50 Best Rock Songs About Roses
Classic Rock Tracks Featuring Roses
There’s something strange about songs that mention roses. They sound romantic at first, but they rarely stay that way. The petals turn sharp pretty fast. In rock music, a rose isn’t just a flower—it’s bruised hands, messy endings, a promise that wilted before it even had time to bloom. These tracks don’t float on sweet words. They sting a little. You can almost smell the smoke from the match that burned the bouquet.
Some of these tracks never even mention the flower itself, but the feeling is there. That mix of tenderness and danger, soft vocals pressed against heavy riffs, the kind of contrast that makes you think of something once beautiful being held too tightly. Roses have shown up across pop, rock, country, and R&B songs for decades, always tangled in emotion that’s half-love, half-regret. In rock, that messiness fits perfectly—the kind of sound that doesn’t clean itself up for anyone.
There’s heartbreak hiding under distortion, a bit of lust behind the melody, and a streak of rebellion running through every chorus. These songs bloom, wilt, and still manage to smell like trouble. Here are the best rock songs featuring roses.
Top 10 Rose-Themed Rock Songs
1. 'Every Rose Has Its Thorn' by Poison
2. 'Bed of Roses' by Bon Jovi
3. 'New Rose' by The Damned
4. 'Rose Tattoo' by Dropkick Murphys
5. 'Blood and Roses' by The Smithereens
6. 'Black Rose' by Thin Lizzy
7. 'Monarchy of Roses' by Red Hot Chili Peppers
8. 'Rose' by A Perfect Circle
9. 'Rose in December' by Halestorm
10. 'Yankee Rose' by David Lee Roth
Rose Flower Symbolism in Rock Songs #11 to 20
11. 'Ramblin' Rose' by MC5
12. 'Rose of Sharyn' by Killswitch Engage
13. 'Rose of Cimarron' by Poco
14. 'Love Is A Rose' by Linda Ronstadt
15. 'Desert Rose' by Sting
16. 'Black Roses Red' by Alana Grace
17. 'Rose-Coloured Boy' by Paramore
18. 'It Must Have Been the Roses' by Grateful Dead
19. 'Rose Garden' by Nick Jonas & the Administration
20. 'The Last Living Rose' by PJ Harvey
Rock and Related Flower Songs #21 to 30
21. 'Where the Wild Roses Grow' by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds with Kylie Minogue
22. 'Roses' by Silverchair
23. 'Tokyo Rose' by Idle Eyes
24. 'Mother Rose' by Patti Smith
25. 'Bramblerose' by Don Henley
26. 'Wildflower' by The Cult
27. 'Dead Flowers' by The Rolling Stones
28. 'Withered Roses' by Shawn Phillips
29. 'Rose Parade' by Elliott Smith
30. 'Black Orchid' by Blue October
Songs About Roses Themes in Rock Music #31 to 40
31. 'Rose of My Heart' by Johnny Cash
32. 'Black Rose (Roisin Dubh)' by Thin Lizzy
33. 'Wildflowers' by Tom Petty
34. 'The Rose' by The Dubliners and Hothouse Flowers
35. 'In Like a Rose' by Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
36. 'A Rose for Epona' by Eluveitie
37. 'Lilac Wine' by Jeff Buckley
38. 'Rose in the Heather' by Nazareth
39. 'Black Rose' by Volbeat
40. 'Coming Up Roses' by Elliott Smith
More Rock and Rose-Related Songs #41 to 50
41. 'Tulips & Roses' by The Lemon Twigs
42. 'Rose' by The Cult
43. 'Rose Petals' by The Association
44. 'Bleeding The Orchid' by The Smashing Pumpkins
45. 'Rose With the Broken Neck' by Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi
46. 'Last of the English Roses' by Pete Doherty
47. 'Roses In The Hospital' by Manic Street Preachers
48. 'The Briar and the Rose' by Tom Waits
49. 'Run for the Roses' by Jerry Garcia
50. 'Kiss from a Rose' by Seal
© 2025 Carson McQueen
