The Best Decade of Music

[Hatter]

Obviously this is a totally subjective question, but in your opinion, which decade produced the best music?

For me, the 90's is totally untouchable. Grunge found it's success in the early stages of the decade, and other genres such as country, rap, and dance produced so many great tunes. Even pop music seemed to be less insufferable.

[Hemi-Cuda]

70's rock

i could provide more detail, but it shouldn't be required

[Traditional_Ale]

Although I wasn't born until 1983, the 1960's is my favorite decade. Jazz was mainstream, Motown was burning up the charts, the psychedelic rock scene was blossoming, and the whole thing ended with the greatest concert of all time.

Check out this list!

http://rateyourmusic.com/list/Clarkone68/top_100_songs_of_the_60s

[Free Ben Hur!]

A decade or a ten-year period?

For me, 1965 - 1975. Unbelievable amount of amazing music '68 - '73.

[Caged Great]

I was going to say 68 to 73 as well

[MarchHare]

Obviously this is a totally subjective question, but in your opinion, which decade produced the best music?

For me, the 90's is totally untouchable. Grunge found it's success in the early stages of the decade, and other genres such as country, rap, and dance produced so many great tunes. Even pop music seemed to be less insufferable.

Let me guess: you were a teenager in the 90s, right?

[troutman]

I don't think you can answer this question until you have literally listened to every piece of music that was released. We are only aware of the smallest fraction of music released world-wide.

Subject to the foregoing limitations, my favorite year was 1992.

1992 saw great records from my favorite artists - Copper Blue, Automatic For The People, Nonsuch, Kiko

Allmusic has a series of articles on differerent years. Here is 1992:

http://blog.allmusic.com/2010/05/24/allmusic-loves-1992-2/

1991 may have been the Year Punk Broke but 1992 was the year the ’90s truly began. Nevermind Nirvana, there was an explosion of alt-rock classics, beginning with a clutch of grunge classics from Seattle — the aftershocks of Nirvana’s success being Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, Soundgarden, a major label contract for Mudhoney — but also Pavement’s debut Slanted and Enchanted, which began indie-rock as we now know it, and R.E.M.’s Automatic for the People, which began adult alternative as we now know it. R.E.M. wasn’t the only ’80s college-rock veteran still experiencing a golden streak — Morrissey teamed up with Mick Ronson for the crushing Your Arsenal, Bob Mould revitalized himself with Sugar, Sonic Youth got louder and tighter on Dirty, XTC closed out their golden age with Nonsuch — but there were just as many records that pointed toward what the ’90s would be: Dr. Dre’s era-defining The Chronic, which introduced Snoop Dogg to the world; PJ Harvey’s lacerating Dry; Beastie Boys’ cross-cultural, retro-loving Check Your Head; and over in Britain, Britpop started with a clutch of classic singles from Suede, Blur, and Pulp. Add to that power-pop classics by Matthew Sweet and Lemonheads, one of Tom Waits’ best albums, Paul Weller’s solo debut, Black Crowes’ muscular rock & roll and Urge Overkill’s Stull EP, 1992 winds up as one of the best years of the decade.

[undercoverbrother]

Even pop music seemed to be less insufferable.

This one video tells me you are out lunch....

gJLIiF15wjQ

I have to say 65-75 or 68-78 that range.

Some of the greatest bands to ever walk the earth where at their height.

[Tinordi]

Great question.

I don't know how you couldn't say that the past 10 years have been the best what with the liberation of music production from the major studios. Now if you're a halfway decent band, you have distribution channels for your music resulting in a total explosion of content available to the most discerning ears. The 90s were good, 70s were great but now we have music that is accessible to anyone standing on the shoulders of those giants.

[troutman]

Great question.

I don't know how you couldn't say that the past 10 years have been the best what with the liberation of music production from the major studios. Now if you're a halfway decent band, you have distribution channels for your music resulting in a total explosion of content available to the most discerning ears. The 90s were good, 70s were great but now we have music that is accessible to anyone standing on the shoulders of those giants.

Also, there is way more music being made now than in the 1960s/1970s/1980s.

[undercoverbrother]

Also, there is way more music being made now than in the 1960s/1970s/1980s.

But quantity does not always equal quality.

Because more music can be made, does not always mean it should be made. Prime example is the "friday" kid. Really that song needed to be made and played.....unlikely.

