List of albums that will still be popular 50 years from now...
We all know that classical music will still be on demand 50 years from now, but what about pop music that will still be on demand? I'd like to list few titles and the rest leave to the contributors!
1. Henry Mancini "Pink Panther" as the best score he's ever wrote 2. Sesame Street "Born To Add" 3. Believe it or not, Michael Jackson's "Thriller" will still be there and hot! 4. Miles Davis "Kind of Blue 5. Dave Brubeck "Time Out"
My grandpa, the Dachau concentration camp detainee, once asked me never listen to Wagner as this music was played during mass murders of detainees in camps of death. Later I learned that David Oystrach was playing Wagner's music.
The lesson is that dictators such as 'Putler' or Hitler or even Killary had have their own music preferences and it shouldn't really mean that "Balalaika" sucks because 'Putler' likes that. Balalaika, harmonica and dobro are Russian folk instruments and music put together for Russian folk ensembles will certainly live forever same as music and instruments of any other nation.
I understand your concern with a perceived Trump connection, but this cultural debate precedes the press-elect by a good 60 years. In my opinion, there is no thoughtful consideration of rock n roll's historical context that does not include race. I've been posting about that issue here for more than a decade. Since this thread is speculation about the place of our contemporary music in the future, it kinda begs consideration of the past.
In 50 years newborns will have two chips implanted in their heads to stream (if streaming will be the right choice of words) their parents' music, and the other to fill with music of their generation's. Storage capacity is infinite, Later in life they may choose to remove either depending on their preference.
Live music will be enjoyed by millions of people simultaneously via this technology, thus ending a band's need to tour. People may or may not gather to participate en masse, or simply lounge about in their pajamas in the comfort of their homes and share the experience audibly.
Your neighbors will no longer complain about playing your music too loudly, people won't be walking the streets with wires stuffed into their ears. Cellphones have become obsolete, replaced by a dimple one applies to either corner of one's mouth in order to transmit.
That being noted...
Led Zeppelin I Pink Floyd Dark Side Of The Moon Dave Brubeck Live At Carnegie Hall A Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack King Crimson All Classical music All jazz music Whaling songs.
Come on, guys! Donald Trump is not even sworn yet and we already have a racial spin on music! Should this be the case then yes, we should start listening to "favorite Chinese instrumentals" and middle-eastern music before making any comments here. Or, should Putler gets it his way, to "Balalaika Favorites" ;-)
Well, Frank, @oregonpapa , Being a music dealer I don't recall selling those for the past 35 years, so it doesn't seem to add-up to the subject, but the future is always unpredictable and may 'resurrect' some of the artifacts and bring it back to life :-)
The first album ... actually it wasn't an album, it was a single record at 78 rpm. that's all we had. Fifty cents each It came out in 1954. This is what we listened to when I was in Jr. High ... and that was before the invasion from England when the White musicians stole the traditional Black Rhythm and Blues music and replaced the tenor sax with the guitar and renamed it "Rock."
So you are on your way too. But I will never stop listening to Bitches Brew and Pangaea by Miles and to some McLaughlin's music. Or Camaron's flamenco singing. And I hope all this will still be listened to, at least by some, in 500000 years. We live forever.
Nearly 20 years ago, I stopped listening almost every popular title listed here (simply got bored and please DSOM, LZ and RS listeners don't get offended, but it's true) and listen to mostly what's strange, weird, unusual and sophisticated plus indeed classical music. I get far more joy from Michael Rabin than from Michael Jackson for sure!
I'm seller of music for VERY long period of time (since my early teens) and as once Scarface told, I "don't get high out of my own supply" and usually what I sell I can only listen for grading purposes.
Czarivey, it's a long process, it takes time. But I am on my way, I gradually stop listening most of what I have been listening. In 500 years it is possible that humans will change quite dramatically, perhaps becoming sort of enhanced humanoids or something else, and music as we know it will be irrelevant. But in the near future Western and Middle Eastern classical music should survive.
Chuck Berry as the moving force in delivering a "race music" soundtrack for the counterculture of the 1960s and Elvis and The Beatles (very possibly Brian Wilson, too) as the moving forces in co-opting that back for mainstream Western culture and commerce.
The social context of rock n roll is important and my guess is that the r n r music that survives the longest will be that which played a pivotal cultural role, per the above.
Some of the Brill Building music (Carol King Tapestry, etc) may survive, too - but that's a different (not r n r) kettle of fish, IMO.
Well another way to look at this ... what are we listening to today that was composed/ recorded/ etc. from 1916? And by listening, I mean more than passively listening to. Possibly Stravinsky?
