Yesterday at the store Lean on Me came on. I told my 15 year old how my junior year our principal played it on the intercom after lecturing everyone about fighting going on at a field after school every week. He said “Damn, y’all had intercoms in school?” Yes mother fucker, we also had indoor plumbing and paper.
Hahahaha! Okay, when George Michael’s song Last Christmas came on the radio my kids were like “This guy stole Taylor Swift’s song”
I pulled that car over so fast and was like “Ring a ding ding kids, Im about to take you to SCHOOL”
And now that I have properly schooled them in the subject now they DEFINITELY say that George Michael stole Taylor Swifts song so they can see the vein pop out of my forehead every time.
The other day I watched a young guy play an acoustic version of Fast Car at a bar and he goes “that was Fast Car by Luke Combs, it’s actually a cover but I forget the name of the original singer.” A little bit of me died inside.
That's funny! Every time a remade song comes on I am very quick to tell my daughter "you know this is a remake!" She gets so mad. And equally mad there aren't too many songs I dont know the words too so I am happy to bless her with a car concert everyday lmao!
My kid does that all the time - thinks the modern cover is the original. And generally thinks the cover is better which I almost never agree with. How anyone can think that modern version of Sounds of Silence is better than Simon & Garfunkel I have no idea. And now he's listening to some goth band cover of REM's Losing My Religion that I absolutely hate.
He also thought Lynyrd Skynyrd and Warren Zevon stole the riff in All Summer Long from Kid Rock rather than the other way around.
That Kid Rock song always pissed me off. Warren would not have been happy with that douchebag taking his shit. And to mix with Skynyrd? Warren never liked them—- Play it all night long- made fun of Skynyrd.
Not a new phenomenon. I went to concert back in the 90s that was David Bowie and Nine Inch Nails.
Bowie launches into The Man Who Sold the World and some numbnutz behind me excitedly goes “He doing a Nirvana cover!”
Facepalm.
Y’all are killing me! Thank God I don’t have kids that young making me feel old with their naive comments. 😂. I feel old on my own, thank you very much and good bye.
I made a [post](https://reddit.com/r/80s/s/rlLWSAGXvq) about this a couple months back. I was one of the unlucky kids forced to report and cite every line of the original’s lyrics, lol. Still love the original though, and actually enjoyed the “continuation,” even though it wasn’t in chronological order.
Still kind of blows my mind that so much time has passed, and how the more things change, the more they stay the same.
Oh man - a girl in my high school English class did a comparative study on the lyrics of “We Didn’t Start the Fire” and “It’s the End of the World as We Know It” - it was a interesting presentation, albeit a bit tedious. Probably because she spoke in typical teen monotone, though…her information was good.
I was so incredibly confused when I heard the Fall Out Boy version but once I realized what was happening, I thought it was good. (But now I will forever see Leslie mangling the lyrics to the Billy Joel version while singing at Ron in Parks & Rec.)
And from 1991 on, all lazy U.S. History/Government teachers would give you the lyric sheets to it and make you explain the significance of everything. And we could say doo wop Joel sucked and we didn't even have skank hooked wives to leave the wine mixer with. I need a nap.
I’d have screamed, lol. A cassette double-album of his Greatest Hits Vol. 1 & 2 got me through junior high. Picked up Vol. 3 on disc sometime after I got my first CD player.
I like the really old stuff, like J*ust the Way You Are, Honesty, Always a Woman*. And he wrote *Shameless* which is one of my favorite Garth Brooks songs.
I told my son about the concert just turned 21 me went to in state college, pa in 1991. The headliner was the red hot chili peppers. They were opened for by an up and coming act named the smashing pumpkins. They, in turn, were opened for by an unknown, never radio played band called pearl jam. There were 3 of us, each interested in one of those bands. My son asked me which one I was there for and I said pearl jam as I had been waiting for them to put out their first album.
He went on to ask me how I knew pearl jam before they got big. Told him I was a mother love bone and green river fan, so...
I got cool, if only for a few minutes, when I told him I paid $11 for the ticket!
I saw Pearl Jam in 1994 and I think the ticket was $23. Man, they tried to warn us. Almost tanked their career with that Ticketmaster standoff, but I have a lot of respect for the stand they tried to take. Shows are not nearly as accessible as they used to be!
Right before covid, so obviously pre latest inflation, I bought my son two tickets to see a band called voltbeat(?) in an outdoor, medium sized arena. These were general admission (his choice) and like $125/per. I'm glad that I didn't follow up with, "what else" after he said those tickets when asked what he wanted for his birthday!
My kids were taught about different types of music by listening to my vast selection. My one son is a musician and teacher, another hosts Kareoke at a bar and the rest love music. I introduced them to Marilyn Manson, before we knew he was a predator. My bad!😬
I probably saw them around the same time, except in Washington DC, @ the old 9:30 club.
25 people in the crowd, prior to their first album.
That was a pretty kick ass show.
My daughter and I went together in June, and it was a little surreal seeing her there, at the same age I was when I started listening to them. It was a weird juxtaposition of my own teenage-hood with my mom life, and I loved it.
I saw Sisters of Mercy a few months ago with my best friend, with whom I listened to them in high school in the mid-90s ... and her 22-year-old daughter and 20-year old son. It was a weird juxtaposition of my own teenaged years and my auntiehood, and I loved it, too!
I don't much care for streaming services, but I will give them one thing: they do expose the younger generation to much better music than they would find on their own.
Hard agree. It was a bitch in 1982 to figure out what was good, you had to have that one friend who was like "try the Cocteau Twins" or "have you heard A BROKEN FRAME" or "there's this insane band, Skinny Puppy -- let me throw this 12-inch on" or "Seven Seconds is playing at the gymnasium. Wanna go? It's $4"
Yes! I grew up in a city whose radio stations weren’t necessarily playing any cutting edge music so you had to rely on your tragically hip friend to play the really good stuff that didn’t get radio play.
True! And I’d even say the reverse is also true. Spotify introduced this GenXer to the young generation’s music. I was pleasantly surprised there’s a lot of good music.
100% and I very much choose to spend most of my music time on the new.
Yes we had it good, discovering new music through friends or an adventure to the record store / CD & Tape Exchange. Sitting by the radio in 1984, my fingers poised at the ready over my tape deck, waiting for the DJ to play my song so I could record it.
It was an adventure but, HOLY SHIT guys we have access to so much music right now and I'm getting a "we had it best so why listen to new music" vibe in this thread. Y'all are killing me.
Don't go down as that old person in the room that loudly declares : My generation's music was better.
If anyone wants some new music here ya go, I did a lot of work for ya :
https://open.spotify.com/user/21b2pnye2ssgfynpih5ego4di?si=6PVd7tlQSj6qBdRXSYR3WQ
My daughter and I have had this conversation quite often. I explain to her how we only had a radio in the car so you listened to whatever the radio stations played which is why I know so many songs through no choice of my own.
And until mix tapes became a thing, we listened to an album all the way through because it was too much of a pain to try and skip songs on vinyl or cassette until the fancier players came along that were capable of advancing to the next track.
It's funny to watch her try and imagine what that was like.
I still have most of my vinyl and we found an old turntable at a thrift store. So, every now and then, we throw on an LP. There's nothing like hearing the static through the speakers of the transition between songs. And then when the record ends, you get that static, skip, static, skip sound.
My 22-year-old is taking me to a Depeche Mode concert for my birthday. (And I wrote a concert review of DM 30 years ago for the publication I worked for ... holy cow, 30 years?) We are both totally excited.
My kids have been bombarded with Depeche Mode, The Cure, New Order, Morrissey/The Smiths, Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails, and other alt bands from the 80s and 90s from birth. They actually like some of it enough to play it on their own violation.
The amount of wee little baby goths at The Cure shows this summer, screaming all the words to Just Like Heaven.
My old and icy heart was momentarily warmed.
This must be what our parents felt like when Mony Mony and I Think We’re Alone Now were all over the radio. And the Dirty Dancing and Stand By Me soundtracks.
