10 fantastic songs featuring the harmonica that aren't "Piano Man"

The harmonica is a truly underutilized instrument, most likely because its sound is so distinct, it doesn’t always feel like the most versatile instrument in the world. There are definitely some pretty famous harmonica solos that have permeated popular culture (“Piano Man,” of course, also “Timber” by Ke$ha and Pitbull comes to mind) but by and large, the harmonica isn’t exactly an instrument one thinks of when they think of really any genre of music that isn’t folk or country. And I think that’s just plain wrong. There are some absolutely fantastic rock, indie, goth, pop, even hip hop songs that feature some killer harmonica. Here are ten of them.

“Running to Stand Still” by U2

While this list is most definitely not in any particular order, “Running to Stand Still” is probably my favorite of these ten. In fact, “Running to Stand Still” is probably my second favorite song of all time, harmonica or not. There are really only three songs which have ever given me chills and a borderline out of body experience upon listening for the first time, and this is one of them. The chills come at various points throughout the song, but the harmonica solo is certainly chief amongst them. This is one of the most beautiful uses of harmonica in a non-folk or country song in all of existence. I know that I can’t definitively say that given the sheer fact that it’s impossible for me to know every use of harmonica in a song in all of existence, but I do think you’d be hard-pressed to find something that beats this one out. This song also features the banjo, and that combination, harmonica and banjo, is not exactly one that I flock to in my listening preferences. If all harmonica and banjo songs sounded like this one, though, I sure as hell would seek out each and every one of them. This beautiful Bono ballad is raw, visceral, and the lyrics are truly momentous. The harmonica actually doesn’t kick in until the very end of the song, fittingly, as the banjo fades out after the intro, but it really is the perfect way to close out this song. It’s melodious and masterful, almost dreamlike in a way, and it serves as proof that harmonica is in fact a very versatile instrument.

“Thoroughfare” by Ethel Cain

Ethel Cain has been my newest obsession since I saw her at All Things Go—a music festival of almost all queer indie artists and most definitely the closest thing to heaven on Earth, in my humble opinion—last September. Her ethereal and guttural vocals combined with her dark and broody melodies immediately caught my attention; her set was placed nicely between Julien Baker (my favorite of the Boygenius trio and an absolute must-see of this festival) and Janelle Monáe (an artist I’d never really listened to but who I’d heard was a fantastic performer) so I stayed through it all and was very pleasantly surprised. After that I started listening to her, and a few months later, “Thoroughfare” became the inspiration behind this list. “Thoroughfare” falls smack in the middle of her album Preacher’s Daughter, an album about overcoming internal religious conflict, which not everyone can relate to, but Cain coos in a way that makes it feel as though everyone can. The harmonica on this track comes in strong and loud, and though it’s relatively fleeting in its two short solos, it’s hard not to think of this song as being pretty dominated by the harmonica. It’s woven delicately through this nearly ten minute track, and it sounds a bit to me like the air in this song’s lungs, like without the harmonica, this song’s airways would be blocked, rendering it unable to breathe. It’s a beautiful touch, the bow that ties this song together, and without which the track would simply be incomplete.

“Betty” by Taylor Swift

I know Taylor Swift is a bit of a controversial inclusion on any reputable music list, but one simply has to admit that she has talent even if they hate her. I don’t hate her, I don’t love her anywhere near as much as even her casual fans, but Folklore and Evermore are two albums that I listen to pretty regularly based on the fact that they are damn good albums. “Betty” is a track near the end of Folklore that really holds some weight in keeping the quality of the album through the end. The harmonica-heavy intro sets the tone for the upbeat anthem of teenage anxiety and pressure. The harmonica in the intro makes you feel like home the moment it comes on; it’s hard to explain, but the feeling is akin to the intro of “Like a Rolling Stone,” ironically before the harmonica kicks in. You just know from the sequence of harmonica notes that something familiar and warm is about to come, and it sets up a truly great song. I think a lot of this song’s merit, harmonica aside, comes from the fact that it is so similar to another Taylor Swift song, “Fifteen.” Part of what makes Taylor Swift so indisputably great is that she evokes a sense of nostalgia; whenever I listen to her, especially “Fifteen” and now “Betty,” I’m reminded of what it was like to be a teenager. “Betty,” however, feels like a more polished and evolved song, from a more mature and seasoned artist—which of course, she was when “Betty” was released. A great deal of that maturity, full circle, I think is upheld by the use of the harmonica.

