan of piano in rock music and piano is featured in all of these songs. David played piano on all the songs except one which is played by Elton John. This is fitting as Elton is a hero of David’s. These songs showcase David Paich’s great piano & keyboard playing as well as his skills as a songwriter, singer, arranger and producer. 

Ten Great Non-Relationship Rock Songs by Ten Different Singers

While romantic relationships are the most popular song topic, I personally prefer lyrics about other topics. Therefore, I decided to compile a list of classic rock songs about other issues. I had previously written a similar article featuring many of the same artists called “Ten Great Piano Rock Songs by Ten Different Singers”. There is also piano on all of these songs as I like piano in rock music. Two of the songs use electric piano and more than half of them feature its piano part played by the singer-songwriter. I’m featuring the official YouTube embeds for each of these songs so you can listen to any or all of them if you wish.

Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is? - Chicago (1969)

I’m discussing the arrangement of the album version which opens with a long jazz solo by pianist Robert Lamm, also the songwriter and singer of the song. After the solo the horns come in a good way. This song is jazz rock. There are good backing vocals by Peter Cetera and Terry Kath. I like how there is also some talking in the background. The song opens with someone being asked what the time is. He responds with a long humorous monologue beginning with “Does anybody really know what time it is”. This humorous monologue is the chorus which has two more different prompts leading to it.

Doctor My Eyes - Jackson Browne (1972)

This song is about a person talking to a doctor therapist seeking help. It deals with this person’s

perceptions of the world where he is talking to his doctor. Jackson plays the piano on this song. The

song has good congas by Russ Kunkel who also plays drums. Jackson’s YouTube channel recently

released a live performance of the song which is even better as it has rockier guitar and the addition of organ.

Kings - Steely Dan (1972)

This song is about English King Richard from the 12th century by jazz rock band Steely Dan. It talks about his issues which include his plundering which makes me think of corrupt heads of state. It also talks positively about his brother King John who succeeded him. I would like to give my views of these kings, but I won’t as I know hardly anything about them. This song has rocking piano and jazz influenced guitar including a solo. The piano part is played by singer and co-writer Donald Fagen.

Captain Fantastic And The Brown Dirt Cowboy - Elton John (1975)

This is the opening track from Elton John’s 1975 album of the same name. It is about Elton John

(Captain Fantastic) and his lyricist Bernie Taupin (The Brown Dirt Cowboy). It opens with Davey

Johnstone’s acoustic guitars also featuring Elton’s electric piano. It sounds country in the first verse,

before making the sudden switch to hard rock in the chorus where Davey’s intense electric guitars

come in. The next verse goes back to the country sound but with a rock presence as there is some

electric guitar now. It ends with the same opening. Interestingly, a modified version of the same

opening/closing part was used in the closing title track of the 2006 sequel album “The Captain & The Kid”. The lyrics “The Captain and the Kid” were mentioned in this song. I love the lyric “From the end of the world to your town”. 

Hello Old Friend - Eric Clapton (1976)

I would classify this song as both pop rock and country rock. This song is about the pleasure of seeing a friend or acquaintance after a while. It has good positive vibes. There is a keyboard presence of piano and organ. Eric’s guitar shines throughout with his playing. 

The Logical Song - Supertramp (1979)

This is a Roger Hodgson Supertramp song in the light progressive rock style. Roger plays a notable electric piano part. This song deals with the meaning of life and has thought provoking lyrics. Roger

sings how special life was in his childhood, which unfortunately changed when he was sent to boarding school. He is critiquing what we are taught at school. There is a reference to cynicism which is a view I personally am not fond of. There is a nice saxophone solo by John Helliwell. 

I Gotta Try - Kenny Loggins (1982) 

This song was written by Kenny Loggins and Michael McDonald. Michael first released his version in August 1982 and Kenny released his version one month later. While both versions are soft rock,

Kenny’s version rocks better. Michael does play keyboards on this version too. The song seems to talk about the importance of trying to make your life better. It points out how people’s perceptions differ with truth being a theme of this song. The importance of persistence is given. I love the lyrics “They say it’s a hopeless fight, but I say I gotta try”. There are some lyrical similarities with the previous song as both deal with issues we face in this world.

Sometimes - Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band (1986)

It’s now time to change the pace up with a harder rocking song. This song has very good lyrics about someone who has issues with his life connected with where he lives so he wants to move somewhere else. There’s a saxophone solo by the late Alto Reed. Alto was Bob Seger’s saxophonist in the Silver Bullet Band who sadly passed away in December 2020. The saxophone solo is followed by a melodic piano solo and an intense guitar solo. There are horns throughout the song. Towards the end of the song, there are good piano notes. 

The Doctor - The Doobie Brothers (1989)

This song opens with a good piano/guitar rocking combination. I suspect the piano is played by Bill

Payne, who was the piano player on the previous song. It is about the healing power of music,

referring to music as the doctor. This is the second doctor song on this list. It is sung by Tom Johnston and is the last hit single by The Doobie Brothers. It features a powerful guitar solo by Tom. This song reminds me of Bob Seger’s “Old Time Rock & Roll” with its lyrics and musical sound. There are the similar lyrics “good time rock and roll”. I love the lyrics “Music is the doctor of my soul” which rings true to me. 

The River Of Dreams - Billy Joel (1993)

This is a gospel rock song which seems to be about the meaning of life. Billy sings about “searching

for something” in his dreams involving a river which he is required to cross. Crossing this river is

difficult. There are prominent gospel style backing vocals. This song is very melodic and has a brilliant rocking piano solo by Billy.  

