A question for all you "atypical" standards listeners

[ChrisInMI]

This question is directed at those of you who, like me, are fans of Adult Standards music but are outside the age demographic that most people would expect would like the music (55-60 yrs. of age or older; I am 26). How did you come to like Standards? What was your "introduction" to the genre?

For me, I'd have to say the fascination started in high school when we did the musical "Crazy For You" which is full of Great American Songbook classics from the Gershwins, like "Embraceable You," "They Can't Take That Away From Me" and "Nice Work If You Can Get It." Then my senior year we did "The Pajama Game," which spun off a couple of pop-chart hits, of which the biggest was undoubtedly Rosemary Clooney's "Hey There."

Then a couple of years later I discovered the Westwood One Standards format on WAAM 1600 in Ann Arbor (which no longer airs it) and then CKWW 580 out of Windsor, ON (which is now Oldies, and a darn good-sounding oldies station too, but I digress). What struck me was that they not only played many of the songs I came to love when I was in high school but that they also played songs I hadn't heard in years.

I was in fact exposed to Beautiful Music/Easy Listening at a much younger age. WJOI "Joy 97", 97.1 FM in Detroit, was the station that, even as a toddler, I had to have with me to relax at night. Years later I remember many of their jingles still: "Everywhere you go, there's easy listening... WJOI, FM 97." By that time, of course, like many other B/EZ stations, they were no longer purely instrumental and were playing lots of AC oldies and even some soft rock. I loved it and miss it sorely even though it's been gone for over a decade. It's now WKRK, one of CBS Radio's "Free FM" Shock Talk outlets.

Others?

 

[jcs]

Chris, I am also an "atypical" standards listener at the tender age of 34. Here in Dayton, Ohio, the closest standards station used to be WCHO 1250 in Washington Court House (southwest of Columbus), but it switched to "rock and roll oldies" December 26 last year. :'( However, I have been able to tune in to WMRI 860 in Marion, Indiana, with more success each passing day.

I have come to enjoy standards because they remind me of my childhood. (Heck, even the theme song by Celine Dion from the movie "Titanic" is played on standards stations!) I just think music was so much better up until the 1980s.

 

[passtheword]

This question is directed at those of you who, like me, are fans of Adult Standards music but are outside the age demographic that most people would expect would like the music (55-60 yrs. of age or older; I am 26). How did you come to like Standards? What was your "introduction" to the genre?

For me, I'd have to say the fascination started in high school when we did the musical "Crazy For You" which is full of Great American Songbook classics from the Gershwins, like "Embraceable You," "They Can't Take That Away From Me" and "Nice Work If You Can Get It." Then my senior year we did "The Pajama Game," which spun off a couple of pop-chart hits, of which the biggest was undoubtedly Rosemary Clooney's "Hey There."

Then a couple of years later I discovered the Westwood One Standards format on WAAM 1600 in Ann Arbor (which no longer airs it) and then CKWW 580 out of Windsor, ON (which is now Oldies, and a darn good-sounding oldies station too, but I digress). What struck me was that they not only played many of the songs I came to love when I was in high school but that they also played songs I hadn't heard in years.

I was in fact exposed to Beautiful Music/Easy Listening at a much younger age. WJOI "Joy 97", 97.1 FM in Detroit, was the station that, even as a toddler, I had to have with me to relax at night. Years later I remember many of their jingles still: "Everywhere you go, there's easy listening... WJOI, FM 97." By that time, of course, like many other B/EZ stations, they were no longer purely instrumental and were playing lots of AC oldies and even some soft rock. I loved it and miss it sorely even though it's been gone for over a decade. It's now WKRK, one of CBS Radio's "Free FM" Shock Talk outlets.

Others?

