Meaning rock songs that cannot be (easily) replicated outside of a studio setting.
Bohemian rhapsody
IMHO, the studio version of “More Than A Feeling” by Boston is an absolute masterpiece.
In the early years Boston was essentially Tom Scholz who played pretty much all of the instruments on their demo tape of course with Brad on vocals (RIP). Then they had to go out and hire a band to actually tour with!
I don’t know if it’s my favorite, but A Day in the Life by The Beatles is quite a ride.
How about something from Alan Parsons Project? Though not difficult to replicate the sound outside of a studio, there was always this rumor of them being a “studio only” band, with a zero chance of seeing them live. Of course that wasn’t true, but it is still some kind of urban legend that I always associate with them.
I think “Metal Gods” by Judas Priest is a good example:
Maybe Ringo rents out his fork trays?
I wouldn’t call this a “studio rock” song per se, but this is an amazing fun fact.
