Funk rock is a high-energy hybrid that marries the rhythmic groove and syncopated basslines of funk with the electric guitar-driven intensity and song structures of rock. Emerging in the late 1960s and early 1970s through pioneers who dared to electrify funk's dancefloor pulse with distorted riffs and arena-ready volume, the genre thrives on the tension between tight, locked-in rhythm sections and explosive, improvisational instrumentation. Unlike straightforward funk, which prioritizes the groove above all else, funk rock leans into rock's rebellious edge—think slap bass dueling with overdriven guitars, brass stabs punctuating power chords, and vocals that range from soulful wails to rap-inflected shouts.
What sets funk rock apart from its alternative rock sibling is its unapologetic emphasis on rhythm as the compositional anchor; where alternative rock often prioritizes mood or lyrical introspection, funk rock demands movement, built on bass-heavy grooves that force the body to respond. It's funkier than most rock, rockier than pure funk, and more playful than the brooding tendencies of alternative music. The genre's elasticity has allowed it to absorb elements of punk aggression, psychedelic experimentation, and even hip-hop swagger across decades, yet it always returns to that unmistakable marriage of syncopation and raw electric power.
Listen to funk rock to experience music that refuses to sit still—where virtuosity meets visceral energy, where grooves hit as hard as guitar solos, and where the dancefloor and the mosh pit collide in glorious, sweat-drenched harmony.
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List updated:
| #100 | ByJimi Hendrix | Released:1971-03-05 | |||
| #10 | ByFunkadelic | Released:1971-07-12 | |||
| #81 | ByFunkadelic | Released:1974-07-10 | |||
| #28 | ByDavid Bowie | Released:1976-01-23 | |||
| #88 | ByThe Rolling Stones | Released:1976-04-23 | |||
| #36 | ByWild Cherry | Released:1976 | |||
| #91 | ByEddie Hazel | Released:1977-07-29 | |||
| #97 | ByTalking Heads | Released:1977-09-16 | |||
| #93 | ByEarth, Wind & Fire | Released:1977-11-21 | |||
| #63 | ByTalking Heads | Released:1978-07-14 | |||
| #61 | ByBee Gees | Released:1979-02 | |||
| #55 | ByTalking Heads | Released:1979-08-03 | |||
| #47 | ByGrateful Dead | Released:1980-04-28 | |||
| #56 | ByQueen | Released:1980-06-24 | |||
| #30 | ByTalking Heads | Released:1980-10-08 | |||
| #2 | ByPrince | Released:1982-12-04 | |||
| #21 | ByTalking Heads | Released:1983 | |||
| #69 | ByMinutemen | Released:1984-07 | |||
| #39 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:1984-08-10 | |||
| #94 | ByTom Petty and The Heartbreakers | Released:1985-03-26 | |||
| #16 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:1985-08-16 | |||
| #15 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:1987-09-29 | |||
| #34 | ByLenny Kravitz | Released:1989-07-23 | |||
| #7 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:1989-08-22 | |||
| #31 | ByPrimus | Released:1990-02-01 | funk rock | ||
| #52 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:1990 | |||
| #60 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:1990 | |||
| #54 | ByPrimus | Released:1991-05-14 | |||
| #11 | BySpin Doctors | Released:1991-08-20 | |||
| #12 | BySpin Doctors | Released:1991-08-27 | |||
| #5 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:1991-09-24 | |||
| #49 | ByPrimus | Released:1991-12-21 | |||
| #53 | ByPrimus | Released:1992-03-12 | |||
| #71 | ByExtreme | Released:1992-08-20 | |||
| #37 | ByBlind Melon | Released:1992-09-14 | |||