[metallicat]

It was played on YouTube, did it actually get radio time?

[dissentowner]

For me it is the 80's. All the singers were extremely gifted, even in one hit wonder bands. Creativity was also at a peak with all the synth work added in. I guess it is all preference. It is funny when I read the OP and the tags because I feel the same way about the 90's. Grunge was the decline of rock and roll, all the bands sounded the same with no talent singers and horrible instrument playing. The 90's was a terrible era in music.

[Tinordi]

But quantity does not always equal quality.

Because more music can be made, does not always mean it should be made. Prime example is the "friday" kid. Really that song needed to be made and played.....unlikely.
My point is that if you like Black Metal there are scores of black metal bands out there. There were basically none in the 70s. Like backpacker hip hop? Tough luck if you grew up in the 80s.

I think the better question may be which decade had the best pop music? To that it is undoubtedly the period between 1967-1977.

[undercoverbrother]

It was played on YouTube, did it actually get radio time?


Not radio play per say, but according to Wiki


By March 21, 2011, the "Friday" music video had been viewed more than 30 million times on YouTube.[50] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_(Rebecca_Black_song)#cite_note-NYDailyNews-49) Forbes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forbes) estimated that as of that date, Black and ARK Music had earned $20,000 from YouTube's revenue-sharing program,[51] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_(Rebecca_Black_song)#cite_note-barth20110321-50) and Billboard (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billboard_(magazine)) estimated iTunes sales of approximately 43,000 copies, roughly equivalent to $26,700 in royalties (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royalties#Music).[52] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_(Rebecca_Black_song)#cite_note-51) Within a week after being released on iTunes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ITunes) it had jumped the iTunes sales chart to 19 on March 19, 2011.[53] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_(Rebecca_Black_song)#cite_note-Forbes2-52)[54] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_(Rebecca_Black_song)#cite_note-LIP2-53)[55] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_(Rebecca_Black_song)#cite_note-TT2-54) "Friday" debuted on the US Hot Digital Songs (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hot_Digital_Songs) chart at number 57[56] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_(Rebecca_Black_song)#cite_note-55) and went on to peak at number 38.[57] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_(Rebecca_Black_song)#cite_note-56) "Friday" debuted on the New Zealand Singles Chart (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Zealand_Singles_Chart) at number 33 on March 21, 2011.[58] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_(Rebecca_Black_song)#cite_note-nzpeak-57) The song entered the Billboard Hot 100 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billboard_Hot_100) at number 72 and rose to 58 the next week.[59] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_(Rebecca_Black_song)#cite_note-hot100-58) It has sold 87,000 copies over the two weeks.[59] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_(Rebecca_Black_song)#cite_note-hot100-58) The song has also received airplay in Sweden.[60] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_(Rebecca_Black_song)#cite_note-59) In the United States, it was played 12 times from March 16 to March 22, considered low for a Hot 100 song.[61] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_(Rebecca_Black_song)#cite_note-60) Despite the song's strong performance elsewhere, Georgina Kelly has claimed that her daughter has not received any money from the song's sales, saying "We haven't received a dime from anywhere."[16] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_(Rebecca_Black_song)#cite_note-gawker-15)

[FanIn80]

I have to agree with 65-75. Forget about songs, it was really all about the music then... and that music has just simply been unmatched.

If we are actually just talking about songs, then it's all about 85-95, baby.

[Free Ben Hur!]

A decade or a ten-year period?

For me, 1965 - 1975. Unbelievable amount of amazing music '68 - '73.

Just for fun, I cherry-picked five favorite albums from each of the years 1968 - 73.

1969

Abbey Road – The Beatles
Led Zeppelin II
Tommy - The Who
Everyone Knows This Is Now Where – Neil Young
Let It Bleed - The Rolling Stones


1970

All Things Must Pass – George Harrison
Déjà vu – CSNY
In Rock – Deep Purple
American Woman – The Guess Who
Let It Be - The Beatles

1971

Led Zeppelin IV
Who’s Next – The Who
LA Woman – The Doors
Tapestry – Carole King
Pearl - Janis Joplin

1972

Exile On Main Street – Stones
Ziggy Stardust - David Bowie
Schools Out - Alice Cooper
Bare Trees - Fleetwood Mac
Thick As A Brick - Jethro Tull

[Hanna Sniper]

70's, second for me would be the 50's

80's get bagged on alot but it was fun. As for the '90's, god music still hasn't recovered

[Cecil Terwilliger]

65-75 was my first thought before I even opened the thread. Good to see everyone agrees.

