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"Music was better in my day"


parker

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If there's a more trite clich? masquerading as analysis of the contemporary music landscape then I've yet to hear it. What's particularly upsetting is I'm comfortably inside the age group from which you'd expect to be bored by this daft position, so whenever I see my ever-diminishing circle of greying friends, I'm expected to agree with whoever holds forth about the state of modern music.

 

Anyone here willing to stand by that statement? Come answer for your sins. :)

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tartofmidlothian

Most of it's perspective. Most pop and indie music has been the same old shit recycled and sold over and over again to new audiences. When you're 14 everything seems fresh and new, but as you get older you've heard a lot of what's popular many times before, maybe slightly different, probably a lot better.

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In 1990, we had the happy Mondays, stones roses, inspiral carpets, etc. I was 17. Then, a year later, I started tasting the rave scene. So, my conclusion is, music was DEFINITELY better I my day

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Juan Jose Carricondo Perez

If you read some of the old newspaper clippings posted in the terrace, some of them say the same thing about football. Some of these are dated from the 1920's and 30's.

People tend to view things from their childhood through rose tinted spectacles.

 

That said, Justin Bieber is pish!!

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Looking through the charts throughout the years, it was always full of gash with the odd decent tune.

 

No different to today.

 

Rose tinted specs I think they call it.

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In 1990, we had the happy Mondays, stones roses, inspiral carpets, etc. I was 17. Then, a year later, I started tasting the rave scene. So, my conclusion is, music was DEFINITELY better I my day

 

And in 1991 Nirvana broke with Nevermind. We also got Pearl Jam, Screaming Trees, Rage Against The Machine, Manic Street Preachers, Hole, Eels, Foo Fighters, Smashing Pumpkins, Garbage, PJ Harvey, Queens Of The Stone Age. Other bands still around were Pixies, Breeders, Blur, Cocteau Twins, Nine Inch Nails, and Soundgarden,

 

Nowadays we are overwhelmed with Reality TV "stars" getting Number 1s because their prime time Saturday night show promoted them to death for 3 months beforehand. If it isn't that we have the likes of Ed Sheeran boring us to death doing multiple variations of the same song on an acoustic guitar. Whatever happened to kids wanting music to rebel against their parents? The current generation seem to be growing up as a bunch of wimps.

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My opinion is an expansion on Tart's "when you are 14 everything seems fresh".*

 

When I was 12 (1989) I started to get really interested in music, my main interest was the electronic music of the era. "Bands" like The Prodigy, Orbital, The Shamen, The Orb etc. Passing mix tapes between pals, recording pirate radio, I loved it. I also took a keener interest into my fathers music. He was a massive soul fan, particularly Stax/Volt although the more commercial Motown was also a favourite.

 

This evolved as I felt my taste was refining, I got into guitar music and a few years later (roughly 1993) I started to get interested in some of the things my friends liked, "indie" and older (for me) guitar music like Joy Division, The Beatles, The Doors etc. Now at the ripe old age of 37 with the noted exception of country, I pretty much have music to cover all bases.

 

The point? Everything that had already been made/was being made, was music in my day. As far as I'm concerned, it's easy to have music of the 60's/70's/80's as "my day" as they were all fresh and new to me.

 

I'm not as on the pulse as I used to be, I get my recommendations from pals nowadays as opposed to Melody Maker/NME/radio. My opinion is that the good is as good as older stuff and the shite is as shite as older stuff as well. Plus ca change...

 

*insert Frankie Boyle joke here

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Guest C00l K1d

 

 

And in 1991 Nirvana broke with Nevermind. We also got Pearl Jam, Screaming Trees, Rage Against The Machine, Manic Street Preachers, Hole, Eels, Foo Fighters, Smashing Pumpkins, Garbage, PJ Harvey, Queens Of The Stone Age. Other bands still around were Pixies, Breeders, Blur, Cocteau Twins, Nine Inch Nails, and Soundgarden,

 

Nowadays we are overwhelmed with Reality TV "stars" getting Number 1s because their prime time Saturday night show promoted them to death for 3 months beforehand. If it isn't that we have the likes of Ed Sheeran boring us to death doing multiple variations of the same song on an acoustic guitar. Whatever happened to kids wanting music to rebel against their parents? The current generation seem to be growing up as a bunch of wimps.

There is music beyond top 40 chart music.