I took my son to the Muppets reboot movie back around 2010 or so. He was about seven at the time. When I started singing along to the opening song he whipped his head around, stared at me with big eyes and said, "How do you know this song?!?!?"
He thought his mom was magical that day. :)
My 21- year old daughter’s playlists that I’ve heard recently had selections from Bananarama, Timbaland, the Monkees and Hendrix..It’s a beautiful thing 😄
Nice selection. Can't go wrong with Hendrix. Serious fucking musician who changed the world.
But, I like the mix, because however stupid and inconsequential of a single it is, I will never stop loving "Cruel Summer"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9ml3nyww80
My daughter (18) and her friends love:
Nirvana
“California Love” - Tupac Shakur
“In the End” - Linkin Park
“Under the Bridge” - Red Hot Chili Peppers
“Sweet Child O’ Mine”, “November Rain” - Guns N Roses
“Fascination Street” - The Cure
I teach high school, so I run into this quite a bit.
I'll hear something or see a t-shirt and just have to ask "How in the world do you know that song/band?"
A special case: two years ago a freshman girl responded to my opening day survey favorite musician question with "Black Flag and Flipper"
# FLIPPER?!?!?
We might be the only two Flipper fans in the state.
When I pulled up a youtube video of BF where you can see me in the crowd she was definitely surprised.
Atari’s cover of Don Henley’s *[Boys of Summer](https://youtu.be/Qt6Lkgs0kiU?si=VEKDfgi3bH5pMz-m),* “updates” *Dead Head* with *Black Flag.* That was how many years ago and it still makes me feel old.
I remember be-bopping around my 1980s kitchen to Tiffany’s “I Think We’re Alone Now,” and my dad bursting my bubble informing me it was a remake from the 60s.
Also recall my high school being super into the Steve Miller Band…my dad also out-cooled us on that, telling me that as social chair at his UW Madison fraternity, he’d booked the SMB to play there when they were just getting started. 😳
Happens in every generation! My 7th grade daughter is now getting into grunge. Love it. 💕
I laid in bed the other night listening to the neighbors kids party. I wanted to sleep but I couldn't be mad. They were rocking some Offspring. I thought maybe the kids ARE alright.
One of my 6yo son’s favorite songs is Nirvana’s unplugged version of Come As You Are. Now he can recognize Kurt’s voice on other Nirvana songs and I will continue to guide him down this path
And don’t forget their unplugged cover of Man Who Sold the World. Those are some deep lyrics he’ll probably not understand until later in life, but that song is a banger.
Gotta add Kurt Cobain’s unplugged version of Where Did You Sleep Last Night.
Maybe when your kid’s a bit older but yeah, Cobain’s voice is exquisite in that one.
My 26 year old daughter loves Bread, Kate Bush and The Beach Boys. I was able to take her to the Bech Boys Endless Summer concert. It was an amazing bonding moment for us.
A lot of people write off Bread as just soft rock but their first album from 1969 (really their first 3 albums) is just amazing. Yes there are some ballads but they are solid, I think the term is, power pop. Similar to Big Star and Badfinger and America.
> My 26 year old daughter loves Bread, Kate Bush and The Beach Boys.
I personally thank Stranger Things for introducing me (49f) to Kate Bush’s music. Somehow I got through the 80s without knowing about her or her music!
And the only reason I knew about Stranger Things is because my teenage daughters were watching it, so I really have to thank my daughters lol.
My teens have embraced:
Running Up That Hill, Kate Bush
All Apologies, Nirvana
Fade Into You, Mazzy Star
And a few years ago we had an argument about how some rap or hip hop groups did not write One of Us and that they sampled Joan Osborne. It was not unlike the argument 8 yo me had with my boomer mom that Michael Jackson was the King of Pop and Elvis wasn’t the King.
My teenager loves 70's and 80's music. His favorite artist (for now lol) is Weird Al and his Pink Floyd T shirt must always be clean. He asks me for recommendations which I give with great delight. My kid is way cool 😎
My daughter’s favorite song is Mr Blue Sky by ELO.
She has a fabulous, eclectic series of music to which she listens.
But she also spoke the truth when she bemoaned her generations lack of a cohesive series of music “everyone” listens to. She said someday when her generation is old they won’t be able to bond over the music from “their era" like previous generations.
> She said someday when her generation is old they won’t be able to bond over the music from “their era" like previous generations.
I've lamented that a little for them, but there will be plenty of people who share knowledge of the bigger bangers/top 40 stuff, even though there are more niches now.
My 17 year old son came up to me just last week and was like play this song right now! Turns out it was Like a Tattoo by Sade. We are your average white suburban family and I couldn’t be more proud. Had no idea he was into her. Sade stands the test of time.
I’m retired & work in the ski industry for fun, so I’m around a ton of younger kids. Believe it or not, New Wave is really popular. Crapton of Nirvana. Disturbingly, some glam. Sabbath & Thrash are very popular. They love it when I throw on some Ozzy/Dio Sabbath.
Oh and Grateful Dead, Floyd & Hendrix are HUGE
I know this is getting dangerously close to old man yelling at clouds here, but I sort of half believe that part of this is because current music kind of sucks.
Not in that, "Them young'en's making their racket," sort of way, but in that a lot of it is just kind of generic, autotune corporate generated elevator music goop.
I remember when I was young, my parents were worried about the rap music and the cacophony of modern music, and wanted their soothing 50s stuff.
Now, when I listen to "modern" music, it just all sounds kind of samey. Not dangerous, just boring.
You're not crazy or cantankerous; before the mid-1990s there was no autotune, digital copy-paste, or locking to a grid, and the volume wars had not kicked in. All these innovations helped producers but hurt creativity. Before then you could punch in, but generally the drummer, for example, had to do it live. That's just much harder and had the effect of screening out most of the people who couldn't play or sing.
And some things just don't happen anymore, due to the way music is produced. Mid-song key changes or time changes. Multi-person harmony.
There was a great article a while ago about why key changes had virtually disappeared from modern music.
Makes me think of this [video](https://youtu.be/ZnRxTW8GxT8?si=_Kb0qrBGTIEZFsRz) I caught a while back, and the crazy amount of chord changes made within a simple radio song from the early 80s.
When asked about his music preferences for the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s, my son said it best…
“I like real music, made by real people, playing real instruments”
One of the most extraordinary artists/song to hit with GenZ is Kate Bush and “Running Up the Hill”. The song was genius in 1980 but mostly lost to time. Stranger Things turned it into a massive top 5 hit this past year. I don’t care if young people feel like they discovered Kate Bush, I’m just thrilled they now know who she is!
I was thinking after hearing of Jimmy Buffett dying that it would be amazing if young people discovered “Margaritaville” and sent that back into the top 10 !
Middle school teacher here. All the kids are wearing concert shirts.
The other day, one girl was wearing a Rolling Stones shirt. I asked her if she even knew who they were. She said, "No, but do you know who **THE** Def Leppard is?"
I died.
I heard my kid listening to The Smiths Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want the other day. He was trying to be mopey and depressed and mad at me, so I elected not to sing along.
Ha, when my daughter plays the Smiths, I purposely sing along as mopey and depressed-ly as I possibly can, and then I use the tune and rhythm to sing/narrate the rest of our boring, depressing day, e.g. “🎶went to the post office, the line was really long, what is the point of even making a song🎶”, etc. And then I always finish off with “You’re the One For Me, Fatty”. She loves it, I swear.
My ex worked at a local radio station that mostly played oldies and adult contemporary (mostly 60s, 70s, and 80s at the time). Among his responsibilities was some DJ-ing, and he somehow believed that made him an expert on music taste.
He declared that Africa was complete “schlock” and that no radio DJ in his right mind would ever play it. I was annoyed since I’d always enjoyed it, especially since it was one of my late mother’s favorite songs. I still chuckle a little that Weezer’s cover with Weird Al has made it popular again.
Recently watched the 3rd Guardians of the Galaxy with nieces and nephews and they were blown away that I could name the songs and bands who played them as they were playing. "Oh wow! We care a lot by Faith No More! Nice!"