It just occurred to me that next year it will have been 50 years since Dylan and The Hawks (they didn't become "The Band" until the following year) recorded what are now called the Basement Tapes, in the summer, fall, and winter of 1967. I imagine musicians and songwriters at least will still be listening to them in another 50. Many of Dylan's anthems will certainly live on, their lyrics inextricably tied to the political, social, and moral movements of the latter half of the 20th century.
I think pretty much all of the above will be listened to in 50 years (not popular, but listened to), however 200 years from now will be a different story. Popular music will be significantly different and the only ones to survive (other than the Classics) will be the same names in the history books. Beatles, Elvis Presley, and a couple of wild cards. Those two are not my favourite bands incidentally, I'm just being realistic about what's going to happen. Music is as fluid as language, constantly changing, a chaotic social maelstrom, and all humans have a bias to the music they were exposed to between the ages of 13-30. Everything else sounds like rubbish. In 200 years people will look back on our popular music the same way we look back on Impressionist paintings. Historically important, not without their charms, but totally irrelevant and paling in comparison with whatever is happening currently, i.e. "What was great when I was a teenager/twenty-something." And this is all supposing we're not about to die in a nuclear war and go back to knocking rocks together to get the party started.
Identical to Brittney Spears, that almost faded away, Beyonce, Justin Timberlake and Beiber and other super-popular artists will less likely make it there...
*L* Well....the Beastie Boys got picked for 'Star Trek - Beyond", so it's kinda an open call. Floyd will likely make the long run. Dylan might make it with the historians, as might some of the Beatles. 'Ell, predicting the future is subject to the wild guess, Van Halen might make the cut. *LOL* "Hot for Teacher" opening drum solo reminds me of the idle of a AA fuel dragster; it might be used as an example to a post-petroleum era of what they sounded like, and what we liked to listen to when 'at the drags'. You could be pro-active about it...burn some CD's with your picks, box them up with a player (Don't forget to add the instructions), and create your own time capsule. Leave it in a vault of some sort, create a 'do not open until XXXX', and forget about it.... 'Course, you won't know what happens unless you include instructions on how to retrieve and reboot your frozen head....;) I like threads like this....network time wasters, but fun....
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Bestie Boys -- "Lisence to Ill" has VERY good chance to live 50 years more from now as it's almost lived already half-the term so as albums down bellow:"
You can't go 1 day in NYC without hearing at least one song from that album on the radio.
Tostadosunidos, Some hip-hop and rap is backed up with great instrumental and funky work! Speaking of rap
Bestie Boys -- "Lisence to Ill" has VERY good chance to live 50 years more from now as it's almost lived already half-the term so as albums down bellow: Public Enemy -- "...Nation of Million..." Run DMC -- "Raising Hell"
I think there will be many many artists whose work will still be regarded 50 years from now. Achtung Baby from U2 is a classic! AcDc, Iron Maiden and Metallica will always be heard. Different styles like Morcheeba, Zero7, Thievery Corporation... will be around for many years. Music is something that is constantly being rediscovered by younger generations. If there is some quality in it, it will stick around. I'm 40 years old, I have some musical knowledge, played some instruments a long time ago and have been discovering new artists and styles since I was a child. From Nirvana to Vivaldi, Beethoven to Megadeth, I've always loved all kinds of music and I love to discover new artists everyday- some of them passed away more than 50 years ago... Next week I'm going to watch a classical ballet: The Swan Lake. And in January I'm going to the Metallica concert in Hong Kong. And only a few years ago, at the age of 35, I started to listen to the Beatles. And I found them sooo good that I'm buying every record from them. Just to say that 50 years from now there will be people listening to what is being made today.
@ghosthouse : I was thrilled to discover Porcupine Tree because I just "knew" there Must be something similar to PF, like in the 90-ies (only then) I finally "discovered" Electronic Music of TD and KS, by listening to Pink Floyd.. First I just imagined the music, then, through Kitaro I found it! In another 50 years, its a good question how those kids are going to discover Sergeant or Gaucho? Definitely Not by listening to Top 30 ;-)
Pt. II--If the best known stuff is still heard and appreciated then the question becomes: which of the lesser stuff survives--the Pixies? Screaming Jay Hawkins? Blues Magoos? Jan and Dean? We can't know. You have piqued my curiosity about something that I can never know the answer to (unless I live to be 114).