[YYC in LAX]

Mid 60s to mid 70s. No question.

Born in 1987

[TurnedTheCorner]

Most people naming the decade when they were a teenager ITT, I suspect.

[TurnedTheCorner]

A decade or a ten-year period?

For me, 1965 - 1975. Unbelievable amount of amazing music '68 - '73.

A decade.

[TurnedTheCorner]

1800-1809.

[VO #23]

My point is that if you like Black Metal there are scores of black metal bands out there. There were basically none in the 70s. Like backpacker hip hop? Tough luck if you grew up in the 80s.

I think the better question may be which decade had the best pop music? To that it is undoubtedly the period between 1967-1977.

See, I think the best 'pop music' was written between 1955-1965. Early American rock 'n roll, the beginning of the British Invasion, and some of the best Motown hits. I think 1967-1977 was the Golden Era of Rock, but pop came before IMHO.

[Free Ben Hur!]

A decade.

Coin flip: 60's

[Senator Clay Davis]

1965-1975 wins, but 1985-1995 has a lot of seriously great music. A lot of classic metal, hard rock, alternative and hip-hop.

[TurnedTheCorner]

No one is talking about decades.

http://i1.livememe.com/51fu7y.jpg

[Coys1882]

Put 9 years around Fleetwood Mac - Rumours and you have your answer

[TurnedTheCorner]

1808, 1856, 1951, 1963, 1969, 1976, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1994. Does that count as a decade????

[TurnedTheCorner]

Serious answer: 1980s.

[Stranger]

"Everyone knows rock n' roll attained perfection in 1974. It's a scientific fact."

Homer Simpson

[Canuck-Hater]

This is tough, but I would say the 70s, some of the greatest albums of all time came out during that time. Much like every decade there are some albums that really stand out.

1970: Santana - Abraxas, Neil Young - After the Gold Rush
1971: Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin IV
1972: Deep Purple - Machine Head, Neil Young - Harvest
1973: Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon
1974: Frank Zappa - Apostrophe
1975: Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here, Queen - A Night at the Opera
1976: Parliament - Mothership Connection, The Ramones,
1977: The Clash
1978: Yes - Tormato, Van Halen,
1979: Pink Floyd - The Wall, Michael Jackson - Off the Wall :D

[Hemi-Cuda]

Most people naming the decade when they were a teenager ITT, I suspect.

i was born in '83, and without question the period between '65-'75 was the best music that humanity has ever produced. with a few exceptions, the 80's and 90's were terrible

[octothorp]

Talking rock, definitely the 1970s. Music as a whole? Probably the 60s. Jazz, folk, R&B, classical, blues, pop, rock, and country all had some really interesting things going on. You've got jazz masters like Mingus, Davis, Coleman, Brubeck, Evans; Johnny Cash doing some of the best country ever; explosion of new folk music with Dylan; Cage, Glass, Ligeti and others doing some crazy stuff in the classical arena, not to mention everything going on with motown. The first serious explorations into electronic music. Internationally, the bossa nova came into its own, and Piazzola was doing great stuff with the tango. Really great decade in just about every genre.

[TurnedTheCorner]

i was born in '83, and without question the period between '65-'75 was the best music that humanity has ever produced. with a few exceptions, the 80's and 90's were terrible

My comment was posted before reviewing the thread. It seems classic rock radio has brainwashed most people into picking earlier decades ;) , which I did not expect.

[Free Ben Hur!]

This is tough, but I would say the 70s, some of the greatest albums of all time came out during that time. Much like every decade there are some albums that really stand out.

1970: Santana - Abraxas, Neil Young - After the Gold Rush
1971: Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin IV
1972: Deep Purple - Machine Head, Neil Young - Harvest
1973: Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon
1974: Frank Zappa - Apostrophe
1975: Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here, Queen - A Night at the Opera
1976: Parliament - Mothership Connection, The Ramones,
1977: The Clash
1978: Yes - Tormato, Van Halen,
1979: Pink Floyd - The Wall, Michael Jackson - Off the Wall :D

Off the Wall is such an amazing album. Mike before he got really weird and into kids. This album is better than anything he did subsequent including Thriller.