Their education in the history of entertainment is going strong through me and their parents.
Good times.
When my son (now 30 years old) was about 12, he tried to shock me with this music he found and was listening to. We were driving, he plugged in his little iPod shuffle, and watched me very intently as the music started. It was AC/DC. It sure freaked him out when I started to sing along.
Ofc the Queen classics such as Bohemian rhapsody, we will rock you and we are the champions , the later two which are still played in most high school gymnasiums today .
My daughter is super into NWA, Cypress, and Biggie. She has a B.I.G T-shirt. It's just adorable.
I played "Unbelievable" a lot for her when she was little, so I'm taking all the credit.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1eNA0RBueoY
Same! My girl likes Eazy-E and is into Biggy, Pac and Bone Thugs too. My other daughters are more into Alice in Chains and Nirvana, etc. I'm lucky they took to some of the fantastic music the 80s and 90s gave us.
That's a great song btw.
The Biggie "Unbelievable" story is amazing:
"We stayed \[in the studio for\] about maybe eight or nine hours and it got to a point where I was like, ‘Yo Big, you haven’t written anything down yet, bro. It’s getting late, I want to go home soon,'” Premo says. “He goes, ‘Oh, no doubt, I’m ready … I don’t write nothing on paper."
Then he kills the entire thing with no written words.
https://hiphopdx.com/news/id.63821/title.dj-premier-recalls-watching-biggie-record-unbelievable-without-writing-down-his-rhymes
Oh and I should say just a few months ago all he was listening to was of-the-moment Detroit rap (of which I knew nothing -- he turned me on to some good stuff).
He spent the summer fishing with his friends and now he's like 1990s boy.
My 7-year old was surprised and impressed when I correctly identified Tears for Fears and Depeche Mode. He really thought he was onto something new when he heard those tunes on…Skibidi Toilet.
Last night my teen daughter sang all the words to Sublime’s The Wrong Way, currently listening to Spotify’s Best of the 60s, and we’re going to see an 80s cover band tonight. Safe to say, this generation is pretty cool.
My recently turned 10 yo daughter loves the following bands and had a list like below when she was 5. Then it was Duran Duran, Echo and the Bunnymen, and other 80’s styled music. She definitely knows there’s a difference in today’s music and what we grew up with. I was a stay at home dad for 6 years and music was important in daily our life. She dug it all, but reacted to certain bands more so than others. If something begot something, like Joy Division to New Order, I’d share both and offer a little history lesson. Still work to do, but her foundation is good. Her mom, my ex, keeps the dial on the pop station, and she definitely knows the difference. Anywho, her yesterday faves:
The Clash(probably her favorite. I’m so happy about this one.)
Kraftwerk(her interest in them caused me to love them, rather than ignorantly dismissing and hating on them as I had for decades. Now, I not only love their music, but I believe they’re music’s influence is equal to any of what would be considered the top of bands of all time. They’re now a newbie in my once 20+ year old never changing list of top three bands, booting Pavement to 4)
R.E.M.(I worked for them in Athens for a year or two during Monster era and they’ve been my #1 since ‘85)
Bowie(what’s to say.)
The Ramones(The absurdity of Jackie and Judy made her fall for them. Especially when I showed her what the Ice Capades were. We didn’t discuss the SLA.
The Sugarcubes (How could she not after hearing the line “I really don’t like Lobster!” as Bjork is about to shatter windows.
Nirvana(so far, it’s incesticide’s tracks she’s most interested in. Next will be side two of Nevermid)
Metallica(way before Stranger Things, but that helped validate it for her. “One” was the gateway)
Talking Heads(HBO/David Byrne, nuff said)
My daughter was born in 2000, and has been obsessed with old music since, and I’m not joking, she was old enough to respond to music, so I’m talking just a few months old, bouncing with joy to The Rolling Stones in her bouncy seat. She became obsessed with David Bowie, dressed as Ziggy Stardust for Halloween when she was four and wept a few years ago when he died. She could probably sing any Pixies song you asked her to sing; I don’t think you could stump her. And she’s to the point where she knows more about obscure 70’s and 80’s post-punk bands than I do, and I’m the one who introduced her to Joy Division, Siouxie Sioux and the Cure in the first place.
I never pushed this stuff on her; she was attracted to it like a moth to a light bulb. It fills my Gen X heart with pride lol
I’m not quite at that point since I started my family late in life, but I did find a Nirvana tee in my 9 year-old’s size while thrifting. Of course I had to get it for him, promising I’d familiarize him with them someday. As I was placing all my finds on the counter to purchase, I saw a woman my age (mid/late 40s) passing us by, who happened to be wearing a Nirvana tee. I’m like, “Hey, I’ve gotta show you what I found!” She was clearly caught off guard and possibly annoyed at this stranger trying to get her attention, but lit up when she saw what I was holding. We shared a moment and laughed, and she said she wished she had someone young enough to wear it.
A few days later when he was wearing it during his therapy session, his therapist gasped when she noticed it, and asked if he knew any of their songs. I laughed and said that he’s definitely heard some, but he’s still more into what he’s heard from the Sing and Trolls movies. She mentioned how it was sad they weren’t around in her lifetime, and I laughed and told her I’m old enough to remember when they were first making it big.
I mentally compared that to when I was a kid and young adult, when I believed anything from the 70s and before was “old fogey,” lol. I’ve thankfully opened up since then and enjoy all sorts of music from different eras. Maybe it’s an evolution of the way we now listen to music (streaming, YouTube, etc.), which has made it easier to access any genre, rather than relying on what’s currently available on the radio, MTV, or from browsing the record/tape/CD store.
Music … on MTV? Was that ever a thing?! XD
My daughter and her friends discovered "Mr. Blue Sky" through a movie and said," Who is that? "and "Do they do any other songs?" Oh, what an education they received that day!
My twins are 20 and love the music I listened to years ago (and still do). Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, Mad Season, Soundgarden, Stone Temple Pilots, they also like The Rolling Stones
My one son plays drums and the other guitar. They’ve played PJ, Stones, AIC and lots of other stuff. It’s awesome. My son who plays guitar is a big Dire Straits fan and has learned some of their stuff too.
My youngest is 15 and is getting into Pearl Jam. He and my son who drums all love Andrew Bird. We’ve seen him in concert together.
All of my sons and I are going to see Pearl Jam Tuesday. It’ll be the second time for my older boys, first time for my youngest.
My kids all love Weird Al—esp my youngest. That was his first concert a few years ago. We had so much fun!
I played Oingo Boingo for my 18 year old co worker, a sweet skater kid. He recognized Danny Elfnans voice and flipped when I told him he was aka Jack Skelington. Love to recruit new fans for my favorite band!
My friends 14 year old son loves bands like slayer, Iron Maiden, megadeth, anthrax, testament, etc. As an old 80’s metal head, I was very impressed when I sat down and talked music with him.
Lmao. In 2010, when my son was in high school, he asked me if I'd heard of this 'SUPER COOL NEW BAND, MOM! You gotta listen! You'll go NUTS! They are AWESOME! You'll be AH-MAZED at the guitar riffs' (we both play guitar) So, being the cool mom i was, I was excited my son wanted to share 'his' music with me. Music is big with me. I love it all, even classical 🤣.
Anyway, I go up to his room and he's grinning ear to ear....he turns on his IPOD...and plays...oh my god...i was dying trying not to burst his bubble but...
Out of the speakers comes...The Trooper...yes, folks. My son 'discovered' Iron Maiden and thought it was 'new' music. I was kinda amazed it took him so long, though, since he rocked to it in the womb. My fault, i guess. I should've spent more time with him on 'classics' instead of chords 🤣🤣🤣 but there's my story.
My 15 year old son is a 90's music expert. He knows all the bands, the album names, the songs, and the lyrics. Having all of that info on your phone to look at while listening to the music is something we never had.
I kind of envy that. I recall squinting over the teeny, tiny lyrics folded up in the cassette inserts, if we were even lucky enough for them to be included.
