Music when we were young

[quartz]

I've seen a few documentaries about disco, and one thing that stuck with me is that the music and the discotheque clubs were a place for each of Hispanics, African-Americans and gay people to have a place to celebrate and not worry about being harassed and attacked. And that generally speaking, the music was celebratory and life-affirming. And that as it grew in popularity, those groups who enjoyed disco found strength in their communities and with that strength, ventured outside of their own communities seeking acceptance from the rest of society. And then the disco backlash occurred. To me, I wonder how much of the "Disco Socks" movement had to do with both racism and homophobia.

At a recent family get-together, there was discussion about music and disco got trashed. After seeing these documentaries, I wondered to what extent (if any), my extended family were voicing their racism and homophobia. And if I should question them on this. That disco grew out of the racism of the 60's and the post-Stonewall movement of the gay community. And gave hope and strength to people of colour and gays. What genre of music gets attacked as much as disco? Rap?* People don't sh** all over rock music or alternative music. Disco gets bashed constantly.

This thread isn't enough about what music you do or don't like. This thread is about music you enjoyed in your youth. I have to wonder why people are saying that they hate disco. No one has asked in this thread, "what music do you hate"?

* I do wonder sometimes when people talk about hating rap...is somewhere behind their words, "I preferred the old days when those negroes were less vocal." When I hear music I don't like, I change the radio station. I don't seek out public forums to go on about how much I hate some style of music.

I don't "hate" disco, I just don't care for it. And I don't think that means I am racist or homophobic.

My nephew is half black and is fairly prominent in the House/Techno Music scene in LA. He has his own radio show, Power Tools, on KPWR. He also produces and mixes, and flies all over the country to play at clubs. I am not a fan of the music, but I certainly don't "hate" it, and I am incredibly proud and love my nephew! (Richard Vission, if you care to look him up.)

Just like everything, people have tastes, preferences, likes and dislikes. Seems like I am the only prog rocker here, but I am not upset that no one else likes it. I like a lot of things that other people don't, but I don't call them "haters", nor do I think people should call me a hater for not liking the same things they do.

 

[once_upon]

that's so cool that your nephew is so talented!

Since I don't have any reference of how music develops or can be composed, my brain doesn't work that way, how awesome it must be to be part of a family that includes someone who is.

For me, music needs to first experienced before making decisions on what you like. I never listened much to country genre because I couldn't get past the twang of Conway Twitty, Loretta Lynn, hank williams, etc. I'll listen to some crossover artists, but garth Brooks and the like still grate on me. I'll listen but not often. If I discard the whole genre I would miss some good music.

 

[Rob]

Never into Elvis growing up either, but have recently begun to appreciate his talent and his impact on music, and culture for that matter. Then again, I've recently been into blues - very old blues, as in the scratchy historic recordings - and Elvis is part of that continuum.

For disco, I have two disco compilations in front of me here, and off the top, here are some songs that I think have withstood the test of time, and transcend the disco era - Heart of Glass by Blondie (good example of being stuck in the wrong genre, because she was actually kinda punky), Play That Funky Music by Wild Cherry has the funk overtones that naturally melded into dance music but now stands well on its own IMO, Don't Leave Me This Way by Thelma Houston and I Will Survive by Gloria Gaynor are classics IMO that may have come into fame as disco hits but are good on their own, and while it's the classic disco song, I think I Love the NIghtlife by Alicia Bridges is worth another listen. Much of what Donna Summer was doing at the time was really quite good, and while many artists of the day did a disco song or album that are now written off by many, it's worth re-listening to them now not as disco recordings, but as part of the body of work by say, Rod Stewart or the Stones.

I loved all of these! And some Sylvester too!

 

[watchthis!!]

I don't "hate" disco, I just don't care for it. And I don't think that means I am racist or homophobic.

My nephew is half black and is fairly prominent in the House/Techno Music scene in LA. He has his own radio show, Power Tools, on KPWR. He also produces and mixes, and flies all over the country to play at clubs. I am not a fan of the music, but I certainly don't "hate" it, and I am incredibly proud and love my nephew! (Richard Vission, if you care to look him up.)

Just like everything, people have tastes, preferences, likes and dislikes. Seems like I am the only prog rocker here, but I am not upset that no one else likes it. I like a lot of things that other people don't, but I don't call them "haters", nor do I think people should call me a hater for not liking the same things they do.

I hate to say it, but this comment made me think of a movie that came out last year that had this famous line:

“Dear white people, the number of black friends required to not seem racist has officially been raised to two.”

