Elton John, ‘Rocket Man’ vs. Genesis, ‘Watcher of the Skies': Rock Star Wars

Two '70s costumed rockers with space-age daydreams square off against each other in the first round of our Rock Star Wars battle.

To try and fill our days between now and the new Star Wars: The Force Awakens movie, we’ve tracked down 32 space-themed classic rock songs and paired them off against each other in 16 first-round battles. The field will be halved every week based on your votes, until only the spaciest song in rock history remains standing.

Like David Bowie's "Space Oddity," Elton John's "Rocket Man" reminds listeners that, beyond the cool gear, space travel is one lonely gig. But where Bowie's Major Tom gets stranded somewhere in outer space, John's narrator merely recounts how dreadfully boring being an astronaut can be ("It's just my job five days a week"). The song was included on 1972's Honky Chateau, and made it to the Top 10 as a single.

Genesis' "Watcher of the Skies" was also released in 1972 and also issued as a single, but it needed to be trimmed from its seven-minute length originally found on the Foxtrot album. The track not only opened the band's breakthrough album, it also served as the first song in its set lists for many years. And like "Rocket Man," isolation is a big theme here, though it's more about a space alien's perception of Earth.

So which of these songs will emerge victorious from this round? It’s your choice. You can listen to both tracks below, and vote once per hour in each of the this round's Rock Star Wars battles until polls close on Nov. 23 at 11:59PM ET. Your choice for our Rock Star Wars champion will be revealed on Dec. 22, 2015.

Listen to Elton John's 'Rocket Man'

Listen to Genesis' 'Watcher of the Skies'

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