Classic Rock Facts

Origins and early development

The classic rock format evolved from album-oriented rock (AOR) stations seeking to appeal to an older audience by including familiar songs of the past with current hits. In 1980 M105 in Cleveland began billing itself as "Cleveland's Classic Rock" and WMET used the label "Chicago's Classic Rock" in 1981. In 1982 radio consultant Lee Abrams developed the "Timeless Rock" format combining contemporary AOR with rock hits from the 1960s and 1970s. In 1983 KRBE and KRQX were early stations adopting classic rock programming, and program directors such as Paul Christy designed formats focused on early album rock without current pop titles.

Evolution or diversification

During the mid-1980s the format proliferated as programmers such as Jacobs Media and others converted major market stations to classic rock. By 1986 the format was widely cited as having been born, with older songs accounting for 60–80% of the music played on album rock stations. Some classic rock stations also play a limited number of current releases or new material by legacy acts that are stylistically consistent with the station's sound. The format continued to grow in market share and by 2001 had surpassed album rock nationally, while internet exposure and digital downloading increased listenership among younger audiences.

Cultural or musical significance

Classic rock became increasingly popular with the baby boomer demographic in the 1980s and 1990s. Among academics and historians the format has been discussed as an effort by critics, media, and music establishments to canonize rock music and commodify 1960s–1970s Western culture for audiences in a post-baby boomer economy. The music selected for the format has been identified as predominantly commercially successful songs by white male acts from the Anglosphere expressing values of romanticism, self-aggrandizement, and politically undemanding ideologies. The format has also been associated with rock's album era spanning the 1960s to the 2000s.