Rock and roll has shaped history, pop culture, and countless lives. Many might even say that rock and roll checked in their life. So if someone came up to you and asked you which songs are the most important for the genre, where would you start?

This question is answered and explored in the MMR Essential 200, our list of 200 rock songs from across the genre’s history that have helped influence, elevate, or outright change what we call “Rock and Roll”. These are songs every rock fan should know, ranging from massive hits to unique live recordings to deeper tracks in the genre.

While building this list, we created a few guidelines and exceptions:

1. An artist will be represented by a piece from his catalog. However, some musicians may appear more than once. For example, you’ll find a Beatles song on this list, but you’ll also see tracks from the solo careers of John Lennon and Paul McCartney.

2. The Duets / “Under Pressure” Rule: A collaboration will not count towards an artist’s performance on the roster, meaning you’ll see a separate song from Queen, a separate song from David Bowie AND their classic collaboration from “Under Pressure”.

3. For a live recording to be included in this list, it must have received some official release, either on a physical album / compilation or in digital form. Random live duets found on YouTube do not count.

Now that you know the rules, scroll through the gallery below to see all of AH’s songs, including the tracks with symbols and numbers in their title that kick off this list.