| content |
 |
This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. (October 2008) |
 |
This article or section may contain original research or unverified claims. Please improve the article by adding references. See the talk page for details. (October 2008) |
Classic rock was originally conceived as a radio station programming format which evolved from the album oriented rock (AOR) format in the early-1980s. In the United States, this rock music format now features a large and nearly unlimited playlist of songs ranging from the early-1960s through the early-1980s with more emphasis on the earlier hits by artists associated with the loosely-defined "classic rock radio era".citation needed
In common speech, the term also refers to earlier rock bands, often seen as more talented or original than later acts - this definition can be ended at a subjective date, most often between 1975, when rock became more commercialized as arena rock took hold of the scene, the early 1980s, when the blues influence faded away, or 1991, when Nirvana and grunge replaced the hair metal bands.
On some occasions, two eras of classic rock radio are indicated. XM provides a station for "Early Classic Rock" from the sixties-seventies and one for "Late Classic Rock" from the seventies-eighties.
Additionally, a "Deep Classic Rock" station is sometimes offered for lesser classic rock radio hits.
Origins of classic rock radio
The origins of the classic rock radio format can be traced back to The Beatles' groundbreaking album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, which would forever change several courses of the rock and roll format, especially with the slow rise of FM broadcasting even though a majority of people were still listening to AM radio. Since Sgt. Pepper did not spawn any singles, both AM and FM stations began to play select tracks from the album in an attempt to retain listeners. Soon both stations and artists realized that album cuts rather than Top 40-oriented singles could be a major source of radio airplay and artist visibility.citation needed
Taken to the furthest level, this created what would be called progressive rock radio in the late 1960s and 1970s. This format was associated with elements of freeform radio, where disc jockeys controlled what was played. A more commercially-oriented variant called album-oriented rock (AOR), or "album rock", emerged in the mid- and late 1970s. This format concentrated on album cuts as well, but on a more structured, playlist-oriented basis.
AOR would continue to be popular in the 1970s and early 1980s, but by the end of the 1980s, as "albums" had been supplanted by compact discs and as station playlists largely stopped keeping up with developing musical trends (including New Wave music), "album rock" evolved into "classic rock radio" on many of these FM radio stations.
Classic rock radio is similar to oldies radio in that the format is based upon music of the past, hence the playlist and artists featured are relatively stable in comparison to Top 40 or other contemporary formats which are based primarily on current releases. However, various bands and songs will come in and out of style on classic rock radio, regional favorites may be featured in a particular market, and newer recordings by the format's core performers will occasionally be showcased. Additionally, in the process of jockeying for position and listener share in competitive markets, stations will often add songs and artists only marginally associated with the classic rock radio era, and some stations combine the classic rock radio format with other formats, including modern rock in an attempt to increase popularity. The hybrid of classic rock and modern rock radio is also referred to as active rock.citation needed
Key artists and albums
|
|
This section may contain original research or unverified claims. Please improve the article by adding references. See the talk page for details. (August 2008) |
|
|
This article or section may contain poor or irrelevant examples. Articles should only contain pertinent examples. Please improve the article or discuss proposed changes on the talk page. You can the article to add more encyclopaedic text. See Wikipedia's guide to writing better articles for further suggestions. |
The core albums, artists, and songs most often represented in classic rock radio represent a subset of the albums and artists that were actually popular between the mid sixties into the early eighties. On radio, the most enduring classic rock songs and artists have proven to appeal to new generations of listeners as well as older listeners who knew the music when it originally appeared.
The first radio station to play 100% classic rock was WYSP in Philadelphia, when Program Director and midday personality Dick Hungate teamed with legendary industry consultant Lee Abrams in a brainstorming session in January of 1981. Such alternate adjectives as "timeless" and "vintage" also were discussed. Hungate previously had worked at crosstown FM rocker WMMR, so he knew well the local music tastes in putting together the universe of tracks allowed for airplay. In this pre-PC age, a manual song rotation was achieved using color-coded 3x5 index cards.
British hard rock and progressive rock bands make up a central pillar of classic rock artists; significant among these are Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, The Who, Black Sabbath, Yes, Jethro Tull and Queen. Many different songs from these acts are likely to appear on the playlists of classic rock radio stations. Australian hard rock band AC/DC are usually found on classic rock radio stations as well.
American 1970s rock bands such as Aerosmith, Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Eagles, Heart, James Gang, Kansas, Steve Miller Band, Boston, Grateful Dead, Journey, Chicago, ZZ Top, and REO Speedwagon often appear on classic rock stations, as do such solo artists as Neil Young, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Joe Walsh, Bob Seger, and John Mellencamp. Also included is American 1960s rock from acts like Jimi Hendrix, The Beach Boys, Janis Joplin, Jefferson Airplane and The Doors. In many areas, Southern rock acts such as Lynyrd Skynyrd, .38 Special, and The Allman Brothers Band form a significant subset of classic rock playlists as well.
Many other bands may appear occasionally on classic rock stations; however, this presence may be limited to a few familiar songs. For example, while the band Steppenwolf recorded over a dozen studio albums, only three of their songs ("Born to Be Wild", "Magic Carpet Ride" and "The Pusher") are likely to be heard within the classic rock format.
Concept albums indirectly led to the album-rock format and remain a major component of classic rock. Notable are the four Pink Floyd concept albums, including The Wall and Dark Side of the Moon, as well as The Who's two major rock operas: Tommy and Quadrophenia. The Who's 1971 album Who's Next is one of the most often-played classic rock albums of all time. Meat Loaf's Bat out of Hell is another popular concept album as well as David Bowie's The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars.
Artists whose musical output spanned the 1960s and 1970s, including Eric Clapton, The Beatles, Fleetwood Mac and The Rolling Stones form something of a special case: a few songs from these acts (such as "Layla" by Eric Clapton with Derek and the Dominoes, "Revolution" by The Beatles, "Start Me Up" by the Stones and "Go Your Own Way" by Fleetwood Mac) are staples of classic rock radio.
Some classic rock playlists also include some of the hard-rock and heavy metal bands of the 1980s such as Poison, Bon Jovi, Guns N' Roses, Metallica, Def Leppard and Van Halen and new wave bands such as The Police, The Fixx, The Cars, Talking Heads, INXS, and Elvis Costello as classic rock; again, particular songs or musical eras from these acts may be more conducive to the format than others, and nearly every station fine-tunes its playlist by adding or deleting songs and artists to differentiate itself from competing stations. Similarly, more modern material in the same style is seldom included unless it is by a recognized classic rock artist; such music often gravitates to top 40 or adult album alternative stations.
Occasionally, more blues-based artists such as Stevie Ray Vaughan are included in the Classic Rock Genre. This is because many Classic Rock bands and artists are blues based such as Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith, ZZ Top, Eric Clapton and many others.
In Canada, playlists tend to be more diverse, as more Canadian acts that may not be as popular in the United States receive more airplay. Artists such as Kim Mitchell, The Tragically Hip, Bryan Adams, Neil Young and Tom Cochrane are common, as are bands such as Trooper, Rush, The Guess Who, and Bachman Turner Overdrive.
See also