| #35 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:1992-09-29 | |||
| #32 | ByLenny Kravitz | Released:1993-02-26 | |||
| #58 | ByPrimus | Released:1993-04-16 | |||
| #25 | ByJamiroquai | Released:1993 | |||
| #80 | ByPrimal Scream | Released:1994-03-28 | |||
| #89 | By311 | Released:1994-07-12 | |||
| #70 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:1994-11-07 | funkfunk rock | ||
| #75 | ByPapa Roach | Released:1994 | |||
| #90 | ByExtreme | Released:1995-01-25 | |||
| #84 | ByLos Tres | Released:1995-03-17 | |||
| #9 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:1995-09-08 | |||
| #23 | ByCake | Released:1996-09-17 | |||
| #85 | ByIncubus | Released:1997-01-07 | |||
| #38 | ByFishmans | Released:1998-01-01 | |||
| #14 | ByLenny Kravitz | Released:1998-04-29 | |||
| #6 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:1999-06-07 | |||
| #57 | ByPrimus | Released:1999-10-18 | |||
| #40 | ByBeck | Released:1999-11-20 | |||
| #26 | ByCrazy Town | Released:2000-06-05 | |||
| #33 | ByLenny Kravitz | Released:2000-10-24 | |||
| #51 | ByDave Matthews Band | Released:2001-02-26 | |||
| #66 | ByN*E*R*D | Released:2001-08-06 | |||
| #68 | ByOysterhead | Released:2001-10-02 | |||
| #50 | ByLenny Kravitz | Released:2001-10-30 | |||
| #3 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:2002-06-08 | |||
| #46 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:2002 | |||
| #74 | ByMolotov | Released:2002 | |||
| #17 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:2003-11-18 | |||
| #77 | ByJota Quest | Released:2005-09-16 | |||
| #86 | ByPrimus | Released:2006-01-01 | |||
| #4 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:2006-05-05 | |||
| #43 | ByMaroon 5 | Released:2007 | |||
| #13 | ByLenny Kravitz | Released:2008-01-01 | |||
| #41 | ByTalking Heads | Released:2009-04-18 | |||
| #95 | ByShaka Ponk | Released:2009-05-25 | electronic rockfunk rock | ||
| #24 | ByThe Heavy | Released:2009-09-18 | |||
| #48 | ByNick Jonas & the Administration | Released:2010-02-01 | |||
| #18 | ByMaroon 5 | Released:2010-09-15 | |||
| #83 | ByNX Zero | Released:2010-11-24 | rapfunk rock | ||
| #20 | ByINXS | Released:2011-05-30 | |||
| #8 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:2011-08-26 | |||
| #87 | ByPrimus | Released:2011-09-13 | |||
| #96 | ByOrnatos Violeta | Released:2012-02-00 | |||
| #1 | ByMiley Cyrus | Released:2013-10-04 | |||
| #76 | ByMaroon 5 | Released:2013 | funk rockpop rock | ||
| #62 | ByBruce Springsteen | Released:2014-01-06 | |||
| #82 | ByLenny Kravitz | Released:2014-09-19 | |||
| #73 | ByCan | Released:2014-10-24 | |||
| #67 | ByKing Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard | Released:2015 | |||
| #29 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:2016-06-17 | |||
| #78 | ByProphets Of Rage | Released:2016-07-18 | |||
| #98 | ByDavid Bowie | Released:2016-09-23 | |||
| #65 | ByGrateful Dead | Released:2017 | |||
| #27 | ByThe Fearless Flyers | Released:2018-03-23 | funkfunk rock | ||
| #92 | ByThe Fearless Flyers | Released:2019-05-03 | funkfunk rock | ||
| #45 | ByThe Black Keys | Released:2019-06-28 | |||
| #64 | ByKhruangbin | Released:2019-07-12 | |||
| #59 | BySt. Vincent | Released:2021-05-14 | |||
| #19 | ByKhruangbin | Released:2021-05-28 | |||
| #79 | ByLucky Daye | Released:2021-09-22 | |||
| #22 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:2022-04-01 | |||
| #72 | ByDance Gavin Dance | Released:2022-07-29 | |||
| #42 | ByRed Hot Chili Peppers | Released:2022-10-14 | |||
| #99 | ByBrittany Howard | Released:2023-12-15 | |||
| #44 | ByThe Home Team | Released:2024 |