 

[quartz]

I hate to say it, but this comment made me think of a movie that came out last year that had this famous line:

All right, all right.....how about my nephew who is half white?

 

[Aussie Willy]

Play That Funky Music by Wild Cherry has the funk overtones that naturally melded into dance music but now stands well on its own IMO, ...

I am into Karaoke and recently I did this one at my local pub. The person before me did a slow Adele song and people just ignored her. I then got up, did Funky Music and all the young guys in their 20s who weren't even born when it came out got up and danced. It was quite funny. Just goes to show the staying power of disco and that even 30-40 years on people still love it.

 

[watchthis!!]

All right, all right.....how about my nephew who is half white?

You're 0.5 ahead of some of us...!

 

[quartz]

Half Dutch, half not Dutch.

 

[aftershocks]

How's about 1/2 Welsh American, 1/16 Scottish, 1/16 English, 1/32 Irish, 1/32 French, 1/16 Native American, 3/4 African American. Describes my first cousin's children, who have married persons with backgrounds ranging from Irish/English and Native American, French, and Korean American. IOW, many of us have polyglot backgrounds in the U.S., whether we realize it or acknowledge it, or not. In fact, if we go back far enough, we're all related. Human race and all that...

As far as music, when young some of my favorites: Jackson Five, Herb Alpert Tijuana Brass, Temptations, Supremes, Gladys Knight & Pips, Partridge Family, The Monkees (loved Davy Jones), James Brown. Then eventually Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Rolling Stones, Carole King, Cat Stevens, Eric Clapton, James Taylor, Whitney Houston, Janet Jackson, Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, Elton John, Billy Joel, David Bowie, Bruce Springsteen, Journey, Sting, Led Zeppelin, Madonna, Donna Summer...

Sade, Tina Turner, John Legend, Lauryn Hill, Adam Lambert, Robin Thicke, Eminem, Bruno Mars, Rihanna, Esperanza Spalding, Vanessa Mae, The Piano Guys.
Also BB King, Johnny Cash, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, Bessie Smith, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Nina Simone, Nat King Cole, and I love love love Lucinda Williams...

And, after reading Grace, Daphne Brooks' review of Jeff Buckley's album (and listening to his music), I fell in love with Jeff Buckley (he was heavily influenced by Nina Simone and Led Zeppelin, and his father was the singer/ musician, Tim Buckley).

I also love classical music, jazz, and music of the fifties and sixties.

Hozier: Take Me To Church https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYSVMgRr6pw

 

[leesaleesa]

So question - if you could only listen to the music of one decade, which would you pick?

I'd pick the 70s, hands down. Many of the big rock bands were doing their best work, it was the height of the California soft rock sound, there was disco for dancing, fabulous soul, many singers from the Big Band era were still recording, punk was still fresh, some classic soundtracks were recorded, and there were plenty of one-hit wonders for the fun of it.

Easy. 1992-1999. Modern, yet not completely digitized like now, or cheesy like the '80's. I recall liking only Violent Femmes and the Cure in the '80's (pre tween, tweens, and early/mid teens). I only really started paying attention to music in 1992, and was into it until about 1999. it was a great era-The '80's IMO were cheesy with awful fashion, hair, perfume, and most of the music. The '90's ushered in an era of new and varied music (though nothing is truly new), casual fashion, and less stinky perfumes. Technology was becoming the norm, but hadn't taken over lives yet. We had electronica, but it was good electronica, not like electronica now that anyone and her dog could create. (Though I think Justin Timberlake and Bruno Mars can inject some creativity and art in that style now). I ran the gamut from Babes in Toyland to Hanson. Yeah, that Hanson. God, those guys are so damn talented.

 

[PeterG]

So You Think You Know 70's Music?

The quiz to end all quizzes...360 different phrases from songs of the 1970's. Can you guess the song title and artist from as little as five words? "Lordy, mama...light my fuse" (that's an easy one as far as I'm concerned!). I'm up to #68 and so far I've only guessed 22 of the 68 correctly, but I'm going to sleep on the others and see if I can get them later.

Anybody who can get #23 deserves double points as far as I'm concerned. And I love #51, both the song and the act, but I would have never guessed the artist or title from that clue.

 

[Susan1]

So You Think You Know 70's Music?

The quiz to end all quizzes...360 different phrases from songs of the 1970's. Can you guess the song title and artist from as little as five words? "Lordy, mama...light my fuse" (that's an easy one as far as I'm concerned!). I'm up to #68 and so far I've only guessed 22 of the 68 correctly, but I'm going to sleep on the others and see if I can get them later.

Anybody who can get #23 deserves double points as far as I'm concerned. And I love #51, both the song and the act, but I would have never guessed the artist or title from that clue.

