Peter_Puget Posted June 4, 2004 Posted June 4, 2004 Last night I was scanning through the radio and heard Stairway to Heaven. I am not a LZ fan but I was amazed at the staying power of that song. Not only do a dedicated core of fans lik eit but its appeal was widespread. I began to wonder what song from today or even from the 90’s will have the same staying power? Any ideas? Quote
Greg_W Posted June 4, 2004 Posted June 4, 2004 Nothing. It's all shit. Maybe some early '90's metal, or Bowie (he seems timeless). Quote
Off_White Posted June 4, 2004 Posted June 4, 2004 I wouldn't be surprised if "Smells Like Teen Spirit" winds up occupying that niche. I'm not a huge Nirvana fan, but I do think Nevermind was a turning point for pop radio: that was the first time I ever heard anything that raw declared "pop" by legions of critics. Quote
Stonehead Posted June 4, 2004 Posted June 4, 2004 Shit, there were a lot of anthems and/or defining songs from that time--like "I'm Eighteen" Alice Cooper "Bohemian Rhapsody" Queen "Free Bird" Lynyrd Skynyrd "Time" Pink Floyd My guess...Maybe it's more an artifact of the boomer influence and the evolution of rock music. The giants of today are surrounded by other giants so it's hard to see much prominence. Back in the day, the pioneers of 70's rock could make their mark without being submerged. Couple that with the sheer numbers of young folks and that's a recipe for lasting significance. Then again, I could be all wet. As for "Stairway..", yeah, maybe they did have some special help on that song. Quote
arlen Posted June 4, 2004 Posted June 4, 2004 STH's sustained popularity probably has less to do with some essential staying power than with radio stations wrapping it up in nostalgia. Sometimes that happens with songs that weren't even widely played in the first place. Like "Melt With You," which was mainly blackballed to college radio obscurity when it was released, but which now inspires people to "remember" hearing it instead of Huey Lewis or Anne Murray, which were actually on the air at the time. So you'd have to predict how the future broadcasters will want us to remember this decade, in order to say what songs have staying power. Hmm, maybe sometimes a single song can't muster enough staying power on its own. Witness Queen's "We Will Rock You" and "We Are The Champions"--WTF's up with never hearing one of those songs by itself? Quote
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