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And in 1991 Nirvana broke with Nevermind. We also got Pearl Jam, Screaming Trees, Rage Against The Machine, Manic Street Preachers, Hole, Eels, Foo Fighters, Smashing Pumpkins, Garbage, PJ Harvey, Queens Of The Stone Age. Other bands still around were Pixies, Breeders, Blur, Cocteau Twins, Nine Inch Nails, and Soundgarden,

 

Nowadays we are overwhelmed with Reality TV "stars" getting Number 1s because their prime time Saturday night show promoted them to death for 3 months beforehand. If it isn't that we have the likes of Ed Sheeran boring us to death doing multiple variations of the same song on an acoustic guitar. Whatever happened to kids wanting music to rebel against their parents? The current generation seem to be growing up as a bunch of wimps.

 

I'm not the OP but, my guess is that you are kinda the person he refers to.

 

You note one band that wrote an album in 1991 then go and just mention a big list of bands that have formed since then. Including one where your example band split up and then a few members started again a few years later. You have attempted to date your view but kinda failed. It would've been better if you'd named artists that recorded in 1991, that may have enforced your view. However, you change your review by referring to modern day having number one songs from reality tv. Now, I've had a quick look at 1991 and Jason Donovan, Color Me Badd, Vic Reeves, Hale & Pace, Bart Simpson and ruddy Cher all had number ones that year.

 

You also refer to Ed Sheeran who does the very obvious guitar music. It's not my thing, but it DOES sell. People like it. Going back to the number ones of 1991 thing, I'll remind you that Bryan Adams spent 16 weeks of 1991 playing a similar style of song. Chesney Hawkes anaw.

 

All that without me getting into the perennially divisive Queen subject. Which I'm firmly in the "they're shite" side of the debate.

 

So, to summarise, it's easy to pick the good from one year and ignore that years crap. :)

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I'm 20 and I prefer a lot of older music or music I grew up with. My favourite genres are hip hop and dance music. Hip hop definitely was better back in the day but I'm really enjoying the new dance sub-genre deep house at the moment.

 

Pop music the now is utter crap but I suppose it's always been if you had to live through it. When I was born Take That were all the rage. Nowadays they're fondly remembered by many because nostalgia clouds their memories but at the time, those that didn't love them, probably couldn't stand them.

 

I'm sure Nicki Minaj and all the other talentless pop morons will be the same in 20 years.

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As my formative years where in the late 90s early 2000s I can 100% say that music is better now than it was then. There is different scenes now while the only alternative scene when I was growing up was emo and the only emo band I liked was sunny day real estate. Growing up I was downloading RATM, nirvana, hendrix, dylan, greenday, offspring, blink182 etc...on napster. Nearly all of this was their early 90s stuff. I despised the whole oasis blur thing, although I appreciate blur a little more now, apart from pulp the whole "britpop" thing was trash.

 

Unfortunately my era was spice girls, britney spears, destinys child etc... I suppose dr dre, eminem, biffy clyro, hundred reasons, the strokes got me through that time but it was slim pickings. At least the manufactured pop stars now have real producers behind them rather than constant covers.

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I'm 49. And right now I'm sat in the house alone blasting Genesis out on the computer. Proper music played by musicians who actually played instruments. Perish the thought

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Nothing wrong with saying that you prefer music from a particular era. You're unlikely to find much great motown music from 1924 or 2006. If you're simply going to say i enjoy music that came out when i was young because it reaffrims my ego then it's pretty lazy. There's nothing wrong with being lazy with art i should add - there's a lot of it and when you grow up and stop being 18 or whatever you don't have time to search out new music or films or books. Life gets in the way of getting access to the great music that always comes out.

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It reminds me of the 'back in our days you could leave your door unlocked'

 

What they fail to mention is that it was because everyone was so poor their was nothing worth stealing.

 

They will also fail to mention infant mortality rates, how a simple cut could kill you, how your bedroom windows would have frost on the INSIDE etc etc

 

But who cares about that, you never had to go through the arduous task of locking your door.

 

The gid auld days...

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Still plenty good music being made. You just need to look in the right places.

 

Agree with this. In my early teens i had , The Beatles, The Stones , Who Small Faces etc, then it was onto Hendrix, Cream Deep Purple Zeppelin etc, but as you say there are still good music being made today if you know where to look.

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It reminds me of the 'back in our days you could leave your door unlocked'

 

What they fail to mention is that it was because everyone was so poor their was nothing worth stealing.

