OT - What was the best "golden age" decade in music?

[Squirrel Man]

Rock, blues, jazz - the standard variety of popular music genres.

Since 1900 what has been the defining "golden age" of music that has passed and evolved/devolved into something else? Or is evolving now? However you look at it.

Discuss.

 

[Mcjnic]

Very interesting.
This discussion has popped up several times over the past couple of months.
I keep going back to the same thing.
For creating drum parts ... I like the groove based music of the 90s.
That sounds odd coming from a man of my age ... but there ya go.
I just enjoyed the simplicity of the drums ... the music that crossed my ears was just chocked full of deep grooves and taste. Of course there was a lot of other garbage recorded then ... like every decade. But for some reason, the drums spoke to me loudly and emphatically during that period.
For listening and enjoying music ... I'm all over the place.
But for creating drum parts ... it's the 90s.

 

[WesChilton]

1970s and 1980s after that its all downhill. As far as the music I like.

Not that there isn't good music being made any more, but its harder and harder to find.... What's mainstream is boring, repetitive and soulless. But I'm not bitter!

 

[DanC]

60's, no doubt #1. But the 70's are 1a.

 

[TPC]

Speaking in decades ...

1735 to 1745. Bach, Vivaldi, et al brought baroque to its apotheosis.

1785 to 1795. Mozart and Beethoven in their prime.

1915 to 1925. Stravinsky, Shoenberg, Strauss et al cracked open the tonal code.

But on topic ...

1952 to 1962. Bebop matured, the modernists had gotten their footing.

After that it seems to me music got either 1) overly simplistic, or 2) derivative (not that I don't love a lot of the music after 1962, but ...)

 

[JDA]

the Golden Egg??
the 1900s of the Riverboats to 1920.

 

[Tornado]

I have a preference for the 70's and the 90's. The 90s were my teenage years, so it will always be #1 for me. You're basically doomed to prefer the decade in which you turned 14 or 15.

 

[jansara]

One decade doesn't cover it. Excluding Classical - - 50's, 60's & 70's.

 

[Stickclick]

I don't know. But I do know that it isn't now.

 

[JDZ]

I'm sure every generation believes "their music" is the best.

Z

 

[Demonslayer]

I usually abstain from partaking of this kind of discussion, but 1970s hard NYC Salsa is very hard to beat:

 

[Dave HCV]

Speaking in decades ...

1735 to 1745. Bach, Vivaldi, et al brought baroque to its apotheosis.

1785 to 1795. Mozart and Beethoven in their prime.

1915 to 1925. Stravinsky, Shoenberg, Strauss et al cracked open the tonal code.

But on topic ...

1952 to 1962. Bebop matured, the modernists had gotten their footing.

After that it seems to me music got either 1) overly simplistic, or 2) derivative (not that I don't love a lot of the music after 1962, but ...)

I would add to this 1935 to 1945. Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Duke Ellington, etc. The big band years are when the drummer first emerged as a soloist (thank you, Gene).

 

[Dumpy]

It’s a loaded question. We can say the 60s were great, then you hear “Yummy Yummy Yummy”, or the 70s were great, then you hear “Boom Chicka Boom”, 80s and you hear Madonna, etc., etc.

There is so much good and bad. To me, the golden age started when you could record a performance.

 

[jptrickster]

50's 60's Sun Studio ,Mississippi John Hurt, Stax records, Motown,Stevie Wonder, Supremes, Elvis, Chubby Checker, Sam and Dave, BB King , Rolling Stones , Beatles, The British invasion I mean what the?!!

 

[Sprice]

This is interesting because it never occured to me until now 95% of what I listen to falls into one of three 10-year spreads:
1952-62 Jazz (see below)
1985-1995 Thrash was created
2005-2015 Grindcore peaked

1952 to 1962. Bebop matured, the modernists had gotten their footing.

Definitely.

