Nickelback is a Canadian rock band formed in 1995. They failed to break into the mainstream until the release of their third studio album Silver Side Up in late 2001. Their brand of post-grunge, hard rock with a sprinkle of some pop rock ballads have earned the group more than 50 million worldwide album sales to date.
The band was formed by brother duo Chad and Mike Kroeger with their cousin Brandon and lead guitarist Ryan Peake. They’ve since gone through several drummers, but Daniel Adair has made that place his own after joining the group in 2005.
People nowadays will know them from memes or the general trend of hating them for no particular reason. And, of course no band is everyone’s cup of tea, but I think there’s a Nickelback song for everyone. This next part is where I put my money where my mouth is and present you with the 10 best Nickelback songs of all time.
Best Nickelback Songs – Top 10
10. Lullaby
Nickelback as a band is probably most famous for their songs about sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll. This song is a total departure from that. The fourth single from the bands 2011 release Here And Now is a sweet tempered power ballad.
The songs lyrics centre around the feeling of having nothing left to give in life and wanting to give up. The narrator acts as the light in those dark times, giving you the encouragement and empowerment to reach out and let somebody pick you up off your feet.
There’s lots of heavy references and for that reason a trigger warning may be necessary if you’ve not heard this one before. But if you can, I would urge you to reach for your headphones and take in this beautiful, poignant appeal to those who need it.
9. Gotta Be Somebody
Another entry, another ballad. This time, the first single from the band’s 2008 album Dark Horse. It’s an uplifting mix of pop-rock and alt rock about the pursuit of love and happiness. Lyrically, the song asks questions about how love feels and when you’ll find the one.
The lovey-dovey themes paired with the catchy melody, infectious chorus and anthemic guitar make for a great listening experience. And whilst the group aren’t most famous for their well mannered uplifting tunes, you’ll learn quite quickly they’re fantastic at writing them.
8. Burn It To The Ground
Burn It To The Ground is a lot closer to what people have come to expect from Nickelback. A relentless stoner rock anthem about giving the world a big f**k you and partying the night away. Like the aforementioned partying, this song just doesn’t let up. It’s fun and it’s loud, exactly what you want from a rocking party anthem.
Its raw energy and universal themes have earned it a lot of air time since its 2011 release. It’s used by a multitude of American Sports teams to mark touchdowns, goals and team entrances. Even making its way into the pro wrestling world as the theme tune for WWE’s Monday Night Raw for nearly three years.
7. Something In Your Mouth
There’s not much I can say about this song without earning this list a PEGI 18 rating, but I’ll do my best. If I tell you this song is heavily laced with sexual innuendo you can probably draw your own conclusion on it.
Love it or hate it, it’s songs like this that gave Nickelback their name. The desire to write high energy songs about sex, drugs, strippers and… well more sex helped them grab headlines throughout the 2000’s. Obviously a song like this isn’t everyone’s cup of tea but it topped the mainstream rock charts in the US and garnered millions of listens across music platforms.
6. Someday
Someday is a different kind of ‘break-up song’, if you can call it that. It’s sung from the perspective of a husband or boyfriend singing to his significant other. He’s fraught with questions about how and why their relationship has hit hard times. Throughout the entire song he’s appealing to his partner to try again and promises her that he’s “going to make it alright.”
It’s a type of song you don’t hear very often, most heartbreak songs are after the fact, not during. That’s something Nickelback are very good at doing, taking something we’ve all been through and changing it a little bit into something that’s all together different and more impactful, but we still all understand it. They’ll always be known in the mainstream as the crude, meme band but us fans will always know there’s something more to them. Something quite deep and complex at times.
5. If Today Was Your Last Day
Sticking with the deep and complex side of the band, what would you do if you knew today was your last day? It’s a heavy question and one that probably scares a few people. This song doesn’t just ask the question though, it gives you the answers too. You’d make your mark on the world, shoot for the stars and go out knowing that you did all you could.
The poignant theme of the lyrics and music are partnered with a heartwarming music video too. It mainly follows two teenage boys on a trip through New York City to a bridge over the sidewalk. They lean over the side of the bridge and empty a bag of confetti with quotes from the song written on them over the side. This act inspires some of the people below to go on and do their fair share of kind acts. Most notably a well dressed man who starts handing money to everyone he sees.
4. Far Away
Far Away is the second single from the band’s best selling album, All The Right Reasons. It very quickly became a mainstay of concert setlists and charted in fourteen different countries around the world. When asked about the song at the time of its release, frontman and lyricist Chad Kroeger described it as “The only real love song that Nickelback has.” He went on to say that they’d written plenty about love but this was their first about being in love.
As the title may suggest, this song is about a couple who have been far away from each other for too long. They’re truly, madly and deeply in love but for whatever reason they’ve been apart for so long and all they want is to be reunited in eachothers arms once again. It’s not very often you get to describe a Nickelback song like this but it’s such a pretty song. When you’re listening to it the world has a slightly rosier tint to it for those few minutes.
3. Photograph
Look at this graaphhh. Yes, it’s THE song. Photograph originally gained mainstream attention upon it’s release in the summer of 2005. Since then it has stayed on the minds of the masses in the form of admittedly a really funny meme.
But don’t let that fool you, this song is more than just a vehicle for laughs. An acoustic ballad about looking back to the good old days, this song explores a feeling everybody has felt in their adult life. The want and desire to go back and relive the antics of your youth is something that will likely stay in all of us until it can’t anymore. That’s why this song was so successful in the first place.
It reached the top 10 of sixteen different weekly music charts in eight different countries and hit number one in three. It has 248 Million Spotify listens, 303 Million YouTube views, is certified platinum in Canada and the US with the latter being a 2x certification. I could go on even more if I wasn’t starting to get hand cramps!
2. Rockstar
If you’ve never wondered what it’s like to be a rockstar then this song isn’t for you. Then again, who hasn’t wondered what it’s like to have an arena full of adoring fans screaming your name as you waltz on stage with your favourite guitar in hand. My futile dreams aside, Nickelback tackle another universal feeling with this behemoth of a hit released in 2006.
The song consists mainly of a conversation between the main character and a deep voiced man who I can only assume is some kind of fame giving deity? Either way he’s played by Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top and if that isn’t enough to convince you of its credentials then I’m fighting an uphill battle.
The lyrics list off all the pros of being a rockstar but are very satirical in its execution. Especially when you reach the bridge and the band has turned into washed up phonies lip syncing their songs. Plus who wouldn’t want a front door key to the playboy mansion!
1. How You Remind Me
There was a lot of chopping and changing whilst I was writing this list. I’m still not happy I had to leave “Never Gonna Be Alone”, “Animals” and my favourite, “Side of A Bullet” out of it. Throughout all of that uncertainty however, one spot never changed and that’s this one.
How You Remind Me was the first single of the band’s 2001 breakthrough album Silver Side Up. There’s not many superlatives left to describe just how big this song was and still is. In 2009 it was revealed to have taken the number 3 spot on the Billboard Top 40 of the decade. It also holds the fantastic record of being the most played song on American radio in the noughties, and for good reason.
It’s said that Chad had the opening four lines written in the back of his notebook for some time. Until one day he got into an argument with his girlfriend. He stormed into the basement and started recording as he improvised this song, hoping he was loud enough for his partner to get the message.
It must have gone through countless re-recordings and demo takes before we ever got to hear it. But you can still feel the raw passion, anger and venom coming through in the down tuned guitars and thumping drums. Whether you’re an unapologetic fan or a stone faced critic, it’s tough to find anything to criticise about this post-grunge mainstream hit.