 

They will also fail to mention infant mortality rates, how a simple cut could kill you, how your bedroom windows would have frost on the INSIDE etc etc

 

But who cares about that, you never had to go through the arduous task of locking your door.

 

The gid auld days...

 

My dad asked my why my mate's stag do was going to Lisbon, when he had his it was night in the local. I asked him where his holiday was that year - 'probably a weekend in blackpool'. I asked him what holidays he's been on this year and he reeled off half a dozen across europe and beyond. Like i said elsewhere, it's part of the ego to not see the world outwith your own experience.

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When I was growing up, and into my 20's, I hoovered up loads of stuff from the 1950's to stuff released the week before and found something great in most things.

 

Now I find myself comparing anything new I hear to stuff in my collection and I struggle to recreate that feeling of hearing something new and exciting (even though I soon realised that what I felt was 'new' was essentially a re-hash of earlier stuff, such as Oasis).

 

But I also know this is as much to do with circumstances or having kids and a wife who isn;t really into music, so I don;t get the chance to listen as much as I used to, and I am just out of the habit.

 

Bit rambling but I just wonder when i'll hear a new song that blows me away and makes me feel like the first time I heard Pet Sounds, The Doors, London Calling, Dolittle etc etc

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91 was the lick.

Albums released included:

Loveless

Bandwagonesque

Out of Time

Screamadelica

Nevermind

Foxbase Alpha

Blue Lines

Weld

Leisure

Apocalypse '91

Electronic

 

And Moby released Go, Prodigy released Charly, and Enter Sandman by Metallica came out.

 

No doubt however my enthusiasm is swayed by relativity as I turned 16 that year and with my failsafe fake ID was hitting Katch and North every weekend and Shona, who had a chest that was a teenage boys wet dream, was giving out :lol:

 

 

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I'm not the OP but, my guess is that you are kinda the person he refers to.

 

You note one band that wrote an album in 1991 then go and just mention a big list of bands that have formed since then. Including one where your example band split up and then a few members started again a few years later. You have attempted to date your view but kinda failed. It would've been better if you'd named artists that recorded in 1991, that may have enforced your view. However, you change your review by referring to modern day having number one songs from reality tv. Now, I've had a quick look at 1991 and Jason Donovan, Color Me Badd, Vic Reeves, Hale & Pace, Bart Simpson and ruddy Cher all had number ones that year.

 

You also refer to Ed Sheeran who does the very obvious guitar music. It's not my thing, but it DOES sell. People like it. Going back to the number ones of 1991 thing, I'll remind you that Bryan Adams spent 16 weeks of 1991 playing a similar style of song. Chesney Hawkes anaw.

 

All that without me getting into the perennially divisive Queen subject. Which I'm firmly in the "they're shite" side of the debate.

 

So, to summarise, it's easy to pick the good from one year and ignore that years crap. :)

 

I wasn't going strictly on one year - 1990/1991 - as I believe music scenes grow and stay for longer than that. I do agree that there is a certain percentage of crap that you got in the charts against good music. That percentage seems to have shifted to be 99.9% crap and 0.01% decent.

 

The biggest issue I have with the current music scene is that I don't see much in the way of 00s bands that will still be strong in 20 years. Most of the main ticket selling acts for the likes of the Hydro are bands that released hit records in the 90s or earlier.

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I wasn't going strictly on one year - 1990/1991 - as I believe music scenes grow and stay for longer than that. I do agree that there is a certain percentage of crap that you got in the charts against good music. That percentage seems to have shifted to be 99.9% crap and 0.01% decent.

 

The biggest issue I have with the current music scene is that I don't see much in the way of 00s bands that will still be strong in 20 years. Most of the main ticket selling acts for the likes of the Hydro are bands that released hit records in the 90s or earlier.

 

Was it not the same in 1991ish though? Most of the bands you listed earlier would have been unlikely to sell out a 13k seater arena in 1991. A, very, quick google shows that the big tours in 1991 were metallica, guns n' roses, simple minds and status quo. None of which made music that could be seen exemplifying early 90s culture the way the bands you listed did.

 

The criticism you throw at today's music scene could just as easily be hurled at the one you put forward or pretty much any music scene really.

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Arctic monekys, the killers, kasabian, and kings of leon seem to be the big hitters these days, all naughties bands.

 

It goes in cycles.

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BoJack Horseman

I think the problem is the generic word "music". Leaves your comment open to interpretation. I'm currently listening to Tame Impala. As far from Ed Sheeran as you get, yet Sheeran as touted as 'current' music.