[troutman]

1983 was a significant year:

http://blog.allmusic.com/2012/04/11/allmusic-loves-1983/

If any year captured the heady rush of the early ’80s, it was 1983, the year Michael Jackson’s Thriller became a phenomenon and, not coincidentally, the year of MTV’s prime. The cable network debuted two years earlier but ‘83 was when music videos took over, popping up on cable channels and network TV, and along with videos came a glorious period of hit singles by one-hit wonders, new invaders from Britain, and veterans who now mastered synths and drum machines, the latter inexplicably led by grizzled, hairy blues-rockers ZZ Top and the visionary jazz-fusion keyboardist Herbie Hancock. Underneath all this televised glitz were some major debuts: the first albums from Madonna, Metallica, R.E.M., and Hüsker Dü, and the first singles from the Smiths and Run-D.M.C. And there were the mammoth hits — yes, Thriller, but also Def Leppard’s Pyromania and the Police’s Synchronicity, all giving us more than enough reason to love 1983.

Talking Heads, Replacments, XTC, Violent Femmes, Bowie, Yes, Prince, Pretenders, Elvis Costelllo, New Order, Big Country

1984:

http://blog.allmusic.com/2008/7/31/allmusic-loves-1984/

[polak]

For the decade with the "greatest" bands at their peak, the 70's is without a doubt the best.

However for creativity and variety I personally think that in hindsight, the best decade was the 80's. Synths were popularized which led to new wave, hip hop was born, the last great guitarists hit the scene and metal peaked.

For my favorite genre however, it might sound crazy to say but the '00s were probably the peak. I like electronic music (trance, house, everything really) and their have been great acts since its invention, (Kraftwerk, Depache Mode for the 80's, Deepforest, Moby and Daft Punk in the 90's) but the 00's, with the popularization of "basement producers", really saw the style of music take off. I think '05-'10 was the pinnacle of Electronic music so far. Alot of the acts that dominate the scene today, such as Deadmau5, Tiesto, David Guetta, The Swedish House Mafia guys and Armin Van Buuren, were releasing their best work during that time, and a lot of the other big acts, the Avicii's and the Afrojack's, were starting their rise as well.

Now the only worry is that, like hip hop in the '00s, Electronic goes super commercial (*cough*Guetta*cough*) in the next decade... We shall see.

[TurnedTheCorner]

1983 was a significant year:

http://blog.allmusic.com/2012/04/11/allmusic-loves-1983/

If any year captured the heady rush of the early ’80s, it was 1983, the year Michael Jackson’s Thriller became a phenomenon and, not coincidentally, the year of MTV’s prime. The cable network debuted two years earlier but ‘83 was when music videos took over, popping up on cable channels and network TV, and along with videos came a glorious period of hit singles by one-hit wonders, new invaders from Britain, and veterans who now mastered synths and drum machines, the latter inexplicably led by grizzled, hairy blues-rockers ZZ Top and the visionary jazz-fusion keyboardist Herbie Hancock. Underneath all this televised glitz were some major debuts: the first albums from Madonna, Metallica, R.E.M., and Hüsker Dü, and the first singles from the Smiths and Run-D.M.C. And there were the mammoth hits — yes, Thriller, but also Def Leppard’s Pyromania and the Police’s Synchronicity, all giving us more than enough reason to love 1983.

Talking Heads, Replacments, XTC, Violent Femmes, Bowie, Yes, Prince, Pretenders, Elvis Costelllo, New Order, Big Country

1984:

http://blog.allmusic.com/2008/7/31/allmusic-loves-1984/

But the 80s are teh sux0rs!!1!

[TurnedTheCorner]

For the decade with the "greatest" bands at their peak, the 70's is without a doubt the best.

However for creativity and variety I personally think that in hindsight, the best decade was the 80's. Synths were popularized which led to new wave, hip hop was born, the last great guitarists hit the scene and metal peaked.


Hip-hop mirrored a lot of the same time period as punk, and was born before the 80s certainly. It's hard to peg an exact date, of course, but I think most would agree it was sometime in the 70s. Hip-hop exploded out of the NYC burroughs and became an international cultural force in the 80s though.

[nik-]

Now the only worry is that, like hip hop in the '00s, Electronic goes super commercial (*cough*Guetta*cough*) in the next decade... We shall see.

That already happened in the mid to late 90's with the whole "Electronica" era. I mean for the love of god, Madonna released an "Electronica" album ... you know if a genre survives Madonna leeching on it, it's probably gonna live.

