You could probably argue that, at least when it was actually going on, the '80s was almost guaranteed to have anyone born from, like 1958 to 1983 who liked at least a few songs, experiences, movies, etc (of course, it would be a different thing for the 30 year old adult experiences of nightclubbing versus that of little kids who were more into TMNT, but it's still somewhat of a common bond nonetheless).

To go even further than that, alot of people who were barely or not at all even born in the '80s dig it (i.e. there's alot of 1989 and 1990ers on this board), and it even had a few "vague fans" as old as 40 or 45 at the time.

Do you think this is because of the "cool" factor they have in the sense that it was the first decade that introduced (on a mass scale anyway), stuff like MTV, video games and PCs? Even though at the time, it started to make the '50s 60s, and even '70s look ancient and dated.

You could probably argue that, at least when it was actually going on, the '80s was almost guaranteed to have anyone born from, like 1958 to 1983 who liked at least a few songs, experiences, movies, etc (of course, it would be a different thing for the 30 year old adult experiences of nightclubbing versus that of little kids who were more into TMNT, but it's still somewhat of a common bond nonetheless).

To go even further than that, alot of people who were barely or not at all even born in the '80s dig it (i.e. there's alot of 1989 and 1990ers on this board), and it even had a few "vague fans" as old as 40 or 45 at the time.

Do you think this is because of the "cool" factor they have in the sense that it was the first decade that introduced (on a mass scale anyway), stuff like MTV, video games and PCs? Even though at the time, it started to make the '50s 60s, and even '70s look ancient and dated.


Yeah, I think that's true. For example, my parents, both 1955ers, really liked the first half of the '80s at the time they were going on. Part of it is that the new wave pop songs by say, Boy George or the Human League, are so universally likeable, and that for my parents, they were reminiscent of the straightforward pop they grew up with in the '60s. The '80s was in an indirect way also a boomer decade, because besides the new wave/hair metal "Gen X" youth culture, there was the "yuppie" boomer culture of "yuppification", upscaling, designer electronics, etc. Do you agree that the decade was sort of split between the "Gen X" and "boomer" culture, defining the '80s?

Yeah my parents were in their 30s in the '80s and they're quite nostalgic for them actually.

Yeah, I think that's true. For example, my parents, both 1955ers, really liked the first half of the '80s at the time they were going on. Part of it is that the new wave pop songs by say, Boy George or the Human League, are so universally likeable, and that for my parents, they were reminiscent of the straightforward pop they grew up with in the '60s. The '80s was in an indirect way also a boomer decade, because besides the new wave/hair metal "Gen X" youth culture, there was the "yuppie" boomer culture of "yuppification", upscaling, designer electronics, etc. Do you agree that the decade was sort of split between the "Gen X" and "boomer" culture, defining the '80s?


I'd say so - the irony is, alot of what's looked on as the "coolest/flashiest/most '80s" stuff was actually marketed more towards the 30+ crowd of yuppies, people who could actually tend to afford that stuff (perfect example: the stuff showcased on Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous hosted by Robin Leech).

As a result, I think alot of the less "youth centered/loud" music (such as hair metal) was bound to appeal to a 30, even 40 year old almost as much as a 14 or 15 year old. Heck, I'll bet some of it even had MORE of an older audience at the time (Kenny Loggins, Air Supply, Toto, Christopher Cross).

Then again, the Top 40 pop stuff from Culture Club, MJ, Madonna, Phil Collins, Men at Work and Springsteen was also easier for them to get into. My mom is a 1954er and liked stuff more like that when I was growing up (still does too, to a lesser extent).

I'd say so - the irony is, alot of what's looked on as the "coolest/flashiest/most '80s" stuff was actually marketed more towards the 30+ crowd of yuppies, people who could actually tend to afford that stuff (perfect example: the stuff showcased on Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous hosted by Robin Leech).

As a result, I think alot of the less "youth centered/loud" music (such as hair metal) was bound to appeal to a 30, even 40 year old almost as much as a 14 or 15 year old. Heck, I'll bet some of it even had MORE of an older audience at the time (Kenny Loggins, Air Supply, Toto, Christopher Cross).