I'm also another one of those "atypical" adult standards listeners; I am 38. Until I started reading this forum a while back, I didn't realize there were so many other 20- and 30- something adult standards/easy listening listeners. I started listening to adult standards when I was I a teenager, about 13 or 14 years old. We had a "beautiful music" station here in Birmingham, WQEZ, which changed its format to adult contemporary in 1982. At the time, we didn't have another station programming the "beautful music" format, at least in Birmingham (a few years earlier, we had two "beautiful music" stations at one time as a lot of other markets did up until the early 80's). However, we did have an adult standards station, WCRT (the sister AM of WQEZ), and I started listening to it more or less out of curiosity. There were a lot of angry people around after the FM switched, and I wanted to know a little more what all the fuss was about. I found out I really liked the sounds of big band, etc, and I used to come home and listen to it after school every day. I didn't get to enjoy it too long since the owners which had bought both stations a few months prior wound up selling the AM off not too long after that, and the new owners dropped the format. I've written a webpage detailing a little bit of history about what happened to WCRT during the time and what's happened to the station since then. Here's the link if anyone is interested in checking it out.

After I started listening to adult standards, I began listening to "beautiful music", also. After WCRT abandoned its adult standards format, I began listening to a class C FM located about 60 miles from us which played "beautiful music", and it put a fairly good signal into Birmingham. That station was WHMA-FM in Anniston, which changed to a country format in 1985. It moved to Atlanta a few years ago, and is now WWWQ "Q-100".

 

[Chuck]

It has been my casual observation that people who appreciate Standards are a bit more musically adventurous than many of their contemporaries. That is especially so if they are not of the "usual" age group that is attributed to the format. Something must have sparked an interest in this kind of music. It probably was not peer pressure.

It seems they have one thing in common: Some kind of musical training in school. At least, that is what younger people who call our station say. It may have been nothing more than a few general music classes, or maybe Glee Club. Frequently, I find that our station's younger listeners actually played a musical instrument. Some still do. Perhaps they were in High School Band, or sang in their church choir.

If it’s true, and I suspect that it is, I think this says a lot for the importance of music education in our schools. Sadly, like a lot of things, that seems to be on the chopping block in many communities.

People who post here are probably not representative of the general public, so your mileage may vary. Does my theory hold any water with folks who post on this Board? Has anyone had some musical education, however small? If so, how did it influence you?

 

[passtheword]

It has been my casual observation that people who appreciate Standards are a bit more musically adventurous than many of their contemporaries. That is especially so if they are not of the "usual" age group that is attributed to the format. Something must have sparked an interest in this kind of music. It probably was not peer pressure.

It seems they have one thing in common: Some kind of musical training in school. At least, that is what younger people who call our station say. It may have been nothing more than a few general music classes, or maybe Glee Club. Frequently, I find that our station's younger listeners actually played a musical instrument. Some still do. Perhaps they were in High School Band, or sang in their church choir.

If it’s true, and I suspect that it is, I think this says a lot for the importance of music education in our schools. Sadly, like a lot of things, that seems to be on the chopping block in many communities.

People who post here are probably not representative of the general public, so your mileage may vary. Does my theory hold any water with folks who post on this Board? Has anyone had some musical education, however small? If so, how did it influence you?

I believe that it's not so much that musical training may contribute to a person's broad interest in music, as it is a result of growing up in an environment where parents and other family members also have an interest in music. My father and both my grandfathers had an interest in music from a very early age. Although I never have had any type of musical training myself, my brother was in band in high school, and even so, his tastes in music aren't quite as broad as mine. He unequivocably expressed his distate for big band and adult standards to me many a time while we were growing up.

As far as younger people's dislike for easy listening music, instrumental music in particular, it's my firmly held belief that the reason why people in their 20's and 30's, etc don't care for that type of music has to do with the fact that we've been accustomed to hearing music such as this in the background, such as when we're in stores, etc, and we've been "trained" to just let it "fill in behind us"; we don't actively listen to it. Most people just equate it as "elevator music" and it's not something to purposely listen to. It's not uncommon, however, for me to go into a store somewhere playing easy listening in the background (what few stores are left which actually offer it), and I'll automatically recognize the music. I don't intentionally try to listen to it while I'm in the store, but since I actively listen to it at home, in the car, etc, it doesn't just fade into the background.