[Traditional_Ale]

Electronica peaked in 2001.

[polak]

Electronica peaked in 2001.

I think it peaked when the deadmau5-esque house got over done...

This

43AQohgHvGM

[GreenLantern]

We might not decide on the best decade from 1960-2000, but we can all agree the 80's was the worst :D

Anything after 2000 is also garbage compared to pre 2000.

[Traditional_Ale]

We might not decide on the best decade from 1960-2000, but we can all agree the 80's was the worst :D

Anything after 2000 is also garbage compared to pre 2000.

'Hot Fuss' by The Killers says hi.

[Senator Clay Davis]

'Hot Fuss' by The Killers says hi.

It doesn't really say hi though. I can think of 50 albums that are better than it. Not a bad album, but I'm surprised so many people hold it in such high regard.

[dissentowner]

We might not decide on the best decade from 1960-2000, but we can all agree the 80's was the worst :D
No, we can't.

[Erick Estrada]

The advent of music videos probably tips the 80's just ahead of the 70's IMO. The majority of the worlds greatest artists and bands had their career peak in the 80's. It's been downhill since the early 90's to the present where it's in shambles.

[Hemi-Cuda]

The advent of music videos probably tips the 80's just ahead of the 70's IMO. The majority of the worlds greatest artists and bands had their career peak in the 80's. It's been downhill since the early 90's to the present where it's in shambles.

bleh, the advent of music videos was where everything started to go wrong. from then on it became more about the presentation than the music itself. give me the videos from the 70's where it was just the band playing anyday

fJ9rUzIMcZQ

kz_6jagv_D4

EsCyC1dZiN8

[TurnedTheCorner]

Some ugly, ugly ****ers used to make music.

[FlyingDonutz]

65-75. Not arguable. Aerosmith, Van Halen, ACDC, Black Sabbath, Kiss, etc. Those were the 10 years that changed music as we know it. Sadly, we are currently in the WORST decade for music. There really is only 5 or so good rock bands that are under the age of 45 (band members, not band age)

[Northendzone]

Never gonna give you up was released in 1987......just sayin'

[Hemi-Cuda]

Some ugly, ugly ****ers used to make music.

the general rule is the uglier you are, the harder you rock. Lemmy never got anywhere by his looks

http://images.wikia.com/music/images/7/74/Lemmy.jpg

[Coys1882]

the general rule is the uglier you are, the harder you rock. Lemmy never got anywhere by his looks

http://images.wikia.com/music/images/7/74/Lemmy.jpg

Those warts on his face have probably boned more chicks than everyone on this forum combined.

[Pierre "Monster" McGuire]

Very good question.

I'm primarily an old school Hip Hop guy, so for Hip Hop it was '85-'95.

Rock, '65-'75.

Jazz, '40-'50.

Blues, '30-'40.

Soul, '60-'70.

[polak]

65-75. Not arguable. Aerosmith, Van Halen, ACDC, Black Sabbath, Kiss, etc. Those were the 10 years that changed music as we know it. Sadly, we are currently in the WORST decade for music. There really is only 5 or so good rock bands that are under the age of 45 (band members, not band age)

That only works if you assume everyone likes Rock. It definitely varies based on genre.

[troutman]

KISS changed music as we know it? They did write the most unintentionally funny lyrics of all time.

She's a dancer, a romancer.
I'm a Capricorn and she's a Cancer
She saw my picture in a music magazine


And you watch me playin' guitar
And you feel what my fingers can do
And you wish you were the one I was doing it to

[Traditional_Ale]

It doesn't really say hi though. I can think of 50 albums that are better than it. Not a bad album, but I'm surprised so many people hold it in such high regard.

If everything after 2000 is garbage, but you can name 50 albums you like better than it, I can only infer that you like garbage to the point you have a rating system for it?

[Senator Clay Davis]

If everything after 2000 is garbage, but you can name 50 albums you like better than it, I can only infer that you like garbage to the point you have a rating system for it?

But I didn't say everything after 2000 was garbage. I was saying that I don't think using "Hot Fuss" is a great example that music after the 2000s wasn't good. "Hot Fuss" is a 3.5/5 album at best in my opinion. There are, as I said, at least 50 albums that I would use as better representations that there was actually quality music in the 2000's. But the 2000's are a sliding scale, with 2000-2004 being much better than 2005-2009.