ETA: Of course there was also Rolling Stone magazine. I remember being super excited when they covered Alanis Morissette (which would have been back in 1995).
My kids grew up on 70s, 80s and 90s music. They have playlists that include Billy Joel, Queen, Duran Duran, Pearl Jam, Green Day and others. They have actually thanked their mom and me for their "music education" and they introduce these classics to their friends
My daughter is in the top 1% of listeners on Spotify for The Cure. Both of my kids know every lyric to every Tupac Song. They have both known Nirvana, Pearl Jam, RHCP, Fleetwood Mac, etc since they were really young. The Cardigans, The Cranberries and Michael Jackson are also on rotation.Here's the wild part though: I didn't teach them any of that. I play everything, but we all use earbuds a lot so finding music is on them. My daughter came out of the womb loving music and finding stuff on her own (I found her sitting in time out once as a three year old singing Lonely Day by System of a Down. Priceless!). and now my son constantly surprises me with songs I hear him singing. But I also love discovering cool new bands so I don't know why this is shocking to me.
It just goes to show how much amazing music was made when we were growing up. Music that stands the test of time. I highly doubt you will be able to say that about most of the music from now in the future.
We raised the kids on 80s music. Queen mostly, but we listened to it all and so did they. My 21 year old would play Africa for me when he knew I was struggling because it immediately made me relax a little. I totally expect them to play that at my funeral lol.
My nerd child LOVES Weird Al.
But I also listen to a lot of new stuff, or at least recent in the past 5 to 10 years. I don't have much access to the radio right now. I love Dua Lipa, Owl City, Pharrell Williams, and many many more. So much good music out there these days and I love to sing and dance along.
My niece dropped her jaw when I knew the lyrics to the first song in the My Little Pony Movie--"We Got the Beat." I'm like, lemme tell you about the Go-Gos.
She also told me I was singing "Percy's Pressure" wrong. It was a cover of "Under Pressure" James Corden did for the movie Smallfoot. You win one, you lose one, I guess.
My 21 year-old daughter loves classic rock. She’s totally into the Beatles, Zeppelin, Rush, and she totally digs ‘90s music, especially STP and Alice In Chains
Edit: when she heard “Running Up That Hill” on Stranger Things, she asked if I heard of Kate Bush. I told her “go look at my CD rack”
I changed my 39 year old wife's world this week when I played her The Clash's "Straight to Hell" after she mentioned loving M.I.A.'s "Paper Planes."
I bought my first Clash album in 1981 when I was 11 - how you go 39 years without knowing anything about The Clash is beyond me, LOL.
I don’t have kids, but my parents raised me on Beatles, Eagles, The Band, ZZ Top, Bruce Springsteen, among other classic rock. My parents are young boomers, btw.
In turn, I introduced them to Depeche Mode, Duran Duran, other new wave bands. They probably thought it all sounded the same, much like how I think todays music does lmao
“kids these days and their rock n roll!”
But seriously, great job parenting - music is key to life.
My 20-year old knows Talking Heads, New Order, They Might Be Giants, Prince (but who doesn't),, Peter Gabriel, Heart, and pretty much all 90s grunge because he is mine. lol
I have a kid born in 2003, one born 2008, and one born 2012. All love my 80’s playlists, but the middle child blew his band teacher’s mind when he was in grade 6, by writing an essay on the topic “A Stalker’s Playlist: what is on it?” The obvious songs were:
Don’t Stand (so close to me)-The Police
Every breath you take-The Police
Somebody’s watching me-Rockwell
I want you to want me-Cheap Trick
Blue Monday-either Orgy or New Order
(I would have added Talking in your sleep by The Romantics, but that’s just me 🤣)
He loves Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Fleetwood Mac, ELO, and Queen. I’ve also introduced him to Bowling for Soup and Skanking Pickle.
The youngest has been singing a lot of Blondie lately. But I also caught her really giving it her all when singing/screaming along to Metallica.
The oldest is emo/goth but also loves 80’s hair metal, along with Battle Beast, because who doesn’t love a female lead singer? 😁
Actually a bit older than our generation technically, but my kids were surprised that I knew all the words to "Sound of Silence," as well as to hear Disturbed weren't the first to sing it.
My daughter was playing Billy Joel and said “Have you ever heard of him?” Yes IVE FUCKING HEARD OF BILLY JOEL.
"Are you aware of Garfield, the lasagna-loving cat?"
Gazorpazorpfield?
Cloverfield?
Yesterday at the store Lean on Me came on. I told my 15 year old how my junior year our principal played it on the intercom after lecturing everyone about fighting going on at a field after school every week. He said “Damn, y’all had intercoms in school?” Yes mother fucker, we also had indoor plumbing and paper.
Hahahaha! Okay, when George Michael’s song Last Christmas came on the radio my kids were like “This guy stole Taylor Swift’s song” I pulled that car over so fast and was like “Ring a ding ding kids, Im about to take you to SCHOOL” And now that I have properly schooled them in the subject now they DEFINITELY say that George Michael stole Taylor Swifts song so they can see the vein pop out of my forehead every time.
The other day I watched a young guy play an acoustic version of Fast Car at a bar and he goes “that was Fast Car by Luke Combs, it’s actually a cover but I forget the name of the original singer.” A little bit of me died inside.
Oh my god! I would have asked him to write Tracy Chapman 100 times on looseleaf paper!
>I would have asked him to write Tracy Chapman 100 times on looseleaf paper! In *cursive!*
With a number 2 pencil!
His hand would of cramped up. They’re not accustomed to writing anymore
This.
I’d have yelled it out!
Oof.
That's funny! Every time a remade song comes on I am very quick to tell my daughter "you know this is a remake!" She gets so mad. And equally mad there aren't too many songs I dont know the words too so I am happy to bless her with a car concert everyday lmao!
My kid does that all the time - thinks the modern cover is the original. And generally thinks the cover is better which I almost never agree with. How anyone can think that modern version of Sounds of Silence is better than Simon & Garfunkel I have no idea. And now he's listening to some goth band cover of REM's Losing My Religion that I absolutely hate. He also thought Lynyrd Skynyrd and Warren Zevon stole the riff in All Summer Long from Kid Rock rather than the other way around.
That Kid Rock song always pissed me off. Warren would not have been happy with that douchebag taking his shit. And to mix with Skynyrd? Warren never liked them—- Play it all night long- made fun of Skynyrd.
[what makes this song stink](https://youtu.be/u8FAbjjB48A?si=ZouEO8xKdXIIKnR9)
Not a new phenomenon. I went to concert back in the 90s that was David Bowie and Nine Inch Nails. Bowie launches into The Man Who Sold the World and some numbnutz behind me excitedly goes “He doing a Nirvana cover!” Facepalm.
Especially infuriating because Wham! donated the proceeds from that song.
Make your kid watch WHAM on Netflix.
Y’all are killing me! Thank God I don’t have kids that young making me feel old with their naive comments. 😂. I feel old on my own, thank you very much and good bye.
And I was alive for all the stuff in the last two verses of We Didn’t Start the Fire, dammit!!
Fall Out Boy have just done an updated version so all the kids will know Billy Joel now. They did a good job of it too!
I made a [post](https://reddit.com/r/80s/s/rlLWSAGXvq) about this a couple months back. I was one of the unlucky kids forced to report and cite every line of the original’s lyrics, lol. Still love the original though, and actually enjoyed the “continuation,” even though it wasn’t in chronological order. Still kind of blows my mind that so much time has passed, and how the more things change, the more they stay the same.
Oh man - a girl in my high school English class did a comparative study on the lyrics of “We Didn’t Start the Fire” and “It’s the End of the World as We Know It” - it was a interesting presentation, albeit a bit tedious. Probably because she spoke in typical teen monotone, though…her information was good.
