Just like you hit the gym and do your best cardio when your workout playlist is active in the background, gambling works like a charm with a playlist of the most appropriate gambling-related songs from Spotify.
If you want to get on with a game of poker or spin some reels to the beat of some of the best songs on gambling ever written, take a look at the list below:
1. Black Queen – Stephen Stills
Released in the late 1970s, Stephen Stills and Bill Halverson produced one of the greatest songs ever written about gambling. The very first line of the song – “This is a song about a card game” explicitly states that it is going to create an atmosphere conducive to a tantalising game of cards.
2. Abba – The Winner Takes It All
Diving straight into the 1980s, we have the Swedish pop band ABBA with their hit number “The Winner Takes It All”.
3. AC/DC – The Jack
This is one of the most seductive and high-paced songs on the world of gambling. The title of the song informs you right from the start that it has to do with the world of card games. The card dealing here serves as innuendo and has a flirtatious side to it.
4. Townes van Zandt – Mr Mudd and Mr Gold
Drawing on the age-old theme of good vs evil, this song is ideal for those who have proper experience in playing cards. But, even if you are a newbie in the world of gambling and do not know all the card terminology used, the beats will be enough for you!
5. Gamblin’ Man – Lonnie Donegan
Released as far back as 1957, Gamblin’ Man is a skiffle take on the familiar rock n roll and will give you just the impetus to play a game or two of cards. Moreover, it is Jimmy Page approved.
6. H2 Aerosmith – Deuces Are Wild
“You and me is two of a kind”
Yes, that is how this song begins. It is not only a reference to Deuces Wild Poker, but also has a connection to the lead Steven Tyler’s infatuation with a girl at that time. The deuce is the wild and the fulfilment of the love story is the ultimate destination of this song.
7. Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts – Bob Dylan
This is not just a song, but an entire story wrapped around a complex love quartet and a homicide plot. For the gamblers, Dylan has interspersed the song with lyrics that provoke the twist of Fate for all gambling enthusiasts.
8. Gambler’s Blues – B. B. King
As the name suggests, this a blues song that laments the loss of a lover. B.B King is at his artistic best when he croons out the melancholic lines “Some people tell us love is just a gamble” and goes on to add that “I don’t claim to be no gambler people”.
9. Amy Whitehouse – Love Is a Losing Game
Winehouse and her tragic life are known to almost all music fans, but this number with her melancholic cynicism really takes the cake. She paints a picture of love as “fate resigned, over futile odds, and laughed at by the gods”.
10. The Clash – The Card Cheat
Feels like a Bruce Springsteen track but actually isn’t. “The Card Cheat” is about a gambler who does not play by the rules and ultimately loses everything in his turn.
11. Rambling, Gambling Willie – Bob Dylan
This song tells you not to push your luck too far or your will end up in blood and tears. Boy, does it give the message in the perfect musical way!
12. Go Down Gamblin’ – Blood Sweat and Tears
A combination of jazz, 70s rock and blues plays out evenly as you go all in along with the beats of this song.
13. Viva Las Vegas – Elvis
Playing cards online, but want to get transported to the dizzy lights of Las Vegas? Then this is just the song for you!
14. The Gambler – Kenny Rogers
“The Gambler” is an all-time favourite country song and it must be in this list for sure!
15. Atlantic City – Bruce Springsteen
Although this is not an out and out song about gambling, all of us do know that “Atlantic City” is one of the biggest gambling hubs in the world. This is a great song with lines such as “There’s winners and there’s losers, and I am south of the line”.
16. Deal – Jerry Garcia
One for the experienced gamblers out there, “Deal” will put you right in the middle of a land-based casino where you can play to your heart’s content.
17. Casino Boogie – Rolling Stones
No gambling music playlist is complete without the Rolling Stones. Enough said!
18. The Angel and the Gambler – Iron Maiden
Launched with an upbeat soundtrack and a brilliant lead vocal section, Iron Maiden fans swear by this song.
19. The Galway Races – The Dubliners
Ah, one for fans of Irish tunes! “The Galway Races” might be about horse racing, but the wheel of fortune is for all gamblers.
20. Molly Hatchet – Beatin’ the Odds
Get into this “game designed for fools” as Victory seduces you into a round of gambling where you lose more than you win, all to the sound of some classic southern rock riffs.
21. Billy Joel – Easy Money
Fancy some easy money? Then listening to this number and playing a hand or two is all you need.
FAQs
What Kind of Music is Played in Casinos?
Casinos usually play songs that create an atmosphere harmonious to gambling. These include rock, country, jazz and pop music, like in the list mentioned above.
What Kind of Music do Poker Players Listen to?
For pokers players, indie, jazz, country and rock are the go-to genres.
What Sounds do you Hear in a Casino?
Other than the background music, you can hear slot machines spinning their reels, people running helter-skelter, the rustling of cards and more in a casino.