The Best Gambling Songs Ever Assembled
In a world of entertainment, the soundtrack matters. Music has the ability to trigger instant memories. A few bars of a track can take us back to a particular moment or long-forgotten summer. Sometimes the music that is mentally associated with a memory is because we were driving somewhere, and it came on the radio. Other times it is because it was a favorite track you and your friends partied to. Or maybe, the backdrop of a series of nights out and good times had. An intro or chorus can bring the whole experience back.
Gambling stories have been sung out across the generations, and here is a list of some of the best of them. While the titles suggest the song is solely about one thing, on closer inspection, the lyrics are often telling more than one story.
The Gambler
In 1978 Kenny Rogers’ “The Gambler” was the song that saw the silver-haired crooner cross over from a country audience to broader success in the pop charts. It is possibly the best-known song about betting and gambling etiquette. Whether playing in a backroom bar, at one of the best live casinos online, or with a group of friends in a private house, the gambling man’s words still ring true.
“You’ve got to know when to hold ’em
Know when to fold ’em
Know when to walk away
And know when to run
You never count your money
When you’re sittin’ at the table
There’ll be time enough for countin’
When the dealin’s done”
The song tells the story of a man encountering a gambler on a train. As with most universal wisdom, the implication is that the advice rings true at cards and in love.
The Winner Takes It All
The title of this Abba hit is another song with lyrics about love and gambling being intertwined. Everyone knows that there are no prizes for coming second at the gambling tables. Therefore, The Winner Takes it All could be regarded as a gambler’s anthem and what everyone is hoping to achieve.
“I’ve played all my cards
And that’s what you’ve done too
Nothing more to say
No more ace to play”
Truth be told, the song is about a marital break-up, but it has many gambling references.
Luck Be a Lady
Frank Sinatra’s ultimate gambling crooner, Luck Be A Lady, comes from the film and musical Guys and Dolls. In the show, he played the part of inveterate gambler Nathan Detroit. Sinatra was a gambler in real life and is forever associated with Vegas. This, too, is a song about more than just luck in the game. For Detroit, the game was Craps, but he is looking for luck in life and love as well.
Viva Las Vegas
Elvis Presley’s Viva Las Vegas is a homage to Sin City, pure and simple. He eulogizes about every aspect, from pretty girls to neon flashing lights and one-armed bandits. He also calls on Lady Luck to be at his side on his night out.
“I’m gonna give it ev’rything I’ve got
Lady luck please let the dice stay hot
Let me shoot a seven with ev’ry shot, ah
Viva Las Vegas, Viva Las Vegas.”
He was 28 when he starred in the film of the same title, but this song remained a popular part of his repertoire throughout his career.
Ace of Spades
Motorhead’s Lemme is said to love one-armed bandits, and the British rock band crammed as many gambling metaphors into this track as they possibly could. Ace of Spades extols the pleasure of playing rather than the winning.
“The pleasure is to play
Makes no difference what you say
I don’t share your greed
The only card I need
Is the Ace of Spades
The Ace of Spades.”
Motorhead say they had no idea the track would be their most popular. Instead, they claim they just wanted to cram as many gambling clichés into one song as possible.
Poker Face
Lady Gaga’s Poker Face is one of the best-selling singles of all time and has sold over 14 million copies worldwide. It won the singer her first Grammy and was nominated for song of the year. That is not a bad track record for a song that she says is about her bi-sexuality. She also told the UK’s Daily Star,
“I gamble, but I’ve also dated a lot of guys who are really into sex and booze and gambling, so I wanted to write a record that my boyfriends would like too.”
Waking Up in Vegas
An old saying, “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas,” is the theme of Katy Perry’s Waking Up In Vegas. A young, underage couple get drunk, blow all their money and have a roadside wedding. Perry’s song charted worldwide and was officially released in the US in 2009. Billboard declared it her most radio-friendly song to date, and it was iTunes’ 33rd most downloaded track that year.
The lyrics of the song are Vegas all over and even pay tribute to Viva Las Vegas’s star.
“Why are these lights so bright
Oh, did we get hitched last night, dressed up like Elvis,
Why, am I wearing your class ring?
Don’t call your mother
Cause now we’re partners in crime.”
So as with most of the other featured songs, love, sex, and gambling are closely intertwined.
