Can YOU guess these pop and rock hits from their first lines alone?

EVER struggle to remember the lyrics to your favourite song? Turns out you’re in good company – as even Britpop legend Noel Gallagher has revealed he sometimes forgets the words to his classic Oasis tunes.

He told The Sun: “I’ve played Don’t Look Back In Anger a billion times and sometimes I think, ‘What is the first line?’”

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Can you match the one-liner to the iconic Bob Marley?Credit: Getty
Which lyrical masterpiece was coined by Beyonce?

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Which lyrical masterpiece was coined by Beyonce?Credit: Getty
Justin Bieber fans should know his songs straight away

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Justin Bieber fans should know his songs straight awayCredit: Getty

So how good is your music memory – pop perfect, or a bit rocky?

We’ve picked out some all-time favourite pop and rock songs. Can you identify them from their first lines alone?


  1. Load up on guns, bring your friends / It’s fun to lose and to pretend
  2. Ooh, a storm is threatening my very life today
  3. ’Cause ’cause ’cause I remember when we used to sit / In a government yard in Trenchtown,
  4. Out here in the fields / I fight for my meals
  5. We are the crowd / We’re c-coming out / Got my flash on, it’s true / Need that picture of you
  6. The warden threw a party in the county jail / The prison band was there, and they began to wail
  7. You gotta go and get angry at all of my honesty / You know I try but I don’t do too well with apologies
  8. White lips, pale face / Breathing in snowflakes
  9. You used to call me on my cell phone / Late night when you need my love
  10. This thing right here / Is lettin’ all the ladies know / What guys talk about / You know, the finer things in life
  11. What’s with these homies dissin’ my girl? / Why do they gotta front? / What did we ever do to these guys / That made them so violent?
  12. On a dark desert highway, cool wind in my hair / Warm smell of colitas, rising up through the air
  13. There must be some kind of way outta here / Said the joker to the thief / There’s too much confusion / I can’t get no relief
  14. I, I will be king / And you, you will be queen / Though nothing will drive them away / We can beat them, just for one day
  15. What you want? / (Ooh) Baby, I got it / (Ooh) What you need? / (Ooh) Do you know I got it?
  16. Dear Sir or Madam, will you read my book? / It took me years to write, will you take a look?
  17. I heard that you’re settled down / That you found a girl and you’re married now / I heard that your dreams came true
  18. Like the legend of the phoenix / Our ends were beginnings / What keeps the planet spinning / The force from the beginning
  19. I look and stare so deep in your eyes / I touch on you more and more every time / When you leave, I’m begging you not to go / Call your name two, three times in a row
  20. Hell is gone and heaven’s here / There’s nothing left for you to fear / Shake your arse, come over here / Now scream

 . . . AND A BONUS QUESTION FOR NOEL: Slip inside the eye of your mind / Don’t you know you might find / A better place to play

Answers

  1. Smells Like Teen Spirit – Nirvana
  2. Gimme Shelter – Rolling Stones
  3. No Woman No Cry – Bob Marley
  4. Baba O’Riley – The Who
  5. Paparazzi – Lady Gaga
  6. Jailhouse Rock – Elvis Presley
  7. Sorry – Justin Bieber
  8. The A Team – Ed Sheeran
  9. Hotline Bling – Drake
  10. Thong Song – Sisqo
  11. Buddy Holly – Weezer
  12. Hotel California – The Eagles
  13. All Along The Watchtower – Jimi Hendrix
  14. Heroes – David Bowie
  15. Respect – Aretha Franklin
  16. Paperback Writer – The Beatles
  17. Someone Like You – Adele
  18. Get Lucky – Daft Punk
  19. Crazy In Love – Beyonce
  20. Let Me Entertain You – Robbie Williams

BONUS QUESTION FOR NOEL: Don’t Look Back In Anger – Oasis

Noel Gallagher and Liam reunite amid feud in first look at Oasis film Knebworth

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