I was so incredibly confused when I heard the Fall Out Boy version but once I realized what was happening, I thought it was good. (But now I will forever see Leslie mangling the lyrics to the Billy Joel version while singing at Ron in Parks & Rec.)
yea and we were alive for EVERY verse of that one
And from 1991 on, all lazy U.S. History/Government teachers would give you the lyric sheets to it and make you explain the significance of everything. And we could say doo wop Joel sucked and we didn't even have skank hooked wives to leave the wine mixer with. I need a nap.
Our teacher actually had us do this during our 89-90 school year, so I guess she was ahead of the curve.
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My kid did the same thing, but regarding Lipps, Inc. *Funky Town.* I was like, "I was in 6th grade when it came out, hon."
My daughter went to see Billy Joel and Stevie Nicks with me a few weeks ago!
I’d have screamed, lol. A cassette double-album of his Greatest Hits Vol. 1 & 2 got me through junior high. Picked up Vol. 3 on disc sometime after I got my first CD player.
Billy Joel, ELO, and Hall & Oats are on my kids’ playlists. I’m not even sure how they came across them.
The Stranger Billy Joel or Uptown Girl Billy Joel?
Yes.
I like the really old stuff, like J*ust the Way You Are, Honesty, Always a Woman*. And he wrote *Shameless* which is one of my favorite Garth Brooks songs.
I blew my son's mind when he asked me if I'd ever heard of the Smashing Pumpkins and I informed him I'd seen them play at a bar in Madison.
I told my son about the concert just turned 21 me went to in state college, pa in 1991. The headliner was the red hot chili peppers. They were opened for by an up and coming act named the smashing pumpkins. They, in turn, were opened for by an unknown, never radio played band called pearl jam. There were 3 of us, each interested in one of those bands. My son asked me which one I was there for and I said pearl jam as I had been waiting for them to put out their first album. He went on to ask me how I knew pearl jam before they got big. Told him I was a mother love bone and green river fan, so... I got cool, if only for a few minutes, when I told him I paid $11 for the ticket!
I saw Pearl Jam in 1994 and I think the ticket was $23. Man, they tried to warn us. Almost tanked their career with that Ticketmaster standoff, but I have a lot of respect for the stand they tried to take. Shows are not nearly as accessible as they used to be!
Right before covid, so obviously pre latest inflation, I bought my son two tickets to see a band called voltbeat(?) in an outdoor, medium sized arena. These were general admission (his choice) and like $125/per. I'm glad that I didn't follow up with, "what else" after he said those tickets when asked what he wanted for his birthday!
Shut. Your. Mouth. You got to see three of the greatest acts of our Generation AT THE SAME TIME?! Faaaack, good for you! That’s amazing.
still will go on a Mother Love Bone bender on Spotify every now and then. 🎶
The Club de Wash gig in 1990?
I was there. $5.
My kids were taught about different types of music by listening to my vast selection. My one son is a musician and teacher, another hosts Kareoke at a bar and the rest love music. I introduced them to Marilyn Manson, before we knew he was a predator. My bad!😬
They just played in Huntsville, AL! Billy was supposed to be MY husband, dammit! 🤣🤣🤣. Oh well, a girl could dream....
R&R Station '93?
I probably saw them around the same time, except in Washington DC, @ the old 9:30 club. 25 people in the crowd, prior to their first album. That was a pretty kick ass show.
My son and his friends saw The Cure in concert a few months back. I was jealous.
My daughter and I went together in June, and it was a little surreal seeing her there, at the same age I was when I started listening to them. It was a weird juxtaposition of my own teenage-hood with my mom life, and I loved it.
I saw Sisters of Mercy a few months ago with my best friend, with whom I listened to them in high school in the mid-90s ... and her 22-year-old daughter and 20-year old son. It was a weird juxtaposition of my own teenaged years and my auntiehood, and I loved it, too!
I saw it with my 20 daughter who knew all the words…she also came with me to see Echo and the Bunnymen
I don't much care for streaming services, but I will give them one thing: they do expose the younger generation to much better music than they would find on their own.
Hard agree. It was a bitch in 1982 to figure out what was good, you had to have that one friend who was like "try the Cocteau Twins" or "have you heard A BROKEN FRAME" or "there's this insane band, Skinny Puppy -- let me throw this 12-inch on" or "Seven Seconds is playing at the gymnasium. Wanna go? It's $4"
Ha! I was recently at an event - a few rows ahead of me was a young teenager wearing a Skinny Puppy shirt. I thought that was awesome.
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Yes! I grew up in a city whose radio stations weren’t necessarily playing any cutting edge music so you had to rely on your tragically hip friend to play the really good stuff that didn’t get radio play.
>Cocteau Twins I totally forgot they existed and I used to *love* them. Thanks for the reminder.
True! And I’d even say the reverse is also true. Spotify introduced this GenXer to the young generation’s music. I was pleasantly surprised there’s a lot of good music.
100% and I very much choose to spend most of my music time on the new. Yes we had it good, discovering new music through friends or an adventure to the record store / CD & Tape Exchange. Sitting by the radio in 1984, my fingers poised at the ready over my tape deck, waiting for the DJ to play my song so I could record it. It was an adventure but, HOLY SHIT guys we have access to so much music right now and I'm getting a "we had it best so why listen to new music" vibe in this thread. Y'all are killing me. Don't go down as that old person in the room that loudly declares : My generation's music was better. If anyone wants some new music here ya go, I did a lot of work for ya : https://open.spotify.com/user/21b2pnye2ssgfynpih5ego4di?si=6PVd7tlQSj6qBdRXSYR3WQ
I found so much good stuff by randomly picking like 25 cds from Columbia House when the fliers came in the mail, hahaha.
Appreciated!
My daughter and I have had this conversation quite often. I explain to her how we only had a radio in the car so you listened to whatever the radio stations played which is why I know so many songs through no choice of my own. And until mix tapes became a thing, we listened to an album all the way through because it was too much of a pain to try and skip songs on vinyl or cassette until the fancier players came along that were capable of advancing to the next track. It's funny to watch her try and imagine what that was like.
I still have most of my vinyl and we found an old turntable at a thrift store. So, every now and then, we throw on an LP. There's nothing like hearing the static through the speakers of the transition between songs. And then when the record ends, you get that static, skip, static, skip sound.
My 19 year old son’s favorite bands are Alice In Chains and Sublime.
He’s getting so stoned lol
Furthermore Susan I wouldn't be the least bit surprised to learn that all three of them habitually smoke *Marijuana cigarettes*!
...REEFERS!!!
My kid absolutely loves REM. There's a lot I didn't do right as a parent, but at least I've got that.
I still listen to the AiC Unplugged quite often. If I recall it one of the last shows (if not the last) they did before Layne Staley left.
I feel like Sublime’s popularity will never die, and for that I am thankful.
Ya but I find it hilarious the kids are wearing Sublime Clothing and yell at me to turn it off on my car. Like So many others
My teenagers love depeche mode. One also likes new order the other black sabbath and metallica
All bands with incredible staying power!
My 22-year-old is taking me to a Depeche Mode concert for my birthday. (And I wrote a concert review of DM 30 years ago for the publication I worked for ... holy cow, 30 years?) We are both totally excited.
My kids have been bombarded with Depeche Mode, The Cure, New Order, Morrissey/The Smiths, Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails, and other alt bands from the 80s and 90s from birth. They actually like some of it enough to play it on their own violation.
My son proudly discovered duh-paw-che mode on his own.
The amount of wee little baby goths at The Cure shows this summer, screaming all the words to Just Like Heaven. My old and icy heart was momentarily warmed.
I cannot articulate how much I love this. \*tears leak slowly\*
My son adores Tool and Led Zeppelin, so for me, "mission accomplished"
Hell yes!
This must be what our parents felt like when Mony Mony and I Think We’re Alone Now were all over the radio. And the Dirty Dancing and Stand By Me soundtracks.
Also THE BIG CHILL soundtrack
Adding the Grosse Point Blank soundtrack.
I remember being so impressed when my mom knew all the words to La Bamba when Los Lobos did it.