I'll try it later when my brain is working better and I'm not listening to duh Breakfast with the Beatles again. Back in the 90's!, there used to be a weekly contest (oh wow, his name was Peter! something) of 60's and 70's (some 80's or current which I never did well at) songs. He emailed them to a group and they each had a theme (I'm rambling). With words and phrases like that one (sometimes the first few, sometimes the last part of a verse) and you had to name the title and the artist. One time it was all Beatles songs though and I got them all, of course. And you had to email it back and he would send out the answers and the rankings for the week.

I would take it to lunch with me and work on it. And we'd take it with us on Saturdays and try to sing the words in the car to come up with the answers. So much fun!!!

There was another one that had a front page that looked like a jukebox and it had multiple choice answers. When I was home with my broken leg, my boyfriend used to print them out and bring them to me.

On the 70's music subject, does anyone else have AT&T Uverse? They changed the music channels to Stingray music. You have to press o.k. to start it, which means you can't just flip back and forth to different decades like before. Aaaaaaanyway, I had Flashback 70's on in the bedroom while I was reading last night. I went out to the family room to get a snack and turned on the same channel and a different song was playing. I went back and checked in the bedroom and it really was different than the one on the other t.v. How in the world??????? Just thought I'd share.

 

[Susan1]

So You Think You Know 70's Music?

The quiz to end all quizzes...360 different phrases from songs of the 1970's. Can you guess the song title and artist from as little as five words? "Lordy, mama...light my fuse" (that's an easy one as far as I'm concerned!). I'm up to #68 and so far I've only guessed 22 of the 68 correctly, but I'm going to sleep on the others and see if I can get them later.

Anybody who can get #23 deserves double points as far as I'm concerned. And I love #51, both the song and the act, but I would have never guessed the artist or title from that clue.

Just glanced during the commercial - 201? We used to say "the blues got hold of your shoes" hee hee hee

 

[quartz]

I skimmed through the quiz but I am really bad with song titles in general, so I only got about a dozen or so. It's a lot different when you read the lyrics, compared to hearing the phrasing of how they are sung, so I think this quiz would be somewhat easier with audio clips. I didn't have time to check out the instrumentals at the end.

 

[Susan1]

I skimmed through the quiz but I am really bad with song titles in general, so I only got about a dozen or so. It's a lot different when you read the lyrics, compared to hearing the phrasing of how they are sung, so I think this quiz would be somewhat easier with audio clips. I didn't have time to check out the instrumentals at the end.

That's why I'm sitting here singing the songs in my head till I get to the title.
Through 20, I've gotten 13 off the top of my head without having to think...........

 

[Mike103]

Hi everyone!

A great topic to discuss. When I was a kid, I liked such bands as The Offspring, Green Day, Blink 182, Sum 41. Later, I was a fan of British bands such as Oasis, Duran Duran, Blur... Yeah, that was amazing time!

 

[quartz]

Who are everyone's favorite voices from the past?

My number one is Freddie Mercury. To me his voice, his emotion, his tone, his range, his enunciation, was simply far above everyone else.

My number two is Steve Walsh of Kansas who does gorgeous soaring notes and tells a story with his voice like no other.

Number three would be Ann Wilson of Heart and Dennis De Young formerly of Styx.
I love how when Ann goes into a scream, she is still singing, unlike most who just simply scream without any musicality.
As for Dennis, I like how his voice is so smooth and precise, and he can hit some beautiful soaring notes as well.

 

[Jenny]

I saw Heart live a few summers ago and both Ann and Nancy were outstanding

One thing I miss about the 70s is that so many bands had multiple singers and songs included beautiful harmonies (Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, CSNY, America, even Pink Floyd, Supertramp and the Who had multiple singers). Sure there are exceptions, but the idea of a strong vocal band seems to be long out of fashion.

 

[quartz]

@Jenny, good point.
That is another reason I love Kansas so much - the harmonies between Steve Walsh and Robby Steinhardt (the violinist).

 

[Jenny]

Yes I like Kansas too, and many of the bands that were part of the 70s California sound. I think I mentioned the Gold series of CDs upthread - this one is great (click on the images to see the back cover and song list) - Soft Rock Gold.

For more great vocals, it's worth a good look at what's going on in country music right now - so many really good singers, and so, so many really good lyrical songs.

 

[PeterG]

One thing I miss about the 70s is that so many bands had multiple singers and songs included beautiful harmonies (Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, CSNY, America, even Pink Floyd, Supertramp and the Who had multiple singers). Sure there are exceptions, but the idea of a strong vocal band seems to be long out of fashion.

