Though the decade included what many agree was the worst year in pop music, the 1970s produced music that has endured the test of time. It was a transformative decade. New genres like disco, punk, glam, prog rock, electronic/industrial and heavy metal took off, and these new sounds would shape generations to come. But, according to Forbes, when it comes to the ‘70s, one song reigns supreme: Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody.”

Picking the top song of this decade is a tough task. This was the time of Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side of the Moon, Bob Dylan’s Blood on the Tracks, Joni Mitchell’s Blue, Miles Davis’s Bitches Brew, Alice Coltrane’s Journey in Satchidananda, Herbie Hancock’s Head Hunters, Elton John’s Goodbye Yellow Brick Road and Throbbing Gristle’s 20 Jazz Funk Greats.

The rest of Forbes’ list includes a cross-section of the decade’s variety, with Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams,” ABBA’s “Dancing Queen,” Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven,” and the Bee Gees’ “Staying Alive” filling out the top 5. That’s some tough competition, but Forbes contributor Quentin Thane Singer makes the case for Queen’s landmark song from 1975’s A Night at the Opera.

Stating that Queen’s fourth album “single-handedly revolutionized rock music and opened the door for what elaborate concoctions were even possible in the genre,” Forbes dubs “Bohemian Rhapsody” as proof of “Queen’s brilliance” and a “masterful work of art.”

There is proof that “Bohemian Rhapsody” continues to resonate with music listeners. Look no further than the Forbes article that ranked it No. 1: when it was first published in July 2025, the song had “standing at nearly 2.5 billion streams.” In the roughly eight months since then, it has surpassed that number, amassing 3.096 billion streams on Spotify alone. The song is averaging 75 million plays per month (which is impressive, since Queen has about 51 million monthly listeners).

Freddie Mercurybegan working on “Bohemian Rhapsody” sometime in the late 60s while studying at Ealing Art College, according to uDiscover Music. Sometime in the early 70s, Queen’s guitarist, Brian May, remembers his friend “coming in with loads of bits of paper from his dad’s work, like Post-it notes, and pounding on the piano. “And this song he had was full of gaps where he explained that something operatic would happen here and so on.”

“Freddie was a very complex person; flippant and funny on the surface, but he concealed insecurities and problems in squaring up his life with his childhood,” said May. “He never explained the lyrics, but I think he put a lot of himself into that song.”

Producers worried that, at nearly six minutes long, “Bohemian Rhapsody” wouldn’t play on the radio. The song defied concerns: it topped the UK Singles charts and reached No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S. In 2018, it became the most-streamed song of the 20th century.

Forbes Top 10 “Most Iconic” Songs of the 1970s

01. Queen, “Bohemian Rhapsody”
02. Bee Gees, “Staying Alive”
03. Led Zeppelin, “Stairway to Heaven”
04. ABBA, “Dancing Queen”
05. Fleetwood Mac, “Dreams”
06. Pink Floyd, “Time”
07. Eagles, “Hotel California”
08. Stevie Wonder, “Superstition”
09. John Lennon, “Imagine”
10. Earth, Wind & Fire, “September.”

Related: 1974 Cover by Rock Legend Ranked Worst Hit Song From the Worst Year in Pop

This story was originally published by Parade on Mar 21, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.