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I have made a conscious effort with my daughters (aged 10 & 5) to expose them to as much varied music as possible over a number of years. I use a playlist on my iPod in the car which offers an eclectic a mix as possible and it's quite normal to jump between artists such as The Beatles, Abba, New Order, Doris Day, Biffy Clyro, One Direction, Avicii, Johnny Cash, Mozart, Motorhead or the theme from Postman Pat! I can honestly say that the technique has worked & they both enjoy most of what they listen to - though even my 10 year old thinks Justin Bieber is crap!

 

No one era has a monopoly of good music and everyone has their own taste. Personally my tastes tend to resonate with the late 70s, early 80s era, but watching the TOTP 1979 episodes on BBC Four, there is still a fair amount of crap amongst the good stuff. Even among the modern stuff there is some good music out there - it may not necessarily make the charts, but when exactly did it ever do?

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I think the problem is the generic word "music". Leaves your comment open to interpretation. I'm currently listening to Tame Impala. As far from Ed Sheeran as you get, yet Sheeran as touted as 'current' music.

Cracking band

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Was it not the same in 1991ish though? Most of the bands you listed earlier would have been unlikely to sell out a 13k seater arena in 1991. A, very, quick google shows that the big tours in 1991 were metallica, guns n' roses, simple minds and status quo. None of which made music that could be seen exemplifying early 90s culture the way the bands you listed did.

 

The criticism you throw at today's music scene could just as easily be hurled at the one you put forward or pretty much any music scene really.

 

I left GnR out as they were finished in the early 90s, yet Slash is now headlining the arenas. Metallica I missed, and should have included.

 

My main point is that the likes of Glastonbury, Reading and Leeds etc are still largely booking older bands for the main slots. The likes of Nirvana and Pearl Jam were headliners for the big festivals not long after they broke. Download and Sonisphere festivals are pretty much all based on older bands.

 

Other than the likes of The Killers I don't see many 00s bands lasting long at the top.

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The way we consume music has had a huge effect on the type of people who are contributing to the charts. As such, lazy old folk hear things on radio1 etc and think it represents the youth of today. It doesn't, it represents 14 year olds who buy singles.

 

I accept this is now starting to change as the charts get more up to date with how they compile data.

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I left GnR out as they were finished in the early 90s, yet Slash is now headlining the arenas. Metallica I missed, and should have included.

 

My main point is that the likes of Glastonbury, Reading and Leeds etc are still largely booking older bands for the main slots. The likes of Nirvana and Pearl Jam were headliners for the big festivals not long after they broke. Download and Sonisphere festivals are pretty much all based on older bands.

 

Other than the likes of The Killers I don't see many 00s bands lasting long at the top.

 

So the wheat will be separated from the chaff. Just like every other generation. A quick look at reading festival in 1991 show that Iggy Pop, the sisters of mercy and james were the headliners - only james were vaguely contemporary. With a cursory glance at history your points all seem to say "this is the way it's always been, but this time it's different".

 

The fact is comparing current music and all the music outwith the last, say, 5 years is always going to end up with a great deal more big bands from the past. If you're comparing 5 years of aggregate music with 50yrs aggregate music it's inevitable. Beyond that, you're just guessing that there won't be many current acts that will still be selling out big venues in 20years, but that's just a circular argument. It's not a great point to say 'i don't think many acts will make it because i don't think many acts will make it'. Especially when the whole point of the thread is that every generation has made that exact argument and always been proven wrong. Why do you think you're right when everyone else that's made the same point in previous generations has been wrong.

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Every person will say this at one point in there life.

Exactly Brandt,the thing is,in 100 years from now,indeed 500 years folk will still listen to the Beatles,Rolling Stones,Bob Dylan,Rush,Jimi Hendrix Experience and so forth,can anyone honestly say they'll be listening to chart stuff from today's musicians,I honestly doubt it.

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New music just now does sound shite but that is laziness on my part as I haven't been looking about for music other than the mainstream stuff, and I've always hated 99% of mainstream music.

 

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2

 

 

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2NaFish has got it. Frank Black IS following the model in the OP. Remembering the great of "his" era and completely ignoring the things he disagrees with about modern day happening in 1991 (as an example) it's common.