Maybe group harmonies are more evident in country music today than in pop music. I remember when I first heard Little Big Town, I thought they were a reincarnated version of Fleetwood Mac, but with a slight country twist. Lady Antebellum are also great for vocal harmonies.

 

[snowbird]

I've heard that any group named after a continent, a country, a state or a city sucks. I can't verify that,though, because I've never heard any of them.

 

[PeterG]

I've heard that any group named after a continent, a country, a state or a city sucks. I can't verify that,though, because I've never heard any of them.

Thanks anyways.

 

[quartz]

I've heard that any group named after a continent, a country, a state or a city sucks. I can't verify that,though, because I've never heard any of them.

I've heard that this poster named snowbird sucks. I can't verify that though, because I've never heard of it.

 

[PeterG]

 

[gkelly]

Who are everyone's favorite voices from the past?

When I think of singers who appealed to me largely because of the sound of the voice, Morrissey and Melissa Etheridge come to mind.

 

[Artistic Skaters]

Maybe group harmonies are more evident in country music today than in pop music. I remember when I first heard Little Big Town, I thought they were a reincarnated version of Fleetwood Mac, but with a slight country twist.

Not so much their latest, but I have an older CD by Little Big Town called A Place to Land & it sounds just like California rock from the '70s. It also has a remake of Life in a Northern Town from the '80s which is a song I always liked & the reason I bought the CD.

 

[Artistic Skaters]

Memorable music to me would be the vinyl records I wore out when I was younger (& then replaced later in CD) . So that would include:

Singles:
- Motown 45s from the '60s & '70s
- Tiny Dancer & Your Song by Elton John
- Ventura Highway by America
Albums:
- Experience by Jimi Hendrix
- Tapestry by Carole King
- Best of Simon & Garfunkel (Bookends, For Emily Wherever I May Find Her)
- So Far by CSNY
- Harvest & Live Rust by Neil Young
- Jackson Browne, Late for the Sky & The Pretender by Jackson Browne
- Mud Slide Slim & the Blue Horizon (Long Ago & Far Away)
- Blue Sky - Night Thunder by Michael Murphy (Wildfire)
- Searchin' for a Rainbow by Marshall Tucker Band
- Dreamboat Annie by Heart
- Karla Bonoff
- Diamonds & Rust by Joan Baez
- Living & Dying in 3/4 Time by Jimmy Buffett
- Souvenirs by Dan Fogelberg
- On the Radio by Donna Summers
- The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle, Born to Run & The River by Bruce Springsteen
- Bella Donna by Stevie Nicks
- Against the Wind & Nine Tonight by Bob Seger

Good memories!

 

[moebius]

I'm a late bloomer. Didn't really paid much attention to music till I was a freshman in high school. Prior to that, my music exposure was from the weekly family visit to the roller skating rink and the occasional flip of the dial on the radio dog (radio inside a stuffed dog, given away from my mom's friend). I remembered songs such as YMCA, Do That To Me One More Time, Don't Stop Till You Get Enough, Reunited, Celebration. The song that actually got me started listening to the radio was the love theme from 'St Elmo's Fire' which I first heard used in the play put on by the high school freshman English class I was in. One of my classmates used a snippet of that song for play, which I thought didn't fit at all. Also the daily lunch music played in the quad in high school also prompted me to flip the dial on a regular basis. Some of the lunchtime music I remembered that I piqued my interest in music were Take On Me, Head Over Heals (Tears 4 Fears), Saving All My Love For You, Party All The Time, Careless Whisper. During my sophomore year in high school, I discovered Modern Rock (now known as alternative) and listened to mostly synth bands such as Camouflage and New Order, but then slowly started to listen the non-synth bands such as China Crisis, The Chameleons UK, Aztec Camera. At the same time I was still listening to top 40, but stopped when Clear Channel took over the airwaves because all the pop music started sounding the same. Back in the 80's I would hear Van Halen, Whitney Houston, Steve Winwood, Run DMC, Pet Shop Boys, Lisa Lisa, Journey, Motley Crue, Depeche Mode all one one station. That's a mix of hard rock, metal, pop, R&B, rap, soft rock, rock, dance, modern rock in one station. Now it's pretty much pop with a dance beat or with a guitar. There is no top 40 station where I live. It's mostly adult contempo, dance, oldies, and one alternative station.

 

[quartz]

So I remembered another "voice" that I loved as a teen, even though it's totally not a type of music I listened to, and not even sure what genre it is - Barry Manilow!
I found his voice very soothing and calming and it mellowed me out if I had a rough day.