If Marty McFly went back in time thirty years ago today, what song does he play at the dance to blow everyone's mind?

that or, say, slayer, or maybe "screaming at a wall" or early sonic youth.

(I don't actually know what key it's in)

Not many of the rock answers on here would sound unprecedented in '76, if you had any knowledge of Krautrock, the VU, contemporary Classical, avant-garde etc. So the real answer pretty much has to be Hip Hop.

That one is from 1977 though.

Not many of the rock answers on here would sound unprecedented in '76, if you had any knowledge of Krautrock, the VU, contemporary Classical, avant-garde etc. So the real answer pretty much has to be Hip Hop.

What kind of hip-hop was being made in 1976?

(Maybe U-Roy if you are stretching it)

I'm not sure about the history, but by '76 turntablism would exist I think? And as you say, MCing at least in its Jamaican form.

"If you're from the future, tell me who's President of the United States in 2006."
"George W. Bush??? The alcoholic??!!??"

I could see that working!

wuthering heights, bitches

Now More Than Ever, Humanity Needs My Back To The Future Fan Fiction

It's entirely possible Fab Five Freddie was emceeing high school proms in 1976, too.

Maybe if you wanted to turn people away from music altogether. Could you imagine 30 years of silence?

So he should start off with a lite-funk proto disco thing and start doing some light MC-ing over it. Everyone would be all "hey, this is pretty cool" until he ran out of "hip-hop don't stop" stuff and started doing lines from "Like A Pimp" or "Freek-A-Leek"

You don't think they would have cast Nick Cannon if they were making this today?

"one, two, three, four...............ma baby don't mess around because she loves me so, and this I know for shuuuuure.........."

play till minds are blown.

"Roll Over Beethoven"
Clara and Calpurnia travel to 1965 to watch the Beatles perform at Shea Stadium. And then, they wind up having the Fab Four as passengers as they accidentally wind up in 1824 Vienna, Austria where they meet Beethoven.

Well it might be different if somebody else played Marty. I just had Michael J. Fox in mind all the while. But don't tell me there's gonna be a better replacement for Doc Brown!

2 Live Crew "We Want Some Pussy"

http://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/bttf/images/0/06/Erasedfromexistance.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/300?cb=20070614134919

"you made me realise"

just the "holocaust" section

i change my answer

if johnny b good was a hit the song we choose must also be a hit

so i'm going to say he performs a miley cyrus track and starts twerking in a bikini

sorry michael

Remember: the song he starts with is soon to be a hit, symbolizing a revolutionary new sound, in the period he's visiting. What he transitions into is hip with his generation and totally offensive and inaccessible to his old-timey audience.

Starts with Push it by Salt N Pepa and transitions into I've Seen Footage by Death Grips? Or are those too similar?

there's nothing he can do with a fucking guitar, that's for damn sure. i suggest he introduce his good friend hatsune miku.

i would modify that and say biff is on stage and forces him to dance and sing push it

kind of like how he makes him dance in part 3 by shooting his feet and marty starts to moonwalk

beastie boys - fight for your right

"Then tell me futureboy - who's the President of the United States in 2017?"

well, looking at the biggest hits from 1987 et 1988, I don't see anything that he could play to them shortly before it hits that would be a shock...
but "Pump up the volume" seems a good answer. Or maybe some new jack swing ?

or "Straight outta compton" released in 88.

Voodoo Ray? A bit late maybe, having been released in 89.

Though recorded June 88.

actually, in the movie, he plays jonnhy b good 3 years before it's released.
so we're looking for something from 1990 !

snap : the powa !

Killer - Adamski

91, but whatevs.

I'm not sure some of these would be especially out-there to people who were used to some of the more epic synthpop of the mid-80s. Like at this stage he'd be playing some house music and people would be into it but they really wouldn't be expecting a veer into, say, 'Original Nuttah' by Shy FX. Or any jungle really.

Actually that's probably the metal guitar solo bit rather than the Chuck Berry bit.

oh I've got one : "Smells like teen spirit" ! "91, the year punk broke" !
for mainstream kids from 87, that would be a big wtf, I guess.
and exactly like in the movie, I could see the actor smashing everything at the end of the performance in front of the audience in awe and struck by feedback.
on the other hand, that wouldn't sound much like the future in a "this will change everything" way...