In order to get ready for the next concert, Classic Rock, I have been listening to a lot of the classic and most well known bands that my parents used to play when I was younger such as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Queen and many many more. However, when I was talking with my friends about music, one of them brought up the fact that back when the songs first came out, they weren't necessarily considered "classic" or even "rock" depending on the band but it was called "pop" music instead. They also pointed out how music today that is defined as "pop" really isn't music but rather machines making a series of noises. So is there an actual definition to "classic rock" and "pop" music or are we going to have a genre in the future known as "classic electronic"?
Well, after doing a small amount of research, the short answer is that the quality that makes classic rock “classic” is that it has nostalgic qualities to a majority of listeners old and young. What makes it “rock” is really up to the listener because that can mean so many things depending on what band you liked from the era. However I also believe there could be a lot more to an explanation of the genre. Any thoughts?
I argued with my friend John about this for a while. I maintained that "Classic Rock" just referred to the music which originated and became popular in our parent's generation. He said that there were specific stylistic traits which classic rock possesses, implying that new music with those traits would still be considered classic rock. I don't know if he meant that implication, but it seemed like a pretty obvious inference. Anyway, he later told me that it seemed I was technically right but that I should not be.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I enjoy classic rock a lot, I haven't listened to it analytically enough to determine whether there it can be grouped stylistically as well as temporally. It has the characteristics of rock, obviously, but I don't know whether there are more specific characteristics which songs generally termed 'classic rock' share. If there are, there should be a term for that style of music which is independent of the era; then 'classic rock' would refer to the rock songs which the previous generation enjoyed, whatever generation that is, and the new term could apply to any music which is stylistically similar to what is currently termed 'classic rock.'
That may have been kind of confusing. If you happen to care, I could probably explain it better, but I doubt you will.