Neil Young - see the sky about to rain, 1974

"I always picture a rural highway. Summertime, a humid day, a battle between blue and gray above. There’s a farm house in the foreground bracing for the shower. Before long, the rain begins. But Neil’s song doesn’t take place during the downpour."

The Moody Blues - nights in white satin, 1974

"While it has been commonly known as part of "Nights in White Satin" with no separate credit on the original LP, "Late Lament" was given its own listing on the two-LP compilation This Is The Moody Blues in 1974 and again in 1987 (without its parent song) on another compilation, Prelude. Both compilations feature the track in a slightly different form than on Days of Future Passed, giving both spoken and instrumental tracks an echo effect. The orchestral ending is kept intact, but mastering engineers edited out the gong (struck by Mike Pinder) that closes the track on the original LP as it relates to the closing of the original album (with Side 1 beginning with the gong fading in) and not the track alone."

Barry Manilow - mandy cover, 1974

"Brandy", later called "Mandy", is a song written by Scott English and Richard Kerr. It was originally recorded by English in 1971 and reached the top 20 of the UK Singles Chart. "Brandy" was recorded by New Zealand singer Bunny Walters in 1972, but achieved greater success when released in the United States in 1974 by Barry Manilow. For Manilow's recording, the title changed from "Brandy" to "Mandy" to avoid confusion with Looking Glass's "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)". His version reached the top of the US Billboard Hot 100. Later, it was recorded by many other artists. The song was a UK number one hit in 2003 for Irish boyband Westlife."

Cat Stevens - oh very young, 1974

"Its lyric is a gentle response to Don McLean's hit "American Pie" released two years previously. Like McLean, he stops short of mentioning Buddy Holly directly, but questions the ill-fated songwriter's "Not Fade Away" (the last song Holly performed) lyric "a love to last more than one day, a lover's love, not fade away" with Stevens' own "denim blue, fading up to the sky, and though you want him to last forever you know he never will, and the patches make the goodbye harder still". Stevens then mentions the young American's mould-breaking work "Words Of Love" in the line "will you carry the words of love with you, will you ride the great white bird into heaven, and though you want to last forever you know you never will, and the goodbye makes the journey harder still."

Supertramp - hide in your shell, 1974

"I was 23 when I wrote Hide in Your Shell. I was confused about life and like a lot of people are at that age, I was very shy and tried to hide my insecurities. I’ve always been able to express my innermost feelings more openly in song and Hide in Your Shell came to me at a time when I was feeling very lonely – both in life and within the band – with no one who shared my spiritual yearnings. It’s a song that speaks to that place in all of us that feels alone or misunderstood, that place where we just want to hide from the world, that longs for connection yet doesn’t feel safe to reach out for help."

Genesis - hairless heart, 1974

"Hairless Heart" originated from a guitar melody from Hackett, for which Banks composed the other parts as a backing. Banks was fond of the piece and was dismayed when it was titled "Hairless Heart" in reference to a lyric from "Back in N.Y.C.", commenting, "shaving hair off the heart, it's a horrible concept!"

Barclay James Harvest - child of the universe, 1974

"Everyone Is Everybody Else is the fifth studio album by British Rock Band Barclay James Harvest released in June 1974. This was their first album for the Polydor label after they had parted company with EMI. The album was produced by Rodger Bain, who had previously worked with Black Sabbath in producing their first three albums. He also produced heavy rock bands Judas Priest and Budgie. There was said to be strained relations between Bain and the band, due to the preference of his musical style, with the band unhappy with the results of the song "Child of the Universe" in particular; Woolly Wolstenholme's only contribution was also left off the original album."

Elton John - solar prestige a gammon, 1974

"Elton and Bernie were annoyed by fans who over analyzed the band’s lyrics for hidden meanings. So they made the nonsensical Solar Prestige to mess with those fans in particular. But it isn’t all gibberish. There are several ocean life names hidden in the song."

Slade - everyday, 1974

"The idea for "Everyday" came out of an evening at Lea's house where he was entertaining friends. Responding to the question of how he wrote songs, Lea said "easy, anyone can do it" and each person then attempted to come up with their idea for a song on the spot. Lea's wife Louise had come up with an idea, which formed the basis of "Everyday"'s verse. Lea later developed her idea further to become a Slade song. Once he had finished the music and some more of the lyrics, Holder finished the final lyrics off. During the recording of the song, guitarist Dave Hill was abroad on his honeymoon so Lea played the guitar solo."

Barclay James Harvest - poor boy blues, 1974

"The album ends with a trilogy of tracks which join together to form a single piece. "Poor boy blues" and "Mill Boys" cleverly reverse 2 themes between their vocal and instrumental sections. These almost folk like songs give way to one of BJH's great powerful tracks, "For no one" (no relation to the Beatle song). The track crashes in, in similar fashion to "After the day" from "..and other short stories", with John Lees pleading vocals lifting the song to an impassioned climax. "Everyone's a loner till he needs a helping hand, everyone is everybody else".

America - lonely people, 1974

"Peek spent much of the 1990s in semi-retirement, occasionally recording music at his home in Bodden Town, Grand Cayman Island. He released several solo projects and collaborated with Ken Marvin and Brian Gentry as "Peace" on three albums. In the years before his death, Peek released music via his website. His last musical collaboration was performing lead vocal on a track on the 2011 album Steps on the Water by Etcetera. He published An American Band, an autobiography based on America's most successful period, and his own spiritual journey."

