Playlist of Reference: Rock!

The next in our incredible series of Playlists of Reference we tackle a beast: the world of rock music. This week’s playlist is curated by Tom P. who has dedicated a significant amount of time into this monster of a playlist with 871 tracks for your listening pleasure. It has earned the exclamation point. But first, let’s get the story behind the playlist.
When did you start listening to rock music?
In the late 60’s, a vibrant time with some great music.
Did you ever have a moment when you felt like rock started speaking to you?
Yes, many of these songs spoke for a generation of your people then and left us with many good memories. For me, early favorites included Iron Butterfly - “In A Gadda Da Vida,” Uriah Heep - “Salisbury,” and later classics like Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven” and “Black Dog.”
I really enjoyed classics from the Doobie Brothers and Kansas (especially “Dust in the Wind” and “Incomudro.”) Also can’t forget great jazz-fusion-rock from Santana and Jethro Tull, as well as hard-driving blues-rock from the Allman Brothers and Little Feat. Where do I stop? There’s also BTO, Bad Company, Lynyrd Skynyrd - “Free Bird,” Fleetwood Mac - “Hypnotized,” Van Halen & Sammy Hagar - “I Can’t Drive 55” and on and on.
What are some example situations when you would listen to this playlist yourself?
I enjoy many diverse musical styles now, including jazz, blues, gospel, world, and classical. But classic & fusion rock are still great for pumping up the adrenaline. Can’t think of a bad time to listen to good rock, except perhaps when it’s time to chill. Listening to many kinds of music now, occasionally I’ll “cleanse the palette” with some good rock.
If you had to choose just one track from this playlist, which one would be your favorite?
Hard to choose, but I’ll go with “Salisbury” by Uriah Heep, for great musicality and an early mix of styles.