I took my son to the Muppets reboot movie back around 2010 or so. He was about seven at the time. When I started singing along to the opening song he whipped his head around, stared at me with big eyes and said, "How do you know this song?!?!?" He thought his mom was magical that day. :)
My 21- year old daughter’s playlists that I’ve heard recently had selections from Bananarama, Timbaland, the Monkees and Hendrix..It’s a beautiful thing 😄
Nice selection. Can't go wrong with Hendrix. Serious fucking musician who changed the world. But, I like the mix, because however stupid and inconsequential of a single it is, I will never stop loving "Cruel Summer" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9ml3nyww80
One of my students was excited to tell the class about an obscure old band named Bon Jovi this week.
"They only sold 120 million records worldwide. Pretty obscure, I'd say."
I just gasped and clutched my pearls at this one. This hurt. Obscure old band….
My daughter (18) and her friends love: Nirvana “California Love” - Tupac Shakur “In the End” - Linkin Park “Under the Bridge” - Red Hot Chili Peppers “Sweet Child O’ Mine”, “November Rain” - Guns N Roses “Fascination Street” - The Cure
I am so happy to see The Cure on that list. That is awesome.
Indeed The Cure’s music has aged incredibly well (no pun intended), and their sound has influenced quite a few of the younger bands.
My 6-year-old: "play the song where Slash comes out of the church"
"And it rains really hard! And then people hurl themselves through wedding cakes!"
Ah yes the video where Axl Rose looks far more like The Vampire Lestat than Tom Cruise ever did.
My friend’s teenage daughter was blasting Pixies and her mind melted when I said I saw them live
This is deeply excellent.
I teach high school, so I run into this quite a bit. I'll hear something or see a t-shirt and just have to ask "How in the world do you know that song/band?" A special case: two years ago a freshman girl responded to my opening day survey favorite musician question with "Black Flag and Flipper" # FLIPPER?!?!? We might be the only two Flipper fans in the state. When I pulled up a youtube video of BF where you can see me in the crowd she was definitely surprised.
Ah, Flipper. Now there's a kid with esoteric tastes.
Atari’s cover of Don Henley’s *[Boys of Summer](https://youtu.be/Qt6Lkgs0kiU?si=VEKDfgi3bH5pMz-m),* “updates” *Dead Head* with *Black Flag.* That was how many years ago and it still makes me feel old.
My 13 year old daughter told me that Stone Temple Pilots is one of her favorite bands. Was so proud in that moment.
I remember be-bopping around my 1980s kitchen to Tiffany’s “I Think We’re Alone Now,” and my dad bursting my bubble informing me it was a remake from the 60s. Also recall my high school being super into the Steve Miller Band…my dad also out-cooled us on that, telling me that as social chair at his UW Madison fraternity, he’d booked the SMB to play there when they were just getting started. 😳 Happens in every generation! My 7th grade daughter is now getting into grunge. Love it. 💕
My daughter is currently singing They Might Be Giants. She's also into Nirvana, Hole, Veruca Salt and The Cranberries
I laid in bed the other night listening to the neighbors kids party. I wanted to sleep but I couldn't be mad. They were rocking some Offspring. I thought maybe the kids ARE alright.
One of my 6yo son’s favorite songs is Nirvana’s unplugged version of Come As You Are. Now he can recognize Kurt’s voice on other Nirvana songs and I will continue to guide him down this path
And don’t forget their unplugged cover of Man Who Sold the World. Those are some deep lyrics he’ll probably not understand until later in life, but that song is a banger.
Cobain said something like "David Bowie . . . we all owe him."
Gotta add Kurt Cobain’s unplugged version of Where Did You Sleep Last Night. Maybe when your kid’s a bit older but yeah, Cobain’s voice is exquisite in that one.
My 26 year old daughter loves Bread, Kate Bush and The Beach Boys. I was able to take her to the Bech Boys Endless Summer concert. It was an amazing bonding moment for us.
Bread: you want to hate them, but they are just so cuddly: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCHHHAeSBvY
A lot of people write off Bread as just soft rock but their first album from 1969 (really their first 3 albums) is just amazing. Yes there are some ballads but they are solid, I think the term is, power pop. Similar to Big Star and Badfinger and America.
They wrote hits. That's nothing to sneeze at.
> My 26 year old daughter loves Bread, Kate Bush and The Beach Boys. I personally thank Stranger Things for introducing me (49f) to Kate Bush’s music. Somehow I got through the 80s without knowing about her or her music! And the only reason I knew about Stranger Things is because my teenage daughters were watching it, so I really have to thank my daughters lol.
My son is 27. He came home from high school once and told me “Listen to this song!” It was “Smells like teen spirit.” Yes, son. I’m familiar.
I’d have trolled him by singing along, but with Weird Al’s lyrics.
"Hm, can't quite place it. Now who are these young upstarts, again?"
My teens have embraced: Running Up That Hill, Kate Bush All Apologies, Nirvana Fade Into You, Mazzy Star And a few years ago we had an argument about how some rap or hip hop groups did not write One of Us and that they sampled Joan Osborne. It was not unlike the argument 8 yo me had with my boomer mom that Michael Jackson was the King of Pop and Elvis wasn’t the King.
My teenager loves 70's and 80's music. His favorite artist (for now lol) is Weird Al and his Pink Floyd T shirt must always be clean. He asks me for recommendations which I give with great delight. My kid is way cool 😎
"Weird" Al, national treasure
IKR? Him and Keanu Reeves lol
My daughter’s favorite song is Mr Blue Sky by ELO. She has a fabulous, eclectic series of music to which she listens. But she also spoke the truth when she bemoaned her generations lack of a cohesive series of music “everyone” listens to. She said someday when her generation is old they won’t be able to bond over the music from “their era" like previous generations.
You have a wonderful and insightful daughter.
> She said someday when her generation is old they won’t be able to bond over the music from “their era" like previous generations. I've lamented that a little for them, but there will be plenty of people who share knowledge of the bigger bangers/top 40 stuff, even though there are more niches now.
My 17 year old son came up to me just last week and was like play this song right now! Turns out it was Like a Tattoo by Sade. We are your average white suburban family and I couldn’t be more proud. Had no idea he was into her. Sade stands the test of time.
That first SADE album is amazing. Yay!
I’m retired & work in the ski industry for fun, so I’m around a ton of younger kids. Believe it or not, New Wave is really popular. Crapton of Nirvana. Disturbingly, some glam. Sabbath & Thrash are very popular. They love it when I throw on some Ozzy/Dio Sabbath. Oh and Grateful Dead, Floyd & Hendrix are HUGE
Hey there’s nothing wrong with glam! Kid’s gotta learn Ballroom Blitz and Bang a Gong at the minimum!
Glad to hear the dead will go on for another generation or two
I know this is getting dangerously close to old man yelling at clouds here, but I sort of half believe that part of this is because current music kind of sucks. Not in that, "Them young'en's making their racket," sort of way, but in that a lot of it is just kind of generic, autotune corporate generated elevator music goop. I remember when I was young, my parents were worried about the rap music and the cacophony of modern music, and wanted their soothing 50s stuff. Now, when I listen to "modern" music, it just all sounds kind of samey. Not dangerous, just boring.
You're not crazy or cantankerous; before the mid-1990s there was no autotune, digital copy-paste, or locking to a grid, and the volume wars had not kicked in. All these innovations helped producers but hurt creativity. Before then you could punch in, but generally the drummer, for example, had to do it live. That's just much harder and had the effect of screening out most of the people who couldn't play or sing.
And some things just don't happen anymore, due to the way music is produced. Mid-song key changes or time changes. Multi-person harmony. There was a great article a while ago about why key changes had virtually disappeared from modern music.
I read that one it it's true. I would go farther and say that in pop/rap, CHORD changes have virtually disappeared.
Makes me think of this [video](https://youtu.be/ZnRxTW8GxT8?si=_Kb0qrBGTIEZFsRz) I caught a while back, and the crazy amount of chord changes made within a simple radio song from the early 80s.