[Regular_John]

There's a simple equation to figure out the "best" decade.

Take your year of birth and add 15 years to it. Where that lands is the best decade of music.

Unless you're a hipster, in which case you take your year of birth and subtract 5 years from it, then you may play the "I was born in the wrong decade!" card.

[troutman]

Does a decade start on 1 or 0?

[Free Ben Hur!]

KISS changed music as we know it? They did write the most unintentionally funny lyrics of all time.

She's a dancer, a romancer.
I'm a Capricorn and she's a Cancer
She saw my picture in a music magazine


And you watch me playin' guitar
And you feel what my fingers can do
And you wish you were the one I was doing it to

Agreed. Listen to Gene Simmons croak out Christine Sixteen and try not to cringe. It's probably physically impossible.

KISS would have had so much more upside if they let Peter Criss sing more. At least he had some range. Simmons? I mean how much can you actually care about your vocal chords when you're spewing kerosene every night?

Let Me Go Rock and Roll (live version) is still a great song. And so is She.

[undercoverbrother]

Agreed. Listen to Gene Simmons croak out Christine Sixteen and try not to cringe. It's probably physically impossible.

KISS would have had so much more upside if they let Peter Criss sing more. At least he had some range. Simmons? I mean how much can you actually care about your vocal chords when you're spewing kerosene every night?

Let Me Go Rock and Roll (live version) is still a great song. And so is She.


Bon Scott says hi

gJ3tqIukBKg

[Free Ben Hur!]

Bon Scott says hi

gJ3tqIukBKg

Bon Scott used to be good but he's rotten now though ...

[undercoverbrother]

Bon Scott used to be good but he's rotten now though ...



punny, very punny

[TurnedTheCorner]

Does a decade start on 1 or 0?
Coventional wisdom says it starts on 0, it technically it starts on 1.

Thread forever derailed.

[Stay Golden]

Best decade of music all comes down to what your preference of music is.

For Rock I would say the 70's
Rap the 80's
Blues and Jazz the 50's
Heavy Metal the 80's
Hip Hop the 90's
Reggae 70's
Dance, Rave, Electronic the 90's

Country N/A :boo:

[Traditional_Ale]

Best decade of music all comes down to what your preference of music is.

For Rock I would say the 70's
Rap the 80's
Blues and Jazz the 50's
Heavy Metal the 80's
Hip Hop the 90's
Reggae 70's
Dance, Rave, Electronic the 90's

Country N/A :boo:

Um, last I checked, "Metal" just keeps getting better and better. This very site has an excellent "Metal" thread I definitely endorse checking out.

[transplant99]

Some ugly, ugly ****ers used to make music.


None moreso than Donald Fagan IMO..actually Steely Dan was fugly overall.



http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Music/Pix/pictures/2009/7/15/1247670864410/Walter-Becker-and-Donald--001.jpg

[Pierre "Monster" McGuire]

Best decade of music all comes down to what your preference of music is.

For Rock I would say the 70's
Rap the 80's
Blues and Jazz the 50's
Heavy Metal the 80's
Hip Hop the 90's
Reggae 70's
Dance, Rave, Electronic the 90's

Country N/A :boo:

Not to be that guy, but Hip Hop is the overall culture, whereas rap is an element of Hip Hop. So for Rap music I'd say mid-80's and early 90's were bar none the glory years for rap as an art form.

[BlackRedGold25]

Some ugly, ugly ****ers used to make music.

How else would they get laid? Posting gifs on the internet wasn't going to do it!

[Stay Golden]

Not to be that guy, but Hip Hop is the overall culture, whereas rap is an element of Hip Hop. So for Rap music I'd say mid-80's and early 90's were bar none the glory years for rap as an art form.

Fully agree. 85 to 95 the best years for me as well and glad you pointed that about Hip Hop. Rap was the music Hip Hop was the scene.

"2 turn tables and a microphone"

[Magnum PEI]

Rap is the spoken word part of hiphop, ie- what the MCs do. Hiphop is the genre. Though it seems like they're pretty much interchangeable terms at this point.

[sclitheroe]

The best decade of music is unquestionably happening RIGHT NOW. We have never, ever, in human history, had as much easy access to as vast and diverse a catalogue of recorded music as we have right now. From Amazon and iTunes to YouTube, to Rdio and Spotify, specialty stations like jazzradio.com and XM/Sirius, artist websites, forums, etc, you can be exposed to and sample more artists, and more music, from more genres than you probably have lifespan remaining.