“A Wolf Who Wears Sheeps Clothes” by Mac DeMarco

I was listening to a curated Spotify playlist for recommendations and inspiration for this list to see if there were any crucial artist inclusions that I was missing, and I stumbled upon this gem. Every other song on this list is one that I had listened to at least three or four times before writing, but even after listening just once, I knew I needed to include this song. Similar to “Betty,” this song has a fairly nostalgic tone, and the harmonica feels a little like home (as per the expression, not necessarily my home). With only two verses’ worth of lyrics, this short song is dominated by both the harmonica and the subtle but hearty percussion steadily keeping the beat, and it fills me with a desire to throw on a flannel and sweatpants, make myself a cup of hot cocoa, and sit around the fireplace with the people I love. No noise, no external stressors, just three minutes of warmth from the sound of the harmonica and Mac DeMarco’s voice singing softly along with it. Though it does sound relatively standard here, this song is a shining example of why the harmonica can be, and typically is, a beautiful addition to any song.

“Smile” by Pearl Jam

Another harmonica-percussion juxtaposition that is quite literally perfect. I think it’s kind of rare to see the drums posed so clearly next to the harmonica in a rock song; even in other uses of percussion and harmonica, it’s not usually a full drum kit rather than a steady one piece (like in “A Wolf Who Wears Sheeps Clothes”). Leave it to Pearl Jam to revolutionize and break the norm—“Smile” is a ‘typical’ rock song complete with electric guitar, a full drum kit, bass, and Eddie Vedder’s luscious vocals. The harmonica is just a nice added touch. Don’t let that detract though, it is a nice added touch and this song wouldn’t be the same without it. It comes in waves between the verses, and then there’s a pretty solid solo after the first refrain and before the guitar solo. It simply adds a bit of flare to this song; I’d even go as far as to say that the harmonica takes this song from good to great.

“Rosa Parks” by OutKast

Yes, OutKast, the very same. Yes, harmonica in a hip-hop song. By OutKast, the same OutKast who gave us the absolute gem that is “Hey Ya.” The harmonica in “Rosa Parks” is pretty specific, it comes in the form of a brief solo that acts almost as a break in the song. About halfway through the song, the rhythm and flow of the song comes to a slow halt and is almost interrupted, and it’s as if the harmonica just bursts through the double doors of a saloon to show off. And show off it certainly does, going on for about 30 seconds before stepping back through those double doors, leaving the saloon and its patrons completely transformed. The song picks up pretty much right where it left off, and continues on for about a minute and a half before the informal conversation that is the outro, but point being here is that the harmonica knows no bounds. It doesn’t even need to ‘fit’ really, in order to work. It can simply insert itself into a rap or hip-hop song of all genres, make a scene, and then make an equally scenic exit.

“Lost In The Dream” by The War On Drugs

I went through a phase with this band where they were probably all I listened to for a solid week and a half. This song might be my favorite of theirs, I think because it’s just so beautiful in the most seemingly simple way. I hadn’t really given much thought as to what role the harmonica played in that beauty, mainly because it kind of plays in the background of this track. It blends in seamlessly as just another instrument in the ensemble, at least until the solo, but even in the solo, which comes just before the outro, it’s just as standard as the guitar or drums. When it first kicks in at the beginning of the song, it’s most definitely noticeable, but truth be told, from there on out, it just kind of fades into the rest of the song. It’s more noticeable at some points than others, but the key thing to understand here is that it’s almost always present throughout this entire song. Which I think is pretty awesome. The harmonica is an instrument that usually has to be the main character. It has no trouble waiting its turn, of course, but it’s the type of instrument that does, oftentimes, need its own turn. Not in this song. In this song, the harmonica plays very nicely with the other instruments in the ensemble, and it even complements them at times, playing right alongside them, and it hardly needs its own turn. Versatility; nobody (at least not The War On Drugs) puts harmonica in the corner.

