The obsolescence of "oldies" radio.

[The Black Guardian]

When you consider I do not watch "new" reruns (the "newest" are the syndicated runs of Monk, Psych, and Burn Notice), MeTV and AntennaTV make up the majority of my viewing.

[pariah-1972]

Yeah, I remember the time, a dozen years back, "oldies" radio meant Supremes' "Baby Love", Four Tops' "I Can't Help Myself (Sugarpie, Honeybunch)", Shelley Fabare's "Johnny Angel", The Angels' "My Boyfriend's Back", Ronettes' "Be My Baby", Four Seasons' "Sherry", and Beach Boys' "I Get Around".

Not so long ago, not would be uncommon today to hear on my local oldies station Van McCoy's "Do The Hustle", Commodores' "Brick House", Blondie's "Call Me", Quarterflash's "Harden My Heart", Huey Lewis and the News' "If This Is It", and Bruce Springsteen's "Hungry Heart".

They need an oldies radio that plays the original oldies not stuff that i have already heard a thousand times growing up.

[Mormel]

And now 11 years ago was the White Stripes "White Blood Cells", the Strokes "This Is It", Daft Punk's "Discovery", Jay-Z's "The Blueprint"... Nostalgia for that era wouldn't surprise me at all.

20 years from now, folk in their forties will look back on 2000-2009 and say: 'Back then, music was much better than today's crap, when we had QotSA, Foo Fighters, Arctic Monkeys, M.I.A., Robin Thicke, Winehouse'... and conveniently forget to mention all the Ke$has and Soldier Boys that dominated the airwaves.

[Buried Alien]

20 years from now, folk in their forties will look back on 2000-2009 and say: 'Back then, music was much better than today's crap, when we had QotSA, Foo Fighters, Arctic Monkeys, M.I.A., Robin Thicke, Winehouse'... and conveniently forget to mention all the Ke$has and Soldier Boys that dominated the airwaves.

Maybe not, for two reasons:

1. There really is something of a quality gap in the best pop music today versus the best pop music in, say, the 1960s...at least among the stuff that gets widespread publicity and distribution and, in retrospect, becomes culturally representative of its historical era.

2. I'm not convinced that young people of this generation are as passionate about pop music in general as were their forbears. On the whole, I don't think young people today invest as much of their passion and interest in pop music as did the youth of the 1950s-1980s era did.

Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)

[J. Robb]

2. I'm not convinced that young people of this generation are as passionate about pop music in general as were their forbears. On the whole, I don't think young people today invest as much of their passion and interest in pop music as did the youth of the 1950s-1980s era did.

I disagree with both points, but especially this one: next time you're out, check how many young people have headphones on, or one earbud in if they need to hear. (And not so young, for that matter...)

[The Black Guardian]

I disagree with both points, but especially this one: next time you're out, check how many young people have headphones on, or one earbud in if they need to hear. (And not so young, for that matter...)

I'm not sure that really determines or signifies passion. Also key is "pop music." I think many have left pop for other styles, which are now easier to access thanks to the internet.

[MadMikeyD]

20 years from now, folk in their forties will look back on 2000-2009 and say: 'Back then, music was much better than today's crap, when we had QotSA, Foo Fighters, Arctic Monkeys, M.I.A., Robin Thicke, Winehouse'... and conveniently forget to mention all the Ke$has and Soldier Boys that dominated the airwaves.

I also disagree with this. My 18 year old, who walks around absolutely everywhere with music playing on his iPad, will freely admit that most of the music of his generation is crap (unless it's "dub-step," which apparently makes it the greatest thing ever). Of course, it dosn't stop him from listening to the same 15 songs over and over, and over, and over again. However, when he does "discover" an artist in my CD collection (i.e. Beatles, Beach Boys, CCR, Roy Orbison, Johnny Cash, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Huey Lewis), he will add them to his iTunes and remark how much better music used to be. Classic music is classic for a reason. Of course, once people are no longer exposed to it, that will make room for the crap to become "classic." So, in the end, maybe you are right. I really hope not.

[Mormel]

I also disagree with this. My 18 year old, who walks around absolutely everywhere with music playing on his iPad, will freely admit that most of the music of his generation is crap (unless it's "dub-step," which apparently makes it the greatest thing ever). Of course, it dosn't stop him from listening to the same 15 songs over and over, and over, and over again. However, when he does "discover" an artist in my CD collection (i.e. Beatles, Beach Boys, CCR, Roy Orbison, Johnny Cash, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Huey Lewis), he will add them to his iTunes and remark how much better music used to be. Classic music is classic for a reason. Of course, once people are no longer exposed to it, that will make room for the crap to become "classic." So, in the end, maybe you are right. I really hope not.

I was thinking more along the lines of the previous decade and the current one -though still in its infancy-, containing plenty of fine musicians who have produced what will eventually become classics, or already are.

Preferring older pop to current mainstream music doesn't appear to be the rule among today's youth. I see them listening to current stuff all the time, whether it's mainstream or alternative. Dubstep is honestly a highly polarising genre; people seem to be either smitten with it or horrified.

However, there was this guy, a coworker of mine, who was only 20 years old, yet also listened to CCR, Bee Gees, older 60s and 70s stuff, aside from current music. It was refreshing.

[Ed Cunard]

My sad panda moment came when the song that was #1 on the Billboard charts when I was born ("My Sharona," by the Knack) came on the oldies station I was listening to as I was driving.

There really is something of a quality gap in the best pop music today versus the best pop music in, say, the 1960s...at least among the stuff that gets widespread publicity and distribution and, in retrospect, becomes culturally representative of its historical era.

I emphatically must disagree with this, Ken. For every one of these:



someone can counter with:



There's been a lot of crappy stuff in all eras. Much of it has been popular. "I'm Henry the Eighth I am, Henry the Eighth I am, I am."

...

All that said, I do wish that oldies stations would remain '50s, '60s, and '70s based. I miss hearing that, and have let my satellite radio subscription lapse from lack of use.

[J. Robb]

I also disagree with this. My 18 year old, who walks around absolutely everywhere with music playing on his iPad, will freely admit that most of the music of his generation is crap (unless it's "dub-step," which apparently makes it the greatest thing ever).

Most of the music from every generation is crap. The difference is we hear all of today's popular music, but only the best of past generations.

That and teenagers just love to complain about how much their lives suck.

[Chiasm]

My sad panda moment came when the song that was #1 on the Billboard charts when I was born ("My Sharona," by the Knack) came on the oldies station I was listening to as I was driving.

I see your sad panda moment and raise it with the moment I heard my favorite song of all time, Black by Pearl Jam, which I first heard in college being played recently on an a classic rock station. Seems like the 90's were just a few years ago.

[jessecuster3]

All that said, I do wish that oldies stations would remain '50s, '60s, and '70s based. I miss hearing that, and have let my satellite radio subscription lapse from lack of use.

They are creeping into the 80s... Billy Joel, Bruce Springsteen, Hall and Oates, etc.

[David Walton]

I think we have an oldies station that still plays 50s, 60s, and 70s music.

The "Lite" and "Mix" stations play 80s, 90s and today.

The "Edge" plays alternative music, so pretty much from the 90s on.

And "Kiss" goes with mostly contemporary stuff.

The station that's now known as "Mix" was "Magic" when I was a kid, and my Dad loved their 70s Saturday night.