You don't even need to worry anymore about what time period produced the best music anymore - it's one vast, evolving continuum of output and artistry, with all the influences, torch passing, evolution, and breakthroughs at your fingertips.

[polak]

Dance, Rave, Electronic the 90's


No Way.
While I agree that the 90's had some great acts... Robert Miles, Deep Forest, Prodigy Daft Punk... etc. It pales to the 00's where the scene exploded. People just don't like to admit it because there is NO WAY that the '00s could possibly considered the best of anything musically...

Saying the 90's were the peak for electronica is like saying the 50's and early 60's were the peak of rock music, when really, thats when things were just starting to ramp up.

Unless of course you're counting the early 90's dance songs but that really seems like its own genre... Are you going to include these two under the same umbrella? :bag:

siBJXjVLnVs

Fz8soX4_NzE

[Stay Golden]

No Way.
While I agree that the 90's had some great acts... Robert Miles, Deep Forest, Prodigy Daft Punk... etc. It pales to the 00's where the scene exploded. People just don't like to admit it because there is NO WAY that the '00s could possibly considered the best of anything musically...

Saying the 90's were the peak for electronica is like saying the 50's and early 60's were the peak of rock music, when really, thats when things were just starting to ramp up.

Unless of course you're counting the early 90's dance songs but that really seems like its own genre... Are you going to include these two under the same umbrella? :bag:

siBJXjVLnVs

Fz8soX4_NzE

I would agree the early 00's was incredible but the 90's can't be overlooked. Dance music is really to difficult to label. Far too many genres Ambient, Trance, Electronic, Drum and Bass, House, Techno just to name a few.

Some of my personal favorites of the late 90's -00's would be Tiesto, Fatboy, ATB, Crystal Meth, Benny Benassi, Faithless, Paul Oakenfold. Etc.

[polak]

Oh definitely. ATB is one of my all-time favorites.

Thats what makes the '00s so great in my opinon. You have the 1999-2003 where trance really started to take form and then 2005-2008 where you saw house become more melodic with the likes of deadmau5 and (early) guetta.

[Hemi-Cuda]

The best decade of music is unquestionably happening RIGHT NOW. We have never, ever, in human history, had as much easy access to as vast and diverse a catalogue of recorded music as we have right now. From Amazon and iTunes to YouTube, to Rdio and Spotify, specialty stations like jazzradio.com and XM/Sirius, artist websites, forums, etc, you can be exposed to and sample more artists, and more music, from more genres than you probably have lifespan remaining.

You don't even need to worry anymore about what time period produced the best music anymore - it's one vast, evolving continuum of output and artistry, with all the influences, torch passing, evolution, and breakthroughs at your fingertips.

my parents got to see the likes of Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Pink Floyd, Queen, and so many more legendary bands perform live, with their original lineups at their peak. i don't, so they win

[polak]

my parents got to see the likes of Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Pink Floyd, Queen, and so many more legendary bands perform live, with their original lineups at their peak. i don't, so they win

Your parents also had no chance to see their favorite band unless they were lucky enough to be able to go to a show or they caught the once in a blue moon performances on TV.

They had to hope that their favorite song came on the radio, listen to it on expensive, low quality analog players or pay for the record and only be able to listen to it at home, in their room.

They had little exposure to new bands outside of the mainstream. Finding a song by an unknown band that they didn't know the name of would be basically impossible.

Contrary to popular belief, they had to put up with just as much terrible pop music as we do. Guess what one of #1 songs of the fabled "greatest year of rock", 1969, was?

h9nE2spOw_o


You can still watch and listen to all those bands you mentioned... at your convinience... where ever you like. You can even find rare covers they may have only played at one show. You can hear songs by the Led Zep that your parents might have never even known existed.

I can definitely see the logic behind calling this the greatest era in music.
There is literally something for EVERYONE regardless of taste, just click of the mouse away.

[Shawnski]

Contrary to popular belief, they had to put up with just as much terrible pop music as we do. Guess what one of #1 songs of the fabled "greatest year of rock", 1969, was?

h9nE2spOw_o

You do realize to this day that song is STILL an extremely popular song, especially at weddings?

I outta know... I DJ a lot of them. I will probably play it tomorrow for the cake cutting. Chaka Demus covered it more recently.