“The Worst” by Fantastic Negrito

I’m kinda shocked that more people don’t know about Fantastic Negrito at this point. He’s been around for about a decade now, and there really isn’t anyone like him. He blends genres in a way that only the most legendary of artists can really do. Funk, rock, punk, R&B, even some Gospel, and honestly, most of that brief list is present in this song alone. Admittedly, the harmonica is very subtle in this song, and I mean very subtle; if you aren’t really listening for it, you very well could miss it. It comes about two-thirds of the way through the song, and only for a few measures. But I think there’s something to be said for that, too. Even in the smallest of forms, the harmonica can add a little spice, a little blues-y pizzazz to just about any song, and this one is a prime example. Was this song added purely for harmonica reasons? Clearly not. Was it added so I can plug this slept on genius who doesn’t even need to devote a whole solo to showing that he has mastered the harmonica and can show us that in just a few seconds? I plead the fifth.

“Boogieman Sam” by King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard

I’ve been skeptical, for lack of a better word, of King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard in the past, mainly because I think they’re just a tad overrated. I think a lot of their discography is incredible, but a lot of it falls flat for me, too. That said, the album Fishing For Fishies is definitely one of their more incredible records, and arguably the best part of that album is their use of harmonica. The harmonica is a strong presence throughout this entire album, but I think “Boogieman Sam” is truly the cream of the crop. This song really showcases the variability of the harmonica. Oftentimes I think harmonica solos or features sound, more or less, the same, or at the very least pretty similar, and I think that’s partly why harmonica can be so underutilized. To their credit, KGATLW has mastered the harmonica in a way that is unique to them. “Boogieman Sam” employs a fast-paced harmonica riff that pretty much dominates the song, so much so that the lyrics actually follow the harmonica, along with the rest of the instrumental ensemble. It’s not your typical harmonica progression in the least, in fact it even varies within itself from time to time throughout the track. This may be cheating a bit, but I’d encourage anyone who actually likes the harmonica sound beyond just the occasional solo to listen to Fishing For Fishies in its entirety; this album really does wonders for harmonica justice.

“Dark Star” by Beck

Beck is an artist who has always been in the background for me, almost all my exposure coming from car rides with my dad. Don’t be fooled though, because that’s literally 25 and a half years’ worth of car rides listening to Beck. He recently did an album ranking for Beck, and I actually surprised myself with how much of his music I was familiar with. “Dark Star” was actually not one of the more familiar songs to me, but the harmonica solo in this song really stuck out to me as an oversight on my memory’s part. Bear with me when I say, Beck plays the harmonica the way Jimi Hendrix plays the guitar. I remember when I first started learning how to play guitar, my dad telling me that part of why Jimi Hendrix was such a great guitarist was because he could make the guitar talk. He was talking about the wah pedal, an innovation that Hendrix most definitely mastered, but that statement has always stuck with me. I think Beck, similarly, can make the harmonica talk. The harmonica solo in this song is played with such precision, it’s so different, and it sounds like he is literally just jamming out. Honestly, of all the songs on this list, I think “Dark Star” is a great closer because it’s just such a masterful use of the instrument. It really is just a solo, but it’s so unbelievably awesome, that I think this song alone would be argument enough for the use of harmonica in any and all genres of music.

If there are any glaring misses that you think I oughta listen to, please let me know! Just as long as they’re not Bob Dylan—I love Dylan, and I’m well aware of the virtuosic quality of harmonica in his music. I’m trying to draw attention to other legendary harmonica players here.