Classic rock

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Classic Rock is a style name that denotes the currents of rock that have their roots in the years 1965 to 1975. The term was created in January 1981 by the then newly founded radio station WYSP from Philadelphia . He had on his playlist the music of the early phase of rock between 1965 and the punk explosion in the mid-1970s.

Classic Rock stands for:

  • a variety of rock music popular in the late 1960s. In contrast to the music style R&B , which is related to soul , this was dominated by "white" bands from England such as Jethro Tull , The Rolling Stones , The Animals , The Kinks , The Yardbirds and The Who .
  • “The best”, most original songs in rock music in general. This style began with the Beatles , who gradually moved away from the simple song structures and harmonies of their early years and thereby allowed rock to "grow up" together with other bands of their time.
  • the instruments and sounds that were already available in the 1960s, with electromechanical instruments such as electric guitars, but largely without purely electronic instruments. The sound should also be playable live, i.e. without studio tricks such as tapes being played too fast or too slowly.

Classic rock is not to be understood as a synonym for oldies , since classic rock does not necessarily have to be old to be called such. In addition, oldies do not have to come from the rock music direction.

In the field of format radio, Classic Rock belongs to a subgroup of album-oriented rock (AOR). In the USA , so-called classic rock stations broadcast rock classics around the clock. There are also such stations in Germany, for example Rockland Radio from Mainz or Radio 21 from Garbsen near Hanover . The last two stations mentioned, however, relaunched their programs on August 17th, 2009, so that they can no longer be listed as classic rock stations. Classic rock is considered a traditional radio format. More and more modern formats are active rock , mainstream rock , modern rock and alternative rock . In Saarland there is the Classic Rock Radio station , which delivers the corresponding 24 hours a day.

literature

  • Morrison, Craig: American Popular Music. Rock and roll. Preface by Kevin J. Holm-Hudson. New York / NY: Checkmark Books, 2006, pp. 40-42