 

[Prufrock]

For popular music (not classical), the 1960s, without a doubt. For me the sweet spot for music is 1955 to 1975. The 60s are right in the middle of this. In terms of the cross section of styles, the transitions of genres, and the improved recording technology, it is hard to argue against:

- A summation of Bop (Giant Steps) in 1960
- Bill Evans's sublime Village Vanguard recordings
- Coltrane's exploratory Impulse years, including A Love Supreme
- Davis's second great quintet, and in the late 60s the development of jazz fusion with recordings like In a Silent Way
- Mingus's years with Eric Dolphy (and Dolphy's amazing output under his own leadership and playing with others from 1960-64)
- The development of the "free jazz" avant garde scene in both the USA and Europe
- The British Invasion, including the entire Beatles catalogue, from pop perfection to studio invention
- The Stones' early work, The Who including My Generation and Tommy, the best work of The Kinks and The Small Faces (and many others)
- The most famous and influential recordings by The Beach Boys (the early pop songs, Pet Sounds, and even the late 60s work that has gained in reputation of late)
- The folk revival, including Bob Dylan's most influential recordings
- The majority of the great Motown recordings
- Some of the greatest studio session work by The Wrecking Crew that made the West Coast Sound
- The entire psychedelic era, including garage Nuggets
- new, heavier music from 1967 onwards: the three Hendrix Experience albums, Cream's entire career, and Led Zeppelin's first album
- The start of the "back to roots" sound that would dominate the early 70s started in the 60s with recordings by The Band, The Allman Brothers, Croby Stills and Nash
- The birth of "prog rock" with In the Court of the Crimson King, and Canterbury underground bands such as Soft Machine, Pink Floyd, Caravan, and Gong.

In terms of drumming influence, Elvin, Tony, Ringo, Charlie, Ginger, Moon, Mitch, and Bonzo - a high proportion of the drummers that even non-drummers would recognize (evidenced by the fact that you can likely recognize them by single names), really had their start or high points in the 60s. Buddy was quite active in the 60s as well.

Oh, and how could I forget the breakbeats - Stubblefield's break from "The Funky Drummer" and the Amen break that were foundational building blocks of hiphop.

The list could go on and on. The sixties was a period of cultural transition, and you can hear the restlessness in the music, whether the sweetest ear candy of an early 60s pop song, or full on aural assaults such as Coltrane's Ascension, or anything in between.

 

[hsosdrum]

Speaking strictly about how today's popular music got to where it is right now, I would say that the decade between 1945 and 1955 defined it all. Jazz evolved from larger bands playing dance-oriented music into smaller combos playing much more complex music (for listening only); country & western music grew out of its roots in folk and roots music; rhythm & blues split from jazz to become its own thing and also combined with influences from country music to form rock 'n' roll. And this was the period when solo singers became the focus of pop music, as opposed to the less-important roles they had during the big-band era.

Sure, I love the music of the '60s and early '70s, but if we want to talk about what defined everything that's been going on for the past half-century, it's really all about the period from '45 to '55.

If we're talking about drumming in today's popular music, that was defined during the decade between 1964 and 1974. Nothing is happening on the drums today that can't be traced back to then. (He said, while putting on his flame-proof underwear...)

 

[Dumpy]

Speaking strictly about how today's popular music got to where it is right now, I would say that the decade between 1945 and 1955 defined it all. Jazz evolved from larger bands playing dance-oriented music into smaller combos playing much more complex music (for listening only); country & western music grew out of its roots in folk and roots music; rhythm & blues split from jazz to become its own thing and also combined with influences from country music to form rock 'n' roll. Sure, I love the music of the '60s and early '70s, but if we want to talk about what defined everything that's been going on for the past half-century, it's really all about the period from '45 to '55.

If we're talking about drumming in today's popular music, that was defined during the decade between 1964 and 1974. Nothing is happening on the drums today that can't be traced back to then. (He said, while putting on his flame-proof underwear...)

I am surprised my answer didn’t earn flames! I said the Golden Age started when you could record LOL

 

[dyland]

I'm sure every generation believes "their music" is the best.

Z

As somebody who came of age in the 2000s I can assure you, this is not always the case.

 

[dsop]

1967 to 1979