I've been teaching pop music on guitar (and other instruments) for over thirty years and I'm amazed that "our" music survived the generation flip. It boggles my mind that I'm still showing kids how to play Beatles, Cream, Hendrix, etc. The music is 50 years old. That said, I had two young sisters in the last ten years who only wanted to play swing and western swing--nothing post-World War II. They've finally come around to more be-bop flavored stuff. I was born in the 50's but I love a lot of the jazz and solo delta blues from the 20's, 30's and 40's. A lot of the best stuff will survive, especially the best known (such as Elvis, the Beatles, Led Zep, Michael Jackson, Nirvana). I'm not qualified to comment on hip-hop or rap as they are outside of my realm of familiarity/understanding.
Hey Czarivey - Just something to think about. I was actually focused more on singles than whole albums. Somewhere there's got to be a list of top 100 recordings of all time. Go through that and see how many date from 50 years back. That would be interesting. 50 years back does put us in the middle of the 60s...a significant time for popular music. A transition period I would call it. but I'm no musicologist.
I think Mancini is a good call along with Miles. A couple more names that I think have enduring appeal are Sinatra (Summer Wind? Strangers In The Night? or the albums they were on) and any number of R&B performers: Ray Charles, Aretha, Stevie Wonder (! Cherie Amour), Temptations (Papa Was A Rolling Stone). Soul/R&B alone might fill up a big chunk of your 50.
bdp might be right about The Beatles Sergeant Pepper's BUT I'm thinking McCartney's "Yesterday" will be around, though I'd put Rubber Soul or Revolver ahead of Help!. Of course, I'm just talking North America/UK markets. Somebody with a broader world view might have some other thoughts.
sevs - you make an interesting point. I hung up my scientist hat a while back but I guess you never stop thinking that way...even if unconsciously. The other realization is how out of touch I am with today's "popular" music. Outside of some Radiohead and Wilco (MAYBE) not sure much music I like is getting significant airplay. This made me realize my frame of reference for contemporary popular music is 30-50 years old! Not that anybody else cares. Not sure I do, frankly.
I just hope the vastly over-rated Sgt. Pepper album will be forgotten, and the justifiably highly-rated Pet Sounds will endure with current and future listeners.
@ghosthouse : What about the tunes popular TODAY???!!! Yours is an answer of a scientist (whatdoweknow now), not an artist/dreamer (thatshowIseethefuture), you are my man!!! Point of constant/newer-ending arguments in my family: me a scientist, my wife an artist (allois.com) ;-) Once todays trend of "total immersion" (sound/smell/emotions) will be achieved, who would go with "just music"? If you have your pleasure neurons caressed by 2066 reincarnation of Justin Bieber (I am being politically correct to Obama/gay thing movement here), then who would downgrade to "just music"? Its like reading books nowadays, who does That!!??
Ghostouse, Thank for really good way to figure that out... Perhaps therefore I've mentioned Henry Mancini "Pink Panther". Not sure if Kenny Rogers albums will be popular 50 years from now, although he's been released all over... There are chances that Petula Clark will still be rockin on players, but less-likely Dorris Day except perhaps "Dorris Day Christmass Album".
Miles Davis "Kind Of Blue" is popular album of Miles Davis despite being jazz.
czarivey - Take a look at today’s most popular albums that date from 50 years ago and I’m guessing at least 1/2 of those (probably more) will still be popular another 50 years down the road.
Miles Davis’s music cannot be called popular music. Or John McLaughlin’s. Pink Floyd - Dark Side Of The Moon Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here Pink Floyd - The Wall Deep Purple - Machine Head Elvis Presley - various songs Not sure about anything else.
Wow, finally a thread which put me into a "thinking mode"!!! my first reaction is to put My list of My favorites, but since most of the tunes already mentioned do not "ring" with me no more (and my extended list of My favs is already at the Desert Island thread), how/what do I know?... Jazz is safe, its a new "classical", but what else? I think its the music which wont be translated into those upcoming new formats of "total immersion" or the music w/o follow-up developments. What I mean is that nobody (except me) listens to Stockhausen, Zenakis, Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze nowadays: it was absorbed by trance/house/club/new age(oh, my!) and sounds already dated to my kids. Who reads Philip K Dick or Asimov, you go and watch a movie but, say, Bradbury or Harlan Ellison will be printed because you cannot make a movie out of them. The same with music, if you cannot "improve" it by sticking plasma TV between the speakers, it will be preserved as-is. my bad, I tend to overthink everything but its such a juicy question that I could not help myself... ;-)
I find the saddest part of music today is the loss of the album structure. I can only hope future generations will rediscover how we used to listen to music.
Surprisingly, I'm not so sure about The Beatles. But the first two Band albums seem timeless to me. A lot of blues wears well, the same for Jazz. A lot of Pop music sounds dated even before it goes out-of-print.
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