I hope you enjoyed reading about and/or listening to these songs. They address a variety of themes

which include politics, identity, loneliness, persistence, the meaning of life, the state of the world and

friendship. Feel free to give your thoughts and interpretations on any of these songs. I’d be interested in hearing them. 

Ten Great Piano Rock Songs by Ten Different Singers

As I like piano in rock music, I decided to write an article featuring ten different piano rock songs. It’s similar to my previous articles ‘Ten Great Bob Seger Songs by Ten Different Piano Players’ and ‘Ten Powerful Rock Ballads by Elton John’. They are my two favourite singers and are featured in this article, with one of the songs from those articles featured here, but with different text. I’ll be featuring classic rock songs where I’m embedding official YouTube audio of these songs in it. This will allow you to listen to any or all of them if you wish. Not all the songs on this list feature piano solos or it being the loudest instrument, but they are songs I consider to be great featuring good use of piano.

157 Riverside Avenue - REO Speedwagon (1971) 

This is from REO Speedwagon’s debut album, long before their popular period. Their first lead

singer who sings this song is Terry Luttrel. It opens with an impressive piano intro which is soon

joined by other instruments. This song has a ragtime influence. There is a special piano solo by Neal

Doughty and two great guitar solos by Gary Richrath. Terry sings like Bob Seger which is fitting as

there’s a reference to Mainstreet in it and “Mainstreet” would be one of Bob Seger’s hits released

five years later.

Rikki Don’t Lose That Number - Steely Dan (1974) 

Followed by the marimba opening, Michael Omartian’s piano comes in, soon followed by Donald

Fagen’s singing. It has a light relaxed feel and does rock. The electric guitars are most prominent in

the chorus and there is a guitar solo which gives a sudden edge to the song making it more intense.

This song is jazz rock which beautifully mixes the two styles of music together. This was a Number

Four US hit for the band. 

The Pretender - Jackson Browne (1976) 

It opens with Jackson’s singing followed by Craig Doerge’s piano. Jackson sings with powerful

emotion, with parts of it being intense. It’s a mid-tempo rock song. It has great rock piano notes. The

drums are played by Toto drummer Jeff Porcaro who interestingly plays drums on the next two

songs. 

Jump Street - Boz Scaggs (1976)

This is an intense rock song that sounds similar to “157 Riverside Avenue”, as both songs have a

ragtime influence. It is both piano and guitar driven, featuring incredible piano and strong guitars. It

sounds like Elton John which makes sense as the song was co-written by its piano player David

Paich who would soon form Toto. Elton John is an influence of Toto and two other Toto members are

also on this track. The next track is a Toto song written and sung by David Paich. The live version is

also worth checking out as it features the additions of organ and horns.

Lovers in the Night - Toto (1982)

This is an album track from Toto’s very popular album “Toto IV”. It opens with a dark and special

piano part played by David Paich. There are intense guitars by Steve Lukather and synthesizer

interjections by Steve Porcaro. Parts of the song go back and forth between the piano/synth

combination and the guitars. There are two great guitar solos which feature good piano

accompaniment. 

I Don’t Wanna Go On With You Like That - Elton John (1988)

This song was a major US hit for Elton John reaching Number Two in the Billboard Hot 100. It’s

opened by Elton’s piano. There are also keyboards and subtle acoustic guitar. Elton is singing strong

and his piano matches well with his voice. In the end section Elton solos playing great piano and

gives a bit of singing. 

I Go To Extremes - Billy Joel (1989)

This next song comes from American singer/pianist Billy Joel who has musical similarities with Elton

John. It sounds a bit like the previous song, but rocks harder as it has electric guitars on it. It’s

catchy with interesting lyrics. It has two powerful rock & roll piano solos by Billy. This is one of Billy’s

hits.

Running on Faith - Eric Clapton (1989) 

This song is well known for its inclusion on Eric Clapton’s popular live “Unplugged” album in 1992. It

however first appeared on his “Journeyman” album three years ago in 1989. The studio version is

better than the live version as it benefits from the studio production. It was written by songwriter

Jerry Lynn Williams and first recorded by Eric Clapton. The first few seconds are piano played by

Greg Phillinganes. Greg plays along well with Eric’s acoustic guitar solo. Though there are a lot of

other instruments on this track, the piano provides great notes and can be heard. This song features

powerful drumming and choir. 

The Fire Inside - Bob Seger (1991)

This song has incredible inspired piano playing by Roy Bittan including two beautifully complicated

solos. It’s guitar part is acoustic played by Toto’s Steve Lukather and there is good supporting organ.

This is great melodic songwriting that’s an example of Bob Seger at his best.

World Gone Crazy - The Doobie Brothers (2010)

Though this song is sung by original lead singer Tom Johnston, it has a Michael McDonald influence,

with its piano playing and composition. This song has elements of jazz in its piano and horns that

later come on. Tom is singing powerfully. At the two minute and twenty second mark, there is a

noticeable organ that goes on for twenty to twenty five seconds. This is followed by a musically

diverse section that begins with drumming only, a piano solo, back and forth between horns and

electric guitar and a saxophone solo before returning to the chorus. Bill Payne delivers incredible

piano playing on this song. As non-relationship songs are my favourite type of songs, I’m pleased to

conclude this list with one.

If you enjoyed this article, you might be interested in my similar article ‘Toto Tribute Album’ writing of an imaginary tribute album to Toto featuring all of the artists on this list (and others) except Toto. Quite a few of the session musicians on these songs have played on songs for other artists featured on this list.