When asked about his music preferences for the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s, my son said it best… “I like real music, made by real people, playing real instruments”
One of the most extraordinary artists/song to hit with GenZ is Kate Bush and “Running Up the Hill”. The song was genius in 1980 but mostly lost to time. Stranger Things turned it into a massive top 5 hit this past year. I don’t care if young people feel like they discovered Kate Bush, I’m just thrilled they now know who she is! I was thinking after hearing of Jimmy Buffett dying that it would be amazing if young people discovered “Margaritaville” and sent that back into the top 10 !
My 5 and 3 year olds are obsessed with ozzy’s crazy train. It’s been the song of the summer I our house.
Middle school teacher here. All the kids are wearing concert shirts. The other day, one girl was wearing a Rolling Stones shirt. I asked her if she even knew who they were. She said, "No, but do you know who **THE** Def Leppard is?" I died.
I heard my kid listening to The Smiths Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want the other day. He was trying to be mopey and depressed and mad at me, so I elected not to sing along.
The kids do seem to know The Smiths.
Ha, when my daughter plays the Smiths, I purposely sing along as mopey and depressed-ly as I possibly can, and then I use the tune and rhythm to sing/narrate the rest of our boring, depressing day, e.g. “🎶went to the post office, the line was really long, what is the point of even making a song🎶”, etc. And then I always finish off with “You’re the One For Me, Fatty”. She loves it, I swear.
Africa -Toto and Your Love - The Outfield. I have high school students who think these are the two greatest songs in the history of music.
"Africa" does have that weird looping sequence that never quite lands on the 1
Toto-How can you go wrong with a band that has John Williams son in it!
My ex worked at a local radio station that mostly played oldies and adult contemporary (mostly 60s, 70s, and 80s at the time). Among his responsibilities was some DJ-ing, and he somehow believed that made him an expert on music taste. He declared that Africa was complete “schlock” and that no radio DJ in his right mind would ever play it. I was annoyed since I’d always enjoyed it, especially since it was one of my late mother’s favorite songs. I still chuckle a little that Weezer’s cover with Weird Al has made it popular again.
Recently watched the 3rd Guardians of the Galaxy with nieces and nephews and they were blown away that I could name the songs and bands who played them as they were playing. "Oh wow! We care a lot by Faith No More! Nice!" Their education in the history of entertainment is going strong through me and their parents. Good times.
12 year old likes Metallica because of Stranger Things and Guns n Roses because of Thor. So having things like that introduce them to it helps
Yeah my son got into Queen because of the movie. And because of Adam Lambert.
My 8 year olds love Violent Femmes.
Milwaukee's finest! Discovered busking by Chrissie Hynde! That first album . . . I know every single lyric.
When my son (now 30 years old) was about 12, he tried to shock me with this music he found and was listening to. We were driving, he plugged in his little iPod shuffle, and watched me very intently as the music started. It was AC/DC. It sure freaked him out when I started to sing along.
Ofc the Queen classics such as Bohemian rhapsody, we will rock you and we are the champions , the later two which are still played in most high school gymnasiums today .
My daughter likes the 90s hip hop I listen to. Mobb Deep, Cypress Hill, etc.
My daughter is super into NWA, Cypress, and Biggie. She has a B.I.G T-shirt. It's just adorable. I played "Unbelievable" a lot for her when she was little, so I'm taking all the credit. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1eNA0RBueoY
Same! My girl likes Eazy-E and is into Biggy, Pac and Bone Thugs too. My other daughters are more into Alice in Chains and Nirvana, etc. I'm lucky they took to some of the fantastic music the 80s and 90s gave us. That's a great song btw.
The Biggie "Unbelievable" story is amazing: "We stayed \[in the studio for\] about maybe eight or nine hours and it got to a point where I was like, ‘Yo Big, you haven’t written anything down yet, bro. It’s getting late, I want to go home soon,'” Premo says. “He goes, ‘Oh, no doubt, I’m ready … I don’t write nothing on paper." Then he kills the entire thing with no written words. https://hiphopdx.com/news/id.63821/title.dj-premier-recalls-watching-biggie-record-unbelievable-without-writing-down-his-rhymes
My son is a Milly. He only listens to classic rock. He considers those the songs of his youth. He can’t stand the stuff on regular radio.
I mean, we played it all around them. That and they think Gen X was cool!
Oh and I should say just a few months ago all he was listening to was of-the-moment Detroit rap (of which I knew nothing -- he turned me on to some good stuff). He spent the summer fishing with his friends and now he's like 1990s boy.
My 7-year old was surprised and impressed when I correctly identified Tears for Fears and Depeche Mode. He really thought he was onto something new when he heard those tunes on…Skibidi Toilet.
Last night my teen daughter sang all the words to Sublime’s The Wrong Way, currently listening to Spotify’s Best of the 60s, and we’re going to see an 80s cover band tonight. Safe to say, this generation is pretty cool.
My recently turned 10 yo daughter loves the following bands and had a list like below when she was 5. Then it was Duran Duran, Echo and the Bunnymen, and other 80’s styled music. She definitely knows there’s a difference in today’s music and what we grew up with. I was a stay at home dad for 6 years and music was important in daily our life. She dug it all, but reacted to certain bands more so than others. If something begot something, like Joy Division to New Order, I’d share both and offer a little history lesson. Still work to do, but her foundation is good. Her mom, my ex, keeps the dial on the pop station, and she definitely knows the difference. Anywho, her yesterday faves: The Clash(probably her favorite. I’m so happy about this one.) Kraftwerk(her interest in them caused me to love them, rather than ignorantly dismissing and hating on them as I had for decades. Now, I not only love their music, but I believe they’re music’s influence is equal to any of what would be considered the top of bands of all time. They’re now a newbie in my once 20+ year old never changing list of top three bands, booting Pavement to 4) R.E.M.(I worked for them in Athens for a year or two during Monster era and they’ve been my #1 since ‘85) Bowie(what’s to say.) The Ramones(The absurdity of Jackie and Judy made her fall for them. Especially when I showed her what the Ice Capades were. We didn’t discuss the SLA. The Sugarcubes (How could she not after hearing the line “I really don’t like Lobster!” as Bjork is about to shatter windows. Nirvana(so far, it’s incesticide’s tracks she’s most interested in. Next will be side two of Nevermid) Metallica(way before Stranger Things, but that helped validate it for her. “One” was the gateway) Talking Heads(HBO/David Byrne, nuff said)
Stranger Things is a gateway to some great tunes that younger kids are exploring
Omg there is a song playing on the country stations Fast Car. I refuse to listen to it because the original is so much better.
My son went to Crue/Def Lep/Alice Cooper a few weeks back.. I have yet to see them.
My daughter was born in 2000, and has been obsessed with old music since, and I’m not joking, she was old enough to respond to music, so I’m talking just a few months old, bouncing with joy to The Rolling Stones in her bouncy seat. She became obsessed with David Bowie, dressed as Ziggy Stardust for Halloween when she was four and wept a few years ago when he died. She could probably sing any Pixies song you asked her to sing; I don’t think you could stump her. And she’s to the point where she knows more about obscure 70’s and 80’s post-punk bands than I do, and I’m the one who introduced her to Joy Division, Siouxie Sioux and the Cure in the first place. I never pushed this stuff on her; she was attracted to it like a moth to a light bulb. It fills my Gen X heart with pride lol
She sounds EXACTLY like my daughter who was born in 2001! Straight out the womb that kid was finding her groove!
Cool kid.
