I didn't start listening to the radio on my own until '93/94ish, like to where I started being aware of classifications. Back then I think they played Elvis and some '50s music on the Oldies stations...sadly I think that's totally gone now. Today most '60s music seems to have faded away too, except for the most popular stuff.

My question is, do you think this trend will keep up? I think the Beatles and early classic rock will have more longevityl (even if it becomes more rare later on) just because they were so huge. Even the adult contemporary stations still regularly play lots of common oldies like "My Girl". The mid-late '60s were so changeful and kinda jumpstarted "modern" music, so I think it'll hold on to some extent.

To take it back the other way - for people who listened to the radio in the '80s, did they play Sinatra, jazz or any other really old music from the 1940s on oldies stations?

  There are more niche-type radio stations than ever - metal, '80s/'90s, country, classic rock &etc.  I don't see the old stuff going away anytime soon because I don't think people who like Lil Wayne and Britney Spears listen to the radio... :D

 

   There are more niche-type radio stations than ever - metal, '80s/'90s, country, classic rock &etc.  I don't see the old stuff going away anytime soon because I don't think people who like Lil Wayne and Britney Spears listen to the radio... :D

  


The first part I agree with, the second part I'm like huh? ;) That's a really big generalization, especially since some people (like me) have really varied taste in music.

You're probably right when it comes to stuff like Satellite radio and internet stations, but I guess I was talking more about regular terrestrial radio. It's weird, but when I think about it, the general formula alot of stations do isn't really much different than they did in like 1994! ;)

Like those today's hits and yesterday's favorites stations said they played "The greatest hits of the '80s, 90s and today" - and they STILL do now! There was a bigger variety and certain songs have dropped off the playlists now, but it's generally the same thing (plus newer songs, of course). Loads of songs from the early '80s are still played on those stations along modern songs, like...

Our Lips are Sealed - the Go-gos
most Michael Jackson songs, especially "Billie Jean"
Every Breath You Take (and other Police songs)
Another One Bites the Dust - Queen
Take on Me
The Boys of Summer - Don Henley
I Love Rock and Roll
Little Red Corvette - Prince
Down Under - Men at Work
Whats Love Got to do with it - Tina Turner
Missing You - John Waite
Dont You Want Me - Human League

Point being, I think most music starting with the Beatles and late '60s has such longevity that I don't see it ever fully going away since it's still influential and new eras of kids seem to get into it all the time. It'll probably get a bit less frequent, but I don't think it'll ever go away totally. Elvis was influential too, but it wasn't quite the same way, so I guess I can see why '50s music dropped off the radar several years ago.

The first part I agree with, the second part I'm like huh? ;) That's a really big generalization, especially since some people (like me) have really varied taste in music.


   Sorry so late...

   I'm beginning to grow fond of really big generalizations because most of the time I haven't the slightest idea what I'm talking about...

   The generalization meant that Clear Channel has f**ked-up radio with the "playlist".  The playlist takes what is popular and plays it 'till the cows come home as opposed to something Johnny Fever may want to throw on that has not been heard much, daring music lovers to turn the dial when certain songs come on.  Clear Channel conducts surveys to guage what type of music the listeners want to hear and are afraid of taking risks in the fear of losing listeners.  They play the songs that are immediately attractive to listener's ears instead of something that takes time to get used to.  They're more worried about bringing in money then they are about the actual music that they play...


You're probably right when it comes to stuff like Satellite radio and internet stations, but I guess I was talking more about regular terrestrial radio. It's weird, but when I think about it, the general formula alot of stations do isn't really much different than they did in like 1994! ;)

Like those today's hits and yesterday's favorites stations said they played "The greatest hits of the '80s, 90s and today" - and they STILL do now! There was a bigger variety and certain songs have dropped off the playlists now, but it's generally the same thing (plus newer songs, of course). Loads of songs from the early '80s are still played on those stations along modern songs, like...

