Freddie Mercury - QueenHAMON/Dalle/INSTARimages.com
By
Sarah Polonsky
Published 24 minutes ago
Senior Music Editor at Screen Rant, Sarah's love of sound and story drive the beat. A globetrotting brand whisperer and award-winning journalist, she’s built cross-cultural narratives around the world—but music has always been her true north. She launched DJ Mag North America, successfully introducing the iconic UK brand to the U.S. market. Previously, she carved a space for EDM inside the pages of VIBE, blending electronic and hip-hop culture long before it was trendy.
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Thanksgiving is basically the Super Bowl of all-things classic. The food we eat, the movies we watch, and, of course, the music we play. If you haven't experienced someone burning the stuffing, and a classic rock playlist blasting loud enough to drown out whatever argument is brewing at the table, then you haven't seen Thanksgiving at my house. And yes, I already know what you’re thinking: “Here we go, another classic rock list. It’s either wrong, so I’ll fight you in the comments… or it’s been done to death, so why even click?” Fair. But you clicked. And you’re here. So let’s make it worth it.
Because this one is SO not about ranking gods for the sake of creating noise and drama (though noise and drama is fun). It’s a genuine Thanksgiving appreciation for the voices that shaped the emotional backbone of modern music. These are the singers who bent culture with their special brand of sonic sauce, infusing rock with the kind of personality that has survived and continues to thrive five decades later.
So, before the leftovers disappear, and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade floats all run out of air, let’s give proper thanks to the classic rock vocalists who truly deserve it. The ones we’re not just nostalgic for, but grateful to. There's nothing like coming home for the holidays, especially because, no matter your circumstances, home is wherever these rockers are.
10 Janis Joplin
I harbor a strong delusion that I am Janis, reincarnated, but that's a story for another time. Janis’s voice was pure emotional combustion. So raw and unfiltered, even the greatest vocalists made it impossible to imitate the rasp. She sang like she was ripping her heart open on purpose, giving rock a level of vulnerability and power it had never seen before. Every growl, crack, and some of those epic screams felt earned. When she hit a line, she meant it in a way only Janis could.
What makes her especially gratitude-worthy is that her voice still feels alive anytime you play it. It's like she’s singing straight from the instinctive part of the human experience that doesn’t care about polish. She brought blues grit into classic rock and turned pain into poetry. During Thanksgiving, when everything gets loud, messy, and deeply human, Janis is the perfect reminder that imperfection can be transcendent.
9 Don Henley (The Eagles)
Henley’s voice is pure California dusk. It's warm but a little haunted, and always grounded in truth. Whether with The Eagles or solo, he sings with a sincerity that never feels manufactured. His tone is so instantly recognizable you know it’s him before the first verse finishes.
Henley’s gift is subtle power. His vocals shaped some of the most enduring songs in American music, and his delivery carries a steady emotional weight that resonates especially during the holidays. His restraint as well as his clarity make him a rare artist whose voice feels like memory itself.
8 Roger Daltrey (The Who)
Daltrey’s voice is pure voltage and we love it. So explosive, so athletic, he's capable of hitting rock’s emotional extremes without ever losing control. He turned the microphone into a weapon, matching The Who’s brilliance with vocals big enough to bulldoze through the mix. “Won’t Get Fooled Again” alone earns him a place here.
What makes Daltrey such a Thanksgiving-worthy pick is that his power came with nuance. He could roar over Townshend’s walls of sound one moment and deliver fragile introspection the next. Few vocalists embody classic rock’s entire spirit the way he does.
7 Jim Morrison (The Doors)
Morrison appeal will never die. His baritone (and his hair, those lips, all the sex appeal) was hypnotic all on its own. Dark and poetic, his voice created entire worlds inside The Doors’ music because they were created on alternate planes (yes, drug-induced, but... semantics). He could turn a simple line into a prophecy, drifting between seduction and danger with effortless control.
His mystique endures because the voice endures. Morrison turned rock singing into something ritualistic and cinematic, matching the band’s surreal sound with an aura few have replicated. He’s a natural Thanksgiving staple for anyone who leans into the season’s late-night moodiness.
6 Stevie Nicks (Fleetwood Mac)
Stevie’s voice is a spell. A smoky, mystical, raspy, instantly identifiable force that draws even the biggest music cynics in. She fused femininity and ferocity in a way that reshaped the sound of classic rock. Her tone carries weight without ever needing to oversing, making her one of the most singular forces the genre has ever heard. Emotional honesty, people, try it this year?
Stevie is also a master storyteller. Her harmonies reshaped Fleetwood Mac’s sonic identity, and her solo work carries that same mythic pull. Around the holidays—when memories and emotion blur together—few voices hit deeper or more beautifully.
5 Paul McCartney (The Beatles / Wings)
McCartney’s voice is rock’s Swiss Army knife; it's got all the settings you need depending on the moment. Sharper? Gritter? Softer? He's got every blade in his pocket, and knows how to use them all, and somehow also knows how to use each one to make them cut deep. He helped define the British Invasion, yet his voice evolved with warmth and agility that kept him relevant across every decade after.
His gratitude factor comes from adaptability. McCartney can soundtrack any Thanksgiving mood. His catalog is a reminder of how rare it is for a singer to be this versatile without ever losing their signature identity. Try to fight it, but the video above is from only four months ago! Bow down.
4 Mick Jagger (The Rolling Stones)
Jagger rewired rock charisma. He had zero need for operatic range because he weaponized swagger and attitude instead. His voice is pure movement—mischievous and bendy, and oh-so iconic. He made rock singing feel dangerous in the most stylish way possible.
What makes him essential now is how well that energy has aged. Jagger’s delivery remains sharp and alluring today. He still embodies the slightly messy, deeply fun spirit of Thanksgiving better than most on this list.
3 David Bowie
Bowie’s voice was the anchor of his reinvention. He shapeshifted through glam, rock, soul, theater, and futurism, yet his vocals grounded every era. He could croon, belt, whisper, growl, and pivot personas with clarity and purpose.
His brilliance lies in transformation. So don't tell me he's not classic rock, because Bowie is a true classic, he used his voice to build emotional and aesthetic worlds without ever repeating himself. What's more classic and rocking than that? Revisiting him during Thanksgiving is a way to have an impromptu dance party with your great uncle and your niece, because he's all genders, all ages, and all genres.
2 Robert Plant (Led Zeppelin)
Plant shaped the entire language of rock vocals. His wails were as powerful as his banshee highs, and they built the template that nearly every rock singer after him followed or pushed against. His presence brought mysticism and sexuality into Zeppelin’s catalog.
Plant’s influence is why he sits near the top of any rock conversation. His recordings still sound futuristic, and the jolt he brings fits perfectly with any high-energy holiday gathering. He's also still touring, so there's that.
1 Freddie Mercury (Queen)
Freddie remains the closest thing rock has to a universally agreed-upon greatest vocalist. His range, emotional fluency, control, and theatrical explosiveness made every performance unforgettable. He could turn a stadium into a choir and a single melody into a cultural phenom.
What sets Freddie apart is transcendence. His voice could deliver triumph, vulnerability, tenderness, and spectacle within the same track. If Thanksgiving is about gratitude, Freddie is the voice at the head of the table.
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The Beatles
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