Then again, the Top 40 pop stuff from Culture Club, MJ, Madonna, Phil Collins, Men at Work and Springsteen was also easier for them to get into. My mom is a 1954er and liked stuff more like that when I was growing up (still does too, to a lesser extent).


I think there were definitely certain '80s bands that were driven totally by Gen X appeal, though-stuff like OMD, Tears for Fears, The Smiths, Depeche Mode that never attained a big boomer audience as artists such as Madonna, whose work appealed to the yuppie boomers almost as much as it did to the 15 year old Madonna clones born in the late '60s in 1984 and 1985. The boomers in terms of pop culture died as the single pop cultural force around late 1979 in alot of ways, but in terms of numbers, they're so much greater than the "baby busters" who were '80s teens that they continued to influence pop culture, maybe, to 1988 or so.

There's still that division in the view of the '80s-between Gen Xers romancing about new wave and boys wearing makeup and the John Hughes movies, and the ridiculous excess of yuppie boomer culture, which Gen Xers were alienated from and didn't feel much of the effect of, their parents being older than the twentysomething and thirtysomething yuppies of the time.

I think there were definitely certain '80s bands that were driven totally by Gen X appeal, though-stuff like OMD, Tears for Fears, The Smiths, Depeche Mode that never attained a big boomer audience as artists such as Madonna, whose work appealed to the yuppie boomers almost as much as it did to the 15 year old Madonna clones born in the late '60s in 1984 and 1985. The boomers in terms of pop culture died as the single pop cultural force around late 1979 in alot of ways, but in terms of numbers, they're so much greater than the "baby busters" who were '80s teens that they continued to influence pop culture, maybe, to 1988 or so.

There's still that division in the view of the '80s-between Gen Xers romancing about new wave and boys wearing makeup and the John Hughes movies, and the ridiculous excess of yuppie boomer culture, which Gen Xers were alienated from and didn't feel much of the effect of, their parents being older than the twentysomething and thirtysomething yuppies of the time.


Yeah, would you say the more "artsy/creative" new wave (i.e. The Cure, Smiths) was more exclusively something a 15 year old 1968er would've listened to in 1983? Just because it wasn't quite as accessible to some people as, say "Do You Really Wanna Hurt Me" or Hall and Oates (another more "older fan" '80s band)?

It does seem like "Baby Boomer stuff" stopped being cool around 1981 too (the 1946ers were 35 by that time), although I think 1939-44 born people are borderline boomers, and even could have some very vague '80s likings at the time.

Yeah, would you say the more "artsy/creative" new wave (i.e. The Cure, Smiths) was more exclusively something a 15 year old 1968er would've listened to in 1983? Just because it wasn't quite as accessible to some people as, say "Do You Really Wanna Hurt Me" or Hall and Oates (another more "older fan" '80s band)?

It does seem like "Baby Boomer stuff" stopped being cool around 1981 too (the 1946ers were 35 by that time), although I think 1939-44 born people are borderline boomers, and even could have some very vague '80s likings at the time.


Yeah, that seems to be exclusively Gen X. For example, I've "bonded" with some teachers at my school born about 1967-1973, and bands like the Smiths, Depeche Mode, the Cure, were very widely liked among them, but to your average boomer, they were probably unknown. Though even for boomer accessible bands like the Thompson Twins, true fandom was largely confined to Gen Xers, it seems.

Yeah, that seems to be exclusively Gen X. For example, I've "bonded" with some teachers at my school born about 1967-1973, and bands like the Smiths, Depeche Mode, the Cure, were very widely liked among them, but to your average boomer, they were probably unknown. Though even for boomer accessible bands like the Thompson Twins, true fandom was largely confined to Gen Xers, it seems.


Yeah. A 1950er might be familiar with "Hold Me Now" once they heard it on the radio, but a 1970er is the one more likely to go "Hey dude, that guy looks like he's from The Thompson Twins" or something. The name itself wouldn't be too familar to Boomers.

Yeah. A 1950er might be familiar with "Hold Me Now" once they heard it on the radio, but a 1970er is the one more likely to go "Hey dude, that guy looks like he's from The Thompson Twins" or something. The name itself wouldn't be too familar to Boomers.