Our Lips are Sealed - the Go-gos
most Michael Jackson songs, especially "Billie Jean"
Every Breath You Take (and other Police songs)
Another One Bites the Dust - Queen
Take on Me
The Boys of Summer - Don Henley
I Love Rock and Roll
Little Red Corvette - Prince
Down Under - Men at Work
Whats Love Got to do with it - Tina Turner
Missing You - John Waite
Dont You Want Me - Human League

Point being, I think most music starting with the Beatles and late '60s has such longevity that I don't see it ever fully going away since it's still influential and new eras of kids seem to get into it all the time. It'll probably get a bit less frequent, but I don't think it'll ever go away totally. Elvis was influential too, but it wasn't quite the same way, so I guess I can see why '50s music dropped off the radar several years ago.


   Satellite and internet radio (ala Ren Ret) are a solution.  The lack of variety in music is causing people to resort to XM radio and the internet in order to hear a wider selection.  XM radio was created in large part due to the fact that local radio stations were being bought out and the format of those stations changed...

   Another broad, unfair generalization is that people don't care about music anymore, anyway, they only want a soundtrack to go shopping to or as an added dazzling effect on their myspace page.  Phooey.  Pop music has become strictly a lifestyle accessory...

I didn't start listening to the radio on my own until '93/94ish, like to where I started being aware of classifications. Back then I think they played Elvis and some '50s music on the Oldies stations...sadly I think that's totally gone now. Today most '60s music seems to have faded away too, except for the most popular stuff.

That's about when I began listening to music on the radio regularly too. Around that time, the local oldies station in Los Angeles (KRTH-fm) was mostly playing pop music from the 1950s and 1960s...and they didn't even start incorporating 70s stuff until 1998 or 1999. And in recent years, I think they pretty much abandoned much of the pre-1964 stuff; I think it's sad that they did that. Where are you gonna find some of that music on the radio anymore? ???


My question is, do you think this trend will keep up? I think the Beatles and early classic rock will have more longevityl (even if it becomes more rare later on) just because they were so huge. Even the adult contemporary stations still regularly play lots of common oldies like "My Girl". The mid-late '60s were so changeful and kinda jumpstarted "modern" music, so I think it'll hold on to some extent.

I notice that too. I think they oughtta preserve it. Even though some of us prefer the more modern stuff, there are others of us out there who like hearing the older stuff. I, for one, actually enjoy it.




To take it back the other way - for people who listened to the radio in the '80s, did they play Sinatra, jazz or any other really old music from the 1940s on oldies stations?

I didn't much listen to the radio back then, except maybe in 1989, and all I know is that "oldies" generally referred to any music from as late as the 60's. Mostly from the rock era (which began in the 1950s), though. Around that time (and into the early 90s), I know there were some "big band/standards" stations that played pre-1950s music...but I think those stations might've been phased out too.

To take it back the other way - for people who listened to the radio in the '80s, did they play Sinatra, jazz or any other really old music from the 1940s on oldies stations?


I listened to oldies radio a ton in the early 80's - when major oldies stations were just getting popular.  To answer your question, no, 40's and jazz were not played on oldies stations, at least the ones I listened to.  Oldies stations majored on 60's and 50's pop music during the 80's, with a tiny sprinkling of 70's (since the 70's wasn't that far gone).  Compared to today, the playlists of 60's and 50's rock was much deeper than it is now.  For instance, how often do folks hear Connie Francis or Eddie Cochran these days on oldies?  Fats Domino?  Sure, Elvis and the Beatles and the Supremes still get oldies airplay, but less of the other stuff.  I guess that's the result of focusing on fewer years.  Now, during the 90's, 'consultants' were brought in to 'fix' it and ended up reducing the playlists.  Oldies was still mostly 50's/60's but with a smaller playlist, there was a ton of repetition.  :P  Thus, beginning to include 70's music as 'oldies' was a welcome change.  Although I don't know about your oldies station, but it took ours WAY too long for that to happen.

At that time (80's), there were other, different radio outlets where you could hear older music (pre-rock).  It just was getting less popular at that point, and eventually most of those stations folded.