________________________
Radio stations come and go.
Does anything last forever?
www.PassTheWord.net

 

[vchimpanzee]

I don't ever remember not liking standards. One of my earliest memories is when my father would listen to the soundtrack album of "The Sound of Music" over and over. He must have gotten it for Christmas, because I was playing with my American Plastic Bricks (sort of like Legos) and heard those great songs for the first time and liked them. And my parents also had several albums of Christmas songs which I liked. And there were shows such as Lucille Ball's and the variety shows such as Ed Sullivan, Red Skelton and Jackie Gleason.

I was hearing the songs we call standards all the time when I was little, and I actually liked the "beautiful music" I would hear at the doctor or the dentist. In 1977, when I was 16, we got our first FM radio, and my father started listening to beautiful music, which he had never done before because all we had was AM. In the car we listened to an adult contemporary station and I liked some of that too.

In 1978 or 1979, our local station switched to big band, and the high school band did "Tuxedo Junction" by Glenn Miller and the students liked it (I know I did!). Probably because it wasn't as uptight as that classical music they normally played for stage concerts.

And by this time when we visited Myrtle Beach, cable had a channel with community announcements which aired "Ecstasy" 97 FM from Charleston, a beautiful music station. Later they switched to Joy 92 when that station changed from disco.

I remember how upset people got when EZ-104 changed from beautiful music. I had a chance to go to the beach in December, when it was really warm, because my aunt had a condo. Joy 92 sounded so good after I had been "deprived". Actually, we had WSOC-AM by that time, "the music that never goes out of style". I woke up to that station when I was in college. I liked Artie Shaw and the big bands, who I wasn't really that familiar with.

Not long after that, Harry Connick Jr. and Linda Ronstadt both introduced this music to young people. And let's not forget Judge Harry Stone's love of Mel Torme on "Night Court".

 

[vchimpanzee]

It seems they have one thing in common: Some kind of musical training in school. At least, that is what younger people who call our station say. It may have been nothing more than a few general music classes, or maybe Glee Club. Frequently, I find that our station's younger listeners actually played a musical instrument. Some still do. Perhaps they were in High School Band, or sang in their church choir.

People who heard me sing said I should be in the high school chorus, so I was, for one year. Some of the others weren't taking it seriously (they wanted an easy A) and I quit after that. They were talented, but they were also mean.

 

[vchimpanzee]

Oh, and my father tried to get me to learn piano but I refused to be one of those kids who practiced all the time. He could have taught me. He majored in music in college but became a minister.

 

[Chuck]

Sometimes "musical training" is a very informal thing. Your parents were the most influential teachers you ever had. My Dad particularly liked Big Band and Swing music. It was common to hear it around our house. If your parents exposed you to this, and other kinds of music, then you did get some training. You just may never have thought of it that way.

When I was a kid back in the 1950's, my elementary school gave a lot of music exposure to every student. We had "music class" twice a week from grade three and up, and every day in grades one and two. Sometimes we sang, sometimes we attempted to play crude percussion instruments, sometimes we just listened. Just about all of the kids enjoyed it. It was fun. Even gym class frequently used music for some activities. I think it had a lot to do with my appreciation for almost every form of music.

They don't do that as much in schools these days, which may explain the musical taste (or lack of it) among a lot of kids. It’s hard to like something you’ve never been exposed to.

 

[semoochie]

My wife was recently instructed by her doctor to wear some heavy,orthopedic type shoes. Her response to the doctor: "Would you date someone who wore shoes like that?" This is mostly directed to the 26 year-old and I'm not trying to be rude or anything but do you have very old parents or are you actually able to make a direct connection to the pop culture of your grandparents? I remember older people listening to Standards but I remember it was "their music" from "their time". "They" had an emotional connection to the music but I was a generation removed. I wasn't around when Glenn Miller was so his music wasn't a part of me, even though I knew his music. You are a generation behind me! I would think it would be very difficult to make this connection and still relate to your peers.