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All roads lead to Gorgie

Looking back to my teenage days it was bands like The Clash, Police, Blondie etc, who by that time were pretty mainstream in the sense that dominated the charts, that took my attention. I therefor won't criticize todays youth for following what is popular but there was something real about those bands unlike today. The Stone Roses and The Verve were my bands of the 90s. Since the turn of the century I have got more into Americana so couldn't tell who is at the top of the charts today. Our tastes change and we shouldn't get stuck in one era.

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BRAVEHEART1874

Music progresses and has become more sequenced / computerised with guitar loops etc but a lot of artist still actually play everything themselves they just don't need to spend hours in a studio wasting cash doing 20 takes just to get a guitar riff right . You have to laugh at the dj's in Ibiza jumping around to someone else's choons though, but people dissing today's music for tunes that were simply made up of basic g d and am chords with an odd 7th chucked in on a guitar yeah that still rocks big style ;)

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2NaFish has got it. Frank Black IS following the model in the OP. Remembering the great of "his" era and completely ignoring the things he disagrees with about modern day happening in 1991 (as an example) it's common.

 

I do buy lots of records and go to lots of gigs and festivals. I am not someone who only listens to music of my youth.

 

Recent purchases include Royal Blood, **** Buttons, Band of Skulls, Lykke Li; and Gaslight Anthem.

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Exactly Brandt,the thing is,in 100 years from now,indeed 500 years folk will still listen to the Beatles,Rolling Stones,Bob Dylan,Rush,Jimi Hendrix Experience and so forth,can anyone honestly say they'll be listening to chart stuff from today's musicians,I honestly doubt it.

 

I have spotted the odd one out and I'd like to claim my prize.

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I'm now in my 50's and have been into some great bands over the years but still find some belters these days. Rival Sons, Royal Blood, Horrors, Arctic Monkeys etc. I started listening to music in the 70's and, at the same time I had Deep Purple and Zepp there were Joe Dolce's and Rolf Harris's in the charts.

Was in my late teens in the 80's and for every Bunnymen or JAMC there were a Modern Romance or Kajagoogoo.

 

It's only right that I think the stuff "the kids" are listening to is sheeite. That's the way of the world. It's now easier than ever to find music you like. I think there was more good stuff in "my day" but there is a lot of good stuff about now.

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No doubt however my enthusiasm is swayed by relativity as I turned 16 that year and with my failsafe fake ID was hitting Katch and North every weekend and Shona, who had a chest that was a teenage boys wet dream, was giving out :lol:

 

I'd like to hear more about Shona.

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There is music beyond top 40 chart music.

100% this.

 

When I see/hear this sort of nonsense about music was better bla, I always think of this lyric from the rather sweetly titled Manics song, 'Nostalgic Pushead':

 

"So cool the new sound of the decade

Thinks it's so fresh not a post Elvis still

All taste is nothing old pictures blowdried

Rebellion it always sells at a profit"

 

You don't need to tread too far from the mainstream to find perfectly decent bands making perfectly decent music. If, however, you base your views on listening to the download charts on a Sunday, you kind of deserve what you get. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with that, just saying that it's indicative of only a very small part of what is available currently.

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Gregory House M.D.

Let's be honest here, people are being sold the same bullshit over and over again passed off as new songs. EDM is brutal stuff and is far and away the biggest genre today.

 

Martin Garrix was recently outed for it when someone played 4 of his songs all at the same time and it played like one song. It's brutal.

 

Link: http://www.onlythebeat.com/news/2014/08/15/fan-martin-garrix-listen-every-song/

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Kalamazoo Jambo

Glenn Miller.

 

Ah, those were the days. :wheelchair:

Surprisingly current. "I've Got A Gal In Kalamazoo" resonates to this day.

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Have a look through this (although admittedly it is only "top 40" music).

 

http://www.officialcharts.com/archive-chart/_/1/1990/

 

There were some good songs and some shite songs in every week of every year.

 

I've never been a top 40 type of person since I found an Ella Fitzgerald record, a Jimmy Hendrix record and a Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes record in my mum's record collection when I was about 12 years old. Changed my life.

 

When not listening to records from other eras, the best music years were late 80's-early 90's for me with the explosion of the indie scene.

 

The first Album I bought was Top Of The Pops 1978

The first single was the Smurf Song

The first CD was "Best of Jimmy Hendrix"

The first song I have played in every house I have bought (now 4 in total) is Roll With It by Oasis.

The last song I listened to was Let it Go from Frozen (FFS, this is what kids does to you)

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