Horses always played an important factor in human lives, which is why many artists were inspired by these majestic beasts and decided to make a song. 

Horses also show great symbolism like freedom, travel, majesty, spirit, endurance, valor, and beauty. This makes these creatures perfect for referring to a certain situation in songs. Horses also played an important part in mythology and were man’s most loyal companion in battles. 
Horses are also one of the biggest creatures with a lot of power. With that said, it is common to find horse-inspired songs in heavy metal. 
With that said, let’s highlight some of the songs that were inspired by horses.

Spirit Horse of the Cherokee – Manowar

Manowar is a heavy metal band from New York that is formed in 1980. Their song lyrics are based on mythology and fantasy and they have many popular songs with their loud and emphatic sound. In fact, in 1984 the band entered the Guinness Book of World Records for delivering the loudest performance at a concert.

Their song Spirit Horse of the Cherokee was released in 1992 in their album The Triumph of Steel. The song highlights the Spirit Horse which symbolizes a strong emotional state of a man living in tough times.

Iron Horse – Motorhead 

Motorhead is a heavy metal and rock band from London, England that was active for more than 40 years. The band was formed by Lemmy who is the lead vocals and bass, Larry – guitar, and Lucas Fox – Drums.

Motorhead was always considered as the new wave of British heavy metal.  Lemmy is also the leading songwriter and creator of songs like Iron Horse. The song was originally released in 1977. The iconic iron horse refers to the motorbike that they love to ride. They also use the symbolism of a horse to reference the freedom that they feel when they are on their motorbike. It’s a bit similar to the feeling a horse jockey competing in the Kentucky Derby odds feels (read more about that https://www.twinspires.com/kentuckyderby/odds). Obviously, motorbikes play an important part in the life of metalheads and Iron Horse describes the relationship they have with their beloved two-wheeled vehicles.

Dark Horse – The Ghost Inside

The Ghost Inside is a popular metal band coming from Los Angeles, California. Although this band is present for around 15 years, they have been under a different name in the past. They finally transformed from A Dying Dream to The Ghost Inside.

The band is constructed with five members, and they have some decent songs that you should hear. One of which is the Dark Horse song which references the fighting spirit of a man and compares to a dark horse climbing to the top.

It is quite an inspirational song that could give you the push to pursue new challenges. They also use the Dark Horse comparison for its dedication and willingness and connect that with its emotion about life and chasing his dreams.

Guns N’ Roses – Dead Horse

This is a song by a rock and heavy metal band Guns N’ Roses and appears on their Use Your Illusion I album back in 1991. This composition stands out with its acoustic selection and features a guitar riff that is written by lead vocalist Axl Rose. Additionally, it features an iconic sound of a nutcracker and a heavier guitar section.

This is a rather heavy song on the lyrics that highlight the utter pointlessness of life compared to death. They don’t compare this to depression, rather they compare to life going on its own way. This song is about how he finally realized that he is a nihilist, and speaks about how he is smiling with all the wrongs in the world.

A Horse Called Golgotha - Baroness

Baroness is an American heavy metal band from Savannah Georgia. They are present in the music scene for almost 20 years and featured some amazing songs throughout their career. When it comes to the meaning of this song, fans are left without too much clue.
He refers to Eiderdown which is a type of comforter or blanket, and Golgotha which is the hill Christ was crucified. Maybe the connection with the horse is because of the calmness and peacefulness that they can bring to our lives even when everything is going wrong.