Eye of the Tiger by Survivor

Is it really possible to hear this song without imagining Sylvester Stallone in boxing shorts? While the band Survivor had success outside of the movies, they’ll forever be associated with this song and “Rocky III.” It was Stallone himself who commissioned the song, after hearing an early Survivor tune on the radio (He liked their earlier hit “Poor Man’s Son” and asked for something like it).

Survivor would re-enter the ring by writing “Burning Heart” for Rocky IV; they also wrote “The Moment of Truth” for another '80s blockbuster, "The Karate Kid." But it all pales beside “Eye of the Tiger,” which was such a quintessential '80s hit that Weird Al Yankovic parodied it. (In his version, an out-of-shape Rocky gives up boxing to open a deli. Try the rye or the kaiser…)

Although he doesn’t sing on “Eye of the Tiger,” the song’s co-writer, Survivor guitarist Jim Peterik, sang lead on the 1970 hit, “Vehicle” by the Ides of March.

“Eye of the Tiger” makes the perfect warmup song: It’s lively, confident and straight-ahead, designed to be one of the first songs you’ll be able to master on Expert. The band crash-ins at the start and middle of the song can knock you a little off-balance—but you already knew when those were coming, right?

Still touring, though many members have bounced in and out of the lineup. Peterik was lately spotted with a reformed Ides of March.