Today’s Fringe Special Playlist takes its cue from Rockbeth, the gloriously energetic rock musical that’s been shaking the rafters all week. After last year’s sold‑out, head‑banging debut, the show returns louder, darker and even more deliciously chaotic. It’s Macbeth reimagined as a front‑man teetering between prophecy and self‑destruction, backed by a great band.
What makes Rockbeth such a riot is the way it threads Shakespeare’s tragedy through the spine of classic rock. These songs aren’t just background noise — they’re part of the storytelling. Every riff, every drum break, every howl into the mic pushes Macbeth further down his blood‑red path. So we’ve pulled together the tracks that fuel the show’s energy: the anthems, the warnings, the spells, the swagger.
If you’re heading to the Fringe, we strongly recommend catching Rockbeth in person. It’s part live gig, part Shakespearean breakdown, and all killer. Book quickly as it finishes on the 15th! Tickets here
AC/DC – Thunderstruck
If Rockbeth has a spiritual home, it’s right here. Thunderstruck isn’t just a song — it’s an adrenaline shot. Released in 1990, it became one of AC/DC’s defining stadium anthems, built around Angus Young’s machine‑gun opening riff. The band have said the riff came from Angus “messing around” during rehearsal, but it turned into a track that now signals chaos, triumph, and pure rock theatre. No wonder Rockbeth opens with it: the moment those notes hit, the room belongs to them.
Fleetwood Mac – Black Magic Woman
Before Santana made it famous, Peter Green wrote Black Magic Woman as a blues lament wrapped in superstition and desire. Fleetwood Mac’s original has a smoky, prowling quality — perfect for a show steeped in prophecy and temptation. It’s a song about being drawn to something dangerous and irresistible, which fits Macbeth’s arc a little too well.
Blue Öyster Cult – Don’t Fear the Reaper
A track that has lived several lives: a 1976 soft‑rock hit, a cult classic, and later a pop‑culture icon thanks to Saturday Night Live’s “more cowbell” sketch. Beneath the humour, the song is about accepting fate — stepping toward the inevitable with calm defiance. In Rockbeth, that sentiment lands hard. Macbeth doesn’t fear the reaper; he walks straight into him.
Creedence Clearwater Revival – I Put a Spell on You
Originally written by Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, CCR’s version turns the song into a swampy, hypnotic growl. It’s obsession set to music — the kind of fixation that blinds a man to consequence. For a story driven by prophecy, manipulation and ambition, this track feels like it was waiting for a Fringe rock musical to claim it.
Stevie Wonder – Superstition
One of the most recognisable riffs in music history. Stevie Wonder wrote it after hearing Jeff Beck experiment with a drum pattern, and the rest fell into place with that unmistakable clavinet groove. The opening line — “Very superstitious, writing’s on the wall” — might as well be Macbeth’s personal warning label. It’s funk, prophecy and doom rolled into one.
Guns N’ Roses – Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door
Dylan wrote it; Guns N’ Roses turned it into a soaring, arena‑ready lament. Their version is all wailing guitars and emotional sprawl — a song that feels like someone realising too late that the consequences have arrived. In Rockbeth, it’s the sound of a man who’s run out of road.
The Rolling Stones – Paint It Black
A sitar‑driven descent into grief and madness. Released in 1966, it captured a darker edge of the Stones’ sound, and over the decades it’s become shorthand for spiralling despair. Macbeth’s world turns black long before he realises it — this song simply says the quiet part out loud.
Sex Pistols – God Save the Queen (or King)
A snarling, anti‑establishment anthem that shook Britain in 1977. Banned by the BBC, embraced by the punk movement, and still capable of raising eyebrows. Its inclusion in Rockbeth is a cheeky nod to monarchy, rebellion and the collapse of order — themes Shakespeare mined long before Johnny Rotten spat them into a microphone.
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