The Chi-Lites - there will never be any peace until god is seated at the conference table, 1974

"Side one of Toby closes with one of the trio of singles released from There Will Never Be Any Peace (Until God Is Seated At the Conference Table). Again, it features some clever interplay between Eugene and the rest of the group, their voices a perfect fit for each other. With a slow, but dramatic combination of sweeping strings, rasping horns, chiming guitars and rhythm section accompanying them, The Chi-Lites surpass themselves. With a heartfelt and sincere pleading lead vocal accompanied by sweet, yet dramatic soaring vocals combining with Eugene’s drama drenched arrangement, it’s no wonder the song reached number eight in the US R&B Charts. Adding just the finishing touch is a saxophone drifting above the arrangement, adding to the beauty, emotion and sincerity of the track."

John Denver - annie's song, 1974

"Annie's Song" was written as an ode to Denver's wife at the time, Annie Martell Denver. Denver "wrote this song in July 1973 in about ten-and-a-half minutes one day on a ski lift" to the top of Aspen Mountain in Aspen, Colorado, as the physical exhilaration of having "just skied down a very difficult run" and the feeling of total immersion in the beauty of the colors and sounds that filled all senses inspired him to think about his wife.[3][4] Annie Denver recalls the beginnings: "It was written after John and I had gone through a pretty intense time together and things were pretty good for us. He left to go skiing and he got on the Ajax chair on Aspen mountain and the song just came to him. He skied down and came home and wrote it down... Initially it was a love song and it was given to me through him, and yet for him it became a bit like a prayer."

The Moody Blues - eyes of a child edit version no intro this is the moody blues, 1974

"When you look at life through the eyes of a child there is a wonderment, isn't it? Children see the world differently. There are wonders every day: When you see a butterfly flying or when you see a bird flying or when you see anything, it's just a wonderful world for children to see. I thought, as we become older, we become prejudiced and if you can rid of whatever your prejudice is, you just see the world in naivety, without any restriction. It's wonderful for everyone to be able to see everything in life without any prejudice."

Genesis - it, 1974

"it is that thing that gives something a true meaning. When you cook a very good dish, you've done it perfectly, with lot of effort, creativity, mojo, that dish has it, you've done it. Or when you do an excelent task at work, with lots of dedication, it has it. The lamb has it. The lyrics talk about a lot of things that have it."

Paul McCartney - junior’s farm, 1974

"It was such a relief to get out of those business meetings with people in suits, who were so serious all the time, and go off to Scotland and be able just to sit around in a T-shirt and corduroys. I was very much in that mindset when I wrote this song. The basic message is, let’s get out of here. You might say it's my post-Beatles getting-out-of-town song."

António Macedo - canta amigo canta erguer a voz e cantar, 1974

"Um nome maior da Música Popular Portuguesa, hoje em dia um tanto esquecido do grande público, mas que compôs um tema dos mais emblemáticos associado à Revolução dos Cravos. Quem não se lembra de "Canta Amigo Canta - Erguer a Voz e Cantar", uma canção que era muitas vezes entoada nos comícios e em outras reuniões partidárias. Há muito que António Macedo merece a edição da sua obra no formato CD, não só as suas gravações registadas em vários 45 rpm, como as que musicou para outros artistas, e, entre eles estão as cantoras Helena Afonso e Lídia Rita."

Kraftwerk - kometenmelodie two, 1974

"Autobahn is the fourth studio album by German electronic music band Kraftwerk, released in November 1974 by Philips Records. The album marked several personnel changes in the band, which was initially a duo consisting of Florian Schneider and Ralf Hütter; later, the group added Klaus Röder on guitar and flute, and Wolfgang Flür on percussion. The album also completed the group's transition from the experimental krautrock style of their earlier work to an electronic pop sound consisting mostly of synthesizers and drum machines. Recording started at the group's own Kling Klang facility, but was predominantly made at Conny Plank's studio. Autobahn also includes lyrics and a new look for the group that was suggested by Emil Schult, an associate of Schneider and Hütter."

Slade - far far away, 1974

"Far Far Away" originated with Holder. While on tour in America, he came up with the opening line while sitting on a balcony overlooking the Mississippi river in Memphis. Manager Chas Chandler urged him to go away and write the song immediately. Holder went to his hotel room and returned half an hour later having completed a basic version of the song, with the title "Letting Loose Around the World". Lea later developed the song further, in particular the chorus. In the band's 1984 biography Feel the Noize!, Lea recalled: ""Far Far Away" was a real collaboration between Nod and myself. The verse was Nod's and the chorus was mine. I wanted to record it like a barrelhouse song with a very airy feel for us but Chas wasn't keen."

Genesis - the carpet crawlers, 1974

"The Genesis song, whose lyrics were written by Peter Gabriel, has a dense, religious imagery leading to considerable discussion over the years as to what is the meaning of the The Carpet Crawlers lyrics. Here I’ll offer an interpretation that it is, at heart, addressing a terrible truth: that our world is hellish and those whom we believe we are following out of our own choice are keeping us trapped in illusion."