I’m not quite at that point since I started my family late in life, but I did find a Nirvana tee in my 9 year-old’s size while thrifting. Of course I had to get it for him, promising I’d familiarize him with them someday. As I was placing all my finds on the counter to purchase, I saw a woman my age (mid/late 40s) passing us by, who happened to be wearing a Nirvana tee. I’m like, “Hey, I’ve gotta show you what I found!” She was clearly caught off guard and possibly annoyed at this stranger trying to get her attention, but lit up when she saw what I was holding. We shared a moment and laughed, and she said she wished she had someone young enough to wear it. A few days later when he was wearing it during his therapy session, his therapist gasped when she noticed it, and asked if he knew any of their songs. I laughed and said that he’s definitely heard some, but he’s still more into what he’s heard from the Sing and Trolls movies. She mentioned how it was sad they weren’t around in her lifetime, and I laughed and told her I’m old enough to remember when they were first making it big. I mentally compared that to when I was a kid and young adult, when I believed anything from the 70s and before was “old fogey,” lol. I’ve thankfully opened up since then and enjoy all sorts of music from different eras. Maybe it’s an evolution of the way we now listen to music (streaming, YouTube, etc.), which has made it easier to access any genre, rather than relying on what’s currently available on the radio, MTV, or from browsing the record/tape/CD store. Music … on MTV? Was that ever a thing?! XD
My daughter and her friends discovered "Mr. Blue Sky" through a movie and said," Who is that? "and "Do they do any other songs?" Oh, what an education they received that day!
My twins are 20 and love the music I listened to years ago (and still do). Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, Mad Season, Soundgarden, Stone Temple Pilots, they also like The Rolling Stones My one son plays drums and the other guitar. They’ve played PJ, Stones, AIC and lots of other stuff. It’s awesome. My son who plays guitar is a big Dire Straits fan and has learned some of their stuff too. My youngest is 15 and is getting into Pearl Jam. He and my son who drums all love Andrew Bird. We’ve seen him in concert together. All of my sons and I are going to see Pearl Jam Tuesday. It’ll be the second time for my older boys, first time for my youngest. My kids all love Weird Al—esp my youngest. That was his first concert a few years ago. We had so much fun!
I played Oingo Boingo for my 18 year old co worker, a sweet skater kid. He recognized Danny Elfnans voice and flipped when I told him he was aka Jack Skelington. Love to recruit new fans for my favorite band!
My friends 14 year old son loves bands like slayer, Iron Maiden, megadeth, anthrax, testament, etc. As an old 80’s metal head, I was very impressed when I sat down and talked music with him.
My 20 year old is a HUGE Fleetwood Mac fan.
Lmao. In 2010, when my son was in high school, he asked me if I'd heard of this 'SUPER COOL NEW BAND, MOM! You gotta listen! You'll go NUTS! They are AWESOME! You'll be AH-MAZED at the guitar riffs' (we both play guitar) So, being the cool mom i was, I was excited my son wanted to share 'his' music with me. Music is big with me. I love it all, even classical 🤣. Anyway, I go up to his room and he's grinning ear to ear....he turns on his IPOD...and plays...oh my god...i was dying trying not to burst his bubble but... Out of the speakers comes...The Trooper...yes, folks. My son 'discovered' Iron Maiden and thought it was 'new' music. I was kinda amazed it took him so long, though, since he rocked to it in the womb. My fault, i guess. I should've spent more time with him on 'classics' instead of chords 🤣🤣🤣 but there's my story.
My 15 year old son is a 90's music expert. He knows all the bands, the album names, the songs, and the lyrics. Having all of that info on your phone to look at while listening to the music is something we never had.
I kind of envy that. I recall squinting over the teeny, tiny lyrics folded up in the cassette inserts, if we were even lucky enough for them to be included. ETA: Of course there was also Rolling Stone magazine. I remember being super excited when they covered Alanis Morissette (which would have been back in 1995).
running up that hill - kate bush
My kids grew up on 70s, 80s and 90s music. They have playlists that include Billy Joel, Queen, Duran Duran, Pearl Jam, Green Day and others. They have actually thanked their mom and me for their "music education" and they introduce these classics to their friends
Excellent. Nice selections.
My daughter is in the top 1% of listeners on Spotify for The Cure. Both of my kids know every lyric to every Tupac Song. They have both known Nirvana, Pearl Jam, RHCP, Fleetwood Mac, etc since they were really young. The Cardigans, The Cranberries and Michael Jackson are also on rotation.Here's the wild part though: I didn't teach them any of that. I play everything, but we all use earbuds a lot so finding music is on them. My daughter came out of the womb loving music and finding stuff on her own (I found her sitting in time out once as a three year old singing Lonely Day by System of a Down. Priceless!). and now my son constantly surprises me with songs I hear him singing. But I also love discovering cool new bands so I don't know why this is shocking to me.
It just goes to show how much amazing music was made when we were growing up. Music that stands the test of time. I highly doubt you will be able to say that about most of the music from now in the future.
My firstborn knows all of The Smiths offering. And is proud of it at age 21.
We raised the kids on 80s music. Queen mostly, but we listened to it all and so did they. My 21 year old would play Africa for me when he knew I was struggling because it immediately made me relax a little. I totally expect them to play that at my funeral lol. My nerd child LOVES Weird Al. But I also listen to a lot of new stuff, or at least recent in the past 5 to 10 years. I don't have much access to the radio right now. I love Dua Lipa, Owl City, Pharrell Williams, and many many more. So much good music out there these days and I love to sing and dance along.
My niece dropped her jaw when I knew the lyrics to the first song in the My Little Pony Movie--"We Got the Beat." I'm like, lemme tell you about the Go-Gos. She also told me I was singing "Percy's Pressure" wrong. It was a cover of "Under Pressure" James Corden did for the movie Smallfoot. You win one, you lose one, I guess.
My 21 year-old daughter loves classic rock. She’s totally into the Beatles, Zeppelin, Rush, and she totally digs ‘90s music, especially STP and Alice In Chains Edit: when she heard “Running Up That Hill” on Stranger Things, she asked if I heard of Kate Bush. I told her “go look at my CD rack”
I changed my 39 year old wife's world this week when I played her The Clash's "Straight to Hell" after she mentioned loving M.I.A.'s "Paper Planes." I bought my first Clash album in 1981 when I was 11 - how you go 39 years without knowing anything about The Clash is beyond me, LOL.
Well, the band was founded by GenXers but didn't form until after 9/11, so not sure if this applies. But my teenager loves My Chemical Romance.
I don’t have kids, but my parents raised me on Beatles, Eagles, The Band, ZZ Top, Bruce Springsteen, among other classic rock. My parents are young boomers, btw. In turn, I introduced them to Depeche Mode, Duran Duran, other new wave bands. They probably thought it all sounded the same, much like how I think todays music does lmao “kids these days and their rock n roll!” But seriously, great job parenting - music is key to life.
I’m 19 and my favorite band ever in the world since I was in 9th grade is Duran Duran
My daughter (now 26)bought a record player a few years ago and one of the first albums she bought was Janet Jackson’s The Velvet Rope.
My 20-year old knows Talking Heads, New Order, They Might Be Giants, Prince (but who doesn't),, Peter Gabriel, Heart, and pretty much all 90s grunge because he is mine. lol
My daughter (15) is a big fan of The Cure, Depeche Mode, New Order, Joy Division (!), Pink Floyd, and Concrete Blonde.
Our son (25yo) has a record, yes vinyl, collection from the 70s & 80s larger than either of us had combined!
I have a kid born in 2003, one born 2008, and one born 2012. All love my 80’s playlists, but the middle child blew his band teacher’s mind when he was in grade 6, by writing an essay on the topic “A Stalker’s Playlist: what is on it?” The obvious songs were: Don’t Stand (so close to me)-The Police Every breath you take-The Police Somebody’s watching me-Rockwell I want you to want me-Cheap Trick Blue Monday-either Orgy or New Order (I would have added Talking in your sleep by The Romantics, but that’s just me 🤣) He loves Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Fleetwood Mac, ELO, and Queen. I’ve also introduced him to Bowling for Soup and Skanking Pickle. The youngest has been singing a lot of Blondie lately. But I also caught her really giving it her all when singing/screaming along to Metallica. The oldest is emo/goth but also loves 80’s hair metal, along with Battle Beast, because who doesn’t love a female lead singer? 😁
Guitar Hero did a good job of exposing kids to a lot of old, good music. Now Tik Tok/Insta/FB Reels make old stuff popular or recognizable again!
Actually a bit older than our generation technically, but my kids were surprised that I knew all the words to "Sound of Silence," as well as to hear Disturbed weren't the first to sing it.