Some of the most famous rock tracks, were a step away from seating in the drawer forever. I once heard an interview with 10cc about their iconic song “I’m not in love”, which started as a bossa nova-style song, with a traditional rhythm section, but the band felt something is missing, and the group decided to scrap it. Days later, the band members overheard one of the recording technicians humming the melody, which made the band “recalculate route”, while trying to experiment with layers of vocals in the song. Using only analog equipment, they made numerous layers of vocal loops which created a sound cloud that gave this song its famous character.
Another song with an interesting story is “Money for Nothing” by the Dire Straits, very famous for it’s unforgettable guitar riff. Turns out this track had some difficulties along the way that made it’s creation slogish, first with the recording equipment – a fault with some digital tape machines, forced the band to technically start things over for the record. Secondly, Knopfler was after a certain sound, which came by accident after a microphone was misplaced in front of the speaker, what helped Knopfler to get the “Billy Gibbons tone”, ZZ Top‘s frontman and guitarist, known for his thick, warm, and gritty blues-rock sound.
There are other songs that had a potential to be abandoned, just to be later finished and becoming a cornerstone in rock history. Bohemian Rhapsody (initially named “The Cowboy Song”) started as an idea of Mercury, and transformed into a long opera sounding rock song, after numerous studio hours. Brian May said they’d sing harmonies for 10–12 hours a day, layering vocals endlessly, while the record label thought it was too long and too weird to be a hit.