 

[Chuck]

....do you have very old parents or are you actually able to make a direct connection to the pop culture of your grandparents? I remember older people listening to Standards but I remember it was "their music" from "their time". "They" had an emotional connection to the music but I was a generation removed. I wasn't around when Glenn Miller was so his music wasn't a part of me, even though I knew his music. You are a generation behind me! I would think it would be very difficult to make this connection and still relate to your peers.

I guess that depends on how much peer pressure influences your life. At some age points, it is a very big influence. At other times, it may be no big deal. The funny thing is by going against the popular flow of things, you'll probably discover that there are a lot of other people your age who feel the same way. Where does it say you have to abandon your own generation in order to appreciate something that has come before you?

Mark Twain supposedly said something to the effect that when he was 18, he couldn't believe what an ignorant S.O.B. his father was. By age 28, he was amazed at how much the old man had learned. I was in my early 30's before I had a similar revelation.

At age 20, I remember getting in a relatively heated discussion with my uncle about his musical tastes. He liked Frank Sinatra a lot, and at the time, I absolutely hated Frank. Even though we were far apart in some of our tastes, I really did like music. Both he and I found Jazz to be interesting, so we could agree on some common ground. It was just different types of music.

At the time, my main interest was pop/rock music of the era (late 1960's). For the next 30-35 years, I made a fairly good living in the music industry with that type of music. Over that time, my tastes have changed. Well, not so much changed as expanded. Most of the musical styles I've really come to appreciate happen to be those that I was exposed to as a kid. I'm not sure if that is coincidence or not.

I would never think that Standards would be the chosen music of a younger generation. That would be silly. For the musically inquisitive, it is an interesting place to visit occasionally. The history of popular music is that it appeals about as much to young people as it is disdained by the previous generation. Your parents aren't supposed to like what you like musically. In the 1940's, Big bands and Swing was considered to be quite scandalous to many in the previous generation. Rock & Roll in the 1950's was "The Devils Music" to the previous conservative generation. The 1960's brought us the British Invasion. The Beatles, Rolling Stones and others were considered by many to be very negative influences on the young people of the era. It was most disturbing. The 1970's and 80's are kind of a musical blur, since most baby boomers refused to go the way of their parents, and embraced whatever musical fad came along. The late 1990s brought us Rap and Hip-Hop, which represented another generational divide in music. You'd be hard pressed to find many baby boomers who likes either Rap or Hip-Hop, or the many derivatives of these styles. Sure, there are always a few people of a previous generation who "get it" about the current generation's pop music choices, but they are few and far between. For the most part, your parents aren't supposed to like what you like. If a group of mid 50's balding white guys actually like a rap song, you can bet that it is the worst rap song ever recorded.

Never fear. Whatever the next musical genre is that replaces today's pop songs; I’ll bet that it manages to make the current "20 something" generation absolutely hate it. It's a process that keeps repeating, so when it happens to you, don't take it too seriously. It's just entertainment. The generational rebellion actually helps sell it.

Even though musical tastes are very much a generational thing, in the end, there are always some songs that endure. Why? Because they are simply good songs, that speak to everyone who is willing to listen. They may evoke a deep emotion, or they may just put a smile on your face. There is nothing wrong with that. The catch is people have to have the intellectual curiosity to look for these gems from the past. If you have been exposed to a variety of musical styles as a child, you are much more likely to go on that journey.

