The most famous songs about work for Labor Day

With a name like Johnny Paycheck, it’s not surprising that the country crooner would be famous for a song about work. While Paycheck didn’t write the song — that was David Allen Coe — his version is the one that’s famous. As you can tell just from the title, Paycheck (real name Donald Lytle), is none too pleased with the job he’s been working and doesn’t plan to work it any longer.

Apparently even Canadians get tired of work sometimes. Loverboy will forever be remembered for this ode to trying to get through your week so that you can enjoy your time off. It’s a classic bit of ‘80s pop rock, with a chorus you probably have running through your brain right now.

Bachman-Turner Overdrive doesn’t come across as sympathetic to the working man in this song. They’re just so happy about their lot in life. They aren’t caught up in the rat race, as they are off doing their own thing. Oh, they are still working, but the way they take care of business involves a lot more fun and a lot less waiting for the train.

When Dolly Parton stars in a movie, it only makes sense to have her sing its theme song. The movie in question is, of course, “9 to 5,” the tale of three women seeking revenge on their sexist boss. Even divorced from the film, though, the song still works. After all, we’re talking about Dolly Parton.

Todd Rundgren has done a lot of impressive things in his career, and yet he will probably always be best remembered for this simple, catchy song. It feels like all he does is repeat the refrain, “I don’t wanna work/I just want to bang on the drum all day!” Not that it isn’t supremely catchy.

We’ve got a little something for all the indie rock fans here. Guided by Voices is one of the most prolific bands in indie music — well, it is one of the most prolific bands full stop. Frontman Robert Pollard has over 2,000 songs registered with BMI. Many of them have fallen through the cracks but not “The Official Ironmen Rally Song,” which is one of the band's most popular offerings, as it really taps into its blue collar fan base. After all, Pollard spent years working as a teacher while getting his music off the ground.

C’mon. We don’t need to tell you anything about this song. It’s a Beatles classic. Not only that, but it was the song used as the name for their first movie. It’s an iconic song from an iconic band. Plus, it’s not just about work. It’s also a bit of a love song.

When you are working hard, don’t you want somebody to recognize your efforts? Don’t worry, Donna Summer is here for you. The artwork on the single features Summer, one of the queens of disco, dressed as a waitress. If you are a woman who works hard for your money, Summer’s got you covered.

You show up at work Monday, and you’re wishing it was still Sunday. Can you relate to that? If so, here’s a song for you. If you can’t relate, listen to it anyway. Prince wrote the song, and it was performed by the Bangles. Even if your Mondays aren’t manic, you can enjoy the song.

A lot of punk artists are looking out for the worker and the underdog. It’s a genre that wears its heart, and politics, on its sleeve. The Clash were certainly vocal about their feelings about the world at large with songs such as “London Calling.” Another is “Career Opportunities,” which points the English band’s energy at the world of employment.

According to John Lennon in this song, a working class hero is something to be. The former Beatle wrote this song in honor of the working man on his first album after his iconic band’s breakup. Of course Lennon was immensely rich and famous man and far from working class. This was also the guy who sang, “imagine no possessions” despite having, you know, a ton of possessions. There’s a lot of cognitive dissonance with John Lennon.

A lot of factory cities have fallen on hard times. Billy Joel paid tribute to such a city with “Allentown.” They're closing all the factories down, as Joel informs us. For a song about a somber situation, “Allentown” is unusually catchy and upbeat sounding.

Bruce Springsteen has had a blue-collar vibe for his entire career, always singing for the underdog and telling tales of people on the margins. However, he doesn’t actually have a ton of songs you would say are truly about work. But "The Boss" does have “Working on the Highway," which is off his famous “Born in the U.S.A.” album. Less people have misconstrued this song than the title track, to be sure.

Here’s a song with a long shelf life. The Silhouettes recorded it way back in 1957 when pop music was a new thing. And yet this doo-wop classic stuck around for decades. You’ve almost definitely heard this song. Maybe you remember hearing the words “get a job” in a deep baritone. You may also remember the cover of this song by Sha Na Na, which is probably the version a lot of people heard. 

“Money, Money, Money” was ABBA’s follow-up single to the massive hit “Dancing Queen.” That song is a joyous, positive bit of pop music confection. While basically every ABBA song is syrupy in sound, the content here is a little less upbeat, as it’s about a woman who is working hard but still doesn’t have enough cash. As such, she wants to marry a rich guy, which is maybe not the lesson to take away.

“The Drew Carey Show” had a few different themes over its lifespan, but the most memorable was probably “Cleveland Rocks,” an ode to the city where the show took place. However, since so much of the show revolved around Drew at work, it’s just as fitting that for a while “Five O’ Clock World” was the theme song. It’s about that good feeling you get when the work day is finally over.

Like Johnny Paycheck, Merle Haggard has some outlaw country bona fides. Not to stereotype too much, but a lot of the folks who are into that kind of music probably identify themselves as blue collar folks. Haggard pays tribute to those working men with this song, which is actually about taking pride in hard work.

Dropkick Murphys are best known for that one song about shipping up to Boston thanks to “The Departed” and every Boston sports team. However, the Irish-tinged punk band with bagpipes in the mix does more than sing about Beantown. There is also this song, which pulls no punches in its support for the workers of the world. After all, the chorus starts with “We’re the first ones to starve; we’re the first ones to die.”

Huey Lewis and the News had quite a few hits in their heyday, and “Workin’ for a Livin’” was admittedly not among them. It wasn’t in a “Back to the Future” movie, after all. As far as working songs go, though, it’s certainly in the mix among the more famous. If you like Huey and Co. singing about going back in time or the power of love, then maybe you’ll enjoy them singing about the work-a-day world as well.

While this is an iconic song from Dire Straits, and it had to be included, it’s also a little awkward in these modern times. After all, it’s a hit rock song that has a gay slur in it. Now, it is used by a character in the song who is not necessarily supposed to be sympathetic, so it’s not being condoned by the band as a word to use. And yet it does make things awkward.

This song from Styx was in “Rock Band,” so you know it’s got some juice behind it. Hey, the whole “Mr. Roboto” thing was sort of about supporting the downtrodden against their oppressors, but with robots and stuff involved. Why wouldn’t they sing a song in ode to blue collar folks.

Legendary New Orleans musician Allen Toussaint wrote this song, and Leo Dorsey sang the hit version. While it came out in 1966, it almost feels older. Not many people are working in coal mines these days, but this song is still catchy.

Not to be confused with Dolly Parton’s “9 to 5,” this Sheena Easton song is not so much about her working as it is about her man working during the day. He takes the morning train, he works his nine to five, and then he finally, he gets to come back home to her. Easton almost makes it sound nice, though, mostly with the way she sings, “My baby takes the morning train.” That’s the power of catchy music.

Cher is unstoppable. She’s been around forever, and she seemingly hasn’t lost a step. If nothing else, she has a lot of fun on Twitter. “Working Girl” is about a woman who is dealing with the difficulties of being a lady in the working world in the ‘80s. There’s also a movie about that from around the same time.

Rush is a divisive band. People seem to either love them or hate them. Also, Neil Peart was an overt fan of Ayn Rand and her whole shtick, so it seems weird the band would have a song called “Working Man.” Perhaps unsurprisingly, this song was written by Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson, aka the members of Rush who aren’t Peart, at a time when John Rutsey, not Peart, was their drummer. Peart was an incredibly accomplished drummer, but the working man is not necessarily on his mind.