You didn’t need much money to have a good night.
A few dollars for gas, something cheap to eat and a group of friends were often enough. Maybe your car wasn’t pretty. Maybe payday still felt impossibly far away. But when your favorite song came on the radio, none of that seemed particularly important.
Looking back, those nights when you had the least sometimes became the memories worth the most.
Here are 10 songs that will take you right back.
1. “Take It Easy” – Eagles
This song practically sounds like being young with nowhere important to be. Roll down the windows, turn up the radio and figure out the rest later.
2. “Listen to the Music” – The Doobie Brothers
Sometimes that really was the entire plan. Find your friends, put on some music and let the evening unfold.
3. “Stuck in the Middle with You” – Stealers Wheel
It was catchy enough that everyone in the car seemed to know it. Hearing it today can instantly bring back old radios, old friends and streets that looked completely different then.
4. “December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)” – The Four Seasons
Even when you weren’t having the most glamorous night imaginable, songs like this made ordinary evenings feel like something worth remembering.
5. “Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl)” – Looking Glass
This is pure early-1970s radio nostalgia. One chorus and you can practically picture the dashboard and hear the slightly tinny car speakers.
6. “Come and Get Your Love” – Redbone
Easygoing and infectious, this was perfect background music for a time when hanging around with your friends could occupy an entire evening.
7. “Jackie Blue” – The Ozark Mountain Daredevils
There’s something about this song that sounds like another time. It brings back long drives, summer afternoons and the freedom of having very few actual plans.
8. “Fooled Around and Fell in Love” – Elvin Bishop
Being broke certainly didn’t stop anyone from falling in love. Sometimes the biggest thing happening in your life didn’t cost anything at all.
9. “Couldn’t Get It Right” – Climax Blues Band
That groove belongs to the decade. It’s the kind of song that could come through the radio while you were driving around looking for something to do.
10. “Right Down the Line” – Gerry Rafferty
Warm, sincere and unforgettable, this feels like looking back at someone who made those ordinary years much more important than you realized at the time.
According to Billboard’s historical chart records, radio during the 1970s was filled with an enormous range of rock, pop, soul and disco. For listeners, though, the songs often became inseparable from everyday life.
Maybe you didn’t have much money back then. But if you had good friends, a little gas in the tank and music on the radio, sometimes that was enough.
What did a cheap night out look like for you in the 1970s?
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