Pvo706pgnGA

[Itse]

There's inevitably some good stuff you have to cut out, but I think I'd pick 1982-1991. Between that era you get pretty much everything from old school heavy, punk and disco funk to industrial, funk fusion metal and electronic. Goth rock. Rap. House.

From Breaking the Law to Safe from Harm, from White Wedding to Personal Jesus, from Plastic Surgery Disasters to Nevermind... From Talk Talk to Tom Waits, from Rick James to Beastie Boys, from Cyndi Lauper to Mr. Bungle, from Leonard Cohen to KMFDM. Queen. Zappa. Talking Heads. The good Metallica. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds. Relax. Sweet Dreams (are made of this). The Sun Always Shines on TV.

I really could go on. Since my teenage years were in the early nineties, I guess that would qualify me as a hipster.

But I have to say I'm pretty sure I was happier to be a teenager in the nineties than I would have been in the eighties.

Thank Science for recorded music :)

[Table 5]

The best decade of music is unquestionably happening RIGHT NOW. We have never, ever, in human history, had as much easy access to as vast and diverse a catalogue of recorded music as we have right now. From Amazon and iTunes to YouTube, to Rdio and Spotify, specialty stations like jazzradio.com and XM/Sirius, artist websites, forums, etc, you can be exposed to and sample more artists, and more music, from more genres than you probably have lifespan remaining.


I'm not buying it. This might be the best decade in terms of access to music, but part of the magic of the music experience is discovering new bands and completely new sounds....and doing it in a contemporary setting makes it all the better. As awesome it might be for someone to discover Dylan now, imagine how cool it must've been back then when the songs actually meant something and the sound was new? Context is king.

This decade is also pretty terrible when it comes to sound quality. Most of the time we listen to crappy compressed music on crappy earbuds or computer speakers. And last time I checked, satellite radio still sounded like you were listening to a canned AM station.

[habernac]

KISS changed music as we know it? They did write the most unintentionally funny lyrics of all time.

She's a dancer, a romancer.
I'm a Capricorn and she's a Cancer
She saw my picture in a music magazine


And you watch me playin' guitar
And you feel what my fingers can do
And you wish you were the one I was doing it to

KISS was legendary not for music, but for what they did for live shows. Their music is clearly mediocre.

Um, last I checked, "Metal" just keeps getting better and better. This very site has an excellent "Metal" thread I definitely endorse checking out.

Ugh, the grunting crap destroyed metal. The guitars sound great, but the "vocals" ruin it for me. I don't need everyone to sound like Joey Belladonna, but having most vocalists sound like Satan from some bad horror movie sucks.

[sclitheroe]

I'm not buying it. This might be the best decade in terms of access to music, but part of the magic of the music experience is discovering new bands and completely new sounds....and doing it in a contemporary setting makes it all the better. As awesome it might be for someone to discover Dylan now, imagine how cool it must've been back then when the songs actually meant something and the sound was new? Context is king.


I disagree with this _personally_ - the really good stuff is timeless. I didn't need to live in the 50's to have Wes Montgomery's guitar playing knock me on my butt the first time I heard it. And thanks to modern streaming, I was able to explore his influence and impact forwards and backwards amongst his peers, successors, and research his influences.

I can see your point though about enjoying listening to the "hot new thing" in its proper context; a lot of people enjoy that aspect of music. I've found as I've gotten older it's mattered less and less to me personally (and perversely, the older I get, the older the music I listen to is..I'm gradually and unstoppably listening to earlier and earlier stuff - Charley Patton is on heavy rotation these days, and that's from the 30's...and even some of his stuff is knocking me on my butt when I hear it, because its so fundamental to the sound of blues that would develop years later)



This decade is also pretty terrible when it comes to sound quality. Most of the time we listen to crappy compressed music on crappy earbuds or computer speakers. And last time I checked, satellite radio still sounded like you were listening to a canned AM station.

Just like people listening to Dylan at the time eh? The 60's were hardly a paragon of high fidelity home audio for the average person.

[FanIn80]

Not really on topic, but LOVE the shout out to Bon Scott.

One of my all-time favourite rock and roll voices. My two biggest musical peeves are Metallica fans who have never listened to anything prior to the Black album, and people who think Brian Johnson "sounds just like Bon Scott."

5tCyJzI-6kc