Yeah. For example, last night I was playing "Always Something There To Remind Me", and my mom knew the song, but not that it was by the Thompson Twins. What do you think of what I said about the alienation between the boomer and X cultures?

Yeah. For example, last night I was playing "Always Something There To Remind Me", and my mom knew the song, but not that it was by the Thompson Twins. What do you think of what I said about the alienation between the boomer and X cultures?


I can't disagree - it seems that, at times the "quarreling" nature between Boomers and Xers is just as extreme, if not more so than '80s teens versus '90s teens. Like the Gen Xers were jealous of the Boomers dominating everything in the workforce and music industry. Although there is some overlap, say with 1958-65 born people who could be "bridge gappers" the way, let's say someone my age is with stereotypical Xers and Yers.

I can't disagree - it seems that, at times the "quarreling" nature between Boomers and Xers is just as extreme, if not more so than '80s teens versus '90s teens. Like the Gen Xers were jealous of the Boomers dominating everything in the workforce and music industry. Although there is some overlap, say with 1958-65 born people who could be "bridge gappers" the way, let's say someone my age is with stereotypical Xers and Yers.


Yeah, somebody about your age, an early Gen Yer or late Gen Xer (born like 1976-1983), is much more adept at "bridging the gap" between some ultimate Gen Yer born in 1988 and some ultimate Gen Xer born in 1968. There's definitely alot of boomer hate from the brat pack. I think the people born after 1972 feel it less, because they're practically too young to remember the boomer era unless they have a really good memory, and they were the right age for '60s nostalgia. I think it's a mix of jealousy and genuine dislike/alienation, also seeing the boomers as hypocrites for giving up the '60s ideals to become yuppies in the '80s and pulling society down the toilet.

Yeah, somebody about your age, an early Gen Yer or late Gen Xer (born like 1976-1983), is much more adept at "bridging the gap" between some ultimate Gen Yer born in 1988 and some ultimate Gen Xer born in 1968. There's definitely alot of boomer hate from the brat pack. I think the people born after 1972 feel it less, because they're practically too young to remember the boomer era unless they have a really good memory, and they were the right age for '60s nostalgia. I think it's a mix of jealousy and genuine dislike/alienation, also seeing the boomers as hypocrites for giving up the '60s ideals to become yuppies in the '80s and pulling society down the toilet.


I've often thought about this too, it's often put that "Hippies became Yuppies" in the '80s, which is the ultimate paradox if you think about it. There were some that held onto the '60s spirit, but they were usually portrayed as grossly out of touch and silly, such as Alex Keaton's parents on Family Ties.

Yeah, a 1973+ person would probably almost think their slightly older peers were silly for dissing the Boomers so much (as in "What's the big deal?"). I wonder if that's partly why, when you get to the typical 1973er, you start to encounter people who like the '90s more often.

BTW I've always wanted to really test my theory about being a bridge gapper. Take a totally stereotypical Brat Packer born in 1967 or 1969 and a stereotypical Gen Yer born around 1988 who hate each other, put them in the same room, and I'll see if I can make them get along. :D

I've often thought about this too, it's often put that "Hippies became Yuppies" in the '80s, which is the ultimate paradox if you think about it. There were some that held onto the '60s spirit, but they were usually portrayed as grossly out of touch and silly, such as Alex Keaton's parents on Family Ties.

Yeah, a 1973+ person would probably almost think their slightly older peers were silly for dissing the Boomers so much (as in "What's the big deal?"). I wonder if that's partly why, when you get to the typical 1973er, you start to encounter people who like the '90s more often.

BTW I've always wanted to really test my theory about being a bridge gapper. Take a totally stereotypical Brat Packer born in 1967 or 1969 and a stereotypical Gen Yer born around 1988 who hate each other, put them in the same room, and I'll see if I can make them get along. :D


However, there could be some similarities there, like the '80s nostalgia (love of new wave and John Hughes movies and '80s fashion, for example.) Though not much else. Alot of people became "bobos"...upper middle-class professionals who say shopped organic and vote Democrat.