By the way, I don't have any illusions about who listens to the standards station that I program. It is adults, age 50 and up. There is no doubt about it. I'm flattered when someone younger tells me that that they listen, but they are certainly not someone I'm expecting to hear from. Even so, I am surprised at how many people outside of our target audience tell me that they listen. Maybe it's because we don't try to make it sound like you are listening to "yesterday's radio." Maybe it is simpler than that. It may just be because we are offering something you can’t get elsewhere. Almost every type of music has its fans.

 

[vchimpanzee]

I would never think that Standards would be the chosen music of a younger generation. That would be silly. For the musically inquisitive, it is an interesting place to visit occasionally.

During the late 1990s, it was one of the fad musical styles. Tony Bennett and Harry Connick can take a lot of the credit.

Maybe it's because we don't try to make it sound like you are listening to "yesterday's radio."

It's interesting to note that when Timeless Classics was still good, they were talking about something that happened many years ago, and it seemed strange because I didn't feel like I was listening to a station that played old music. I was listening to the station that played the music I like. Which seemed like "today's".

My 200th post! Who would have ever believed it?

 

[Chuck]

During the late 1990s, it was one of the fad musical styles. Tony Bennett and Harry Connick can take a lot of the credit.

A lot of current college age kids still think that Tony Bennett is cool. It is not at all unusual to find modern pop artists releasing a CD with standards on it. Maybe it's just an easy way to fulfill their contractual album commitment with their current record label, but more often than not, these CD’s have respectable sales.

I like to think of it as "They know a good song when they hear one."

 

[ChrisInMI]

Thank you all for your discussions and insight.

Chuck, you made a very good point:

"When I was a kid back in the 1950's, my elementary school gave a lot of music exposure to every student. We had "music class" twice a week from grade three and up, and every day in grades one and two. Sometimes we sang, sometimes we attempted to play crude percussion instruments, sometimes we just listened. Just about all of the kids enjoyed it. It was fun. Even gym class frequently used music for some activities. I think it had a lot to do with my appreciation for almost every form of music."

"Music class" was mandatory for every student when I was in elementary school (from 1985 to 1991). There was a time when they tried to teach us to play the recorder and I never got the hang of that, but I sure enjoyed listening to and singing different songs. Now that I think of it, some of the songs I remember singing in that class were fun novelty/pop songs from the '40s and '50s, not really "standards" but pre-rock oldies, like "Swinging On A Star," "Rag Mop," and "Chickery Chick." We enjoyed those songs just because they were fun, we didn't think of them as being "old."

When I was in fifth grade our music teacher assembled a (voluntary) choir from the fifth-grade students, and out of probably about 50 or 60 kids between all the fifth-grade classes, probably only nine or ten chose not to participate. It was that much fun, and it helped me discover how much I loved to sing. I kept on participating in choral activities throughout middle and high school and college, and now I sing in my church choir.

I think one of the reasons I've been drawn to standards and other music recorded before the 1990s (I also enjoy rock and roll oldies and '80s pop/rock/soul) is that many of those artists understood the art of good singing and good musicianship. It seems to have become a lost or forgotten art. Tony Bennett, Rosemary Clooney, Kay Starr, Connie Francis, Andy Williams, and of course Sinatra - they all understood that the human voice is a wonderful musical instrument and can be used as such. So did Elvis, Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Karen Carpenter, Olivia Newton-John, Laura Branigan, and Tina Turner. Many of these artists did have sex appeal (i.e. Tina's legs, Elvis's swiveling hips), but they took their music seriously and had the talent to back up the sex appeal. With so many of today's pop stars, like Britney, Jessica et al., the music is secondary to the image, and that's sad.

 

[Mike Sheridan]

Chuck we must have gone to the same school.

For me I listened to the top 40 station and at that time they also played the adult hits not just Rock. It was true top 40 whatever made it got played. I'm not saying I got tired of it but after awhile you want to go in some other directions or dig a little deeper into music and I think that's what I did. I will always have a strong connection to the music of my generation (actually a little before my generation since I started early) but there are standards that I like every bit as much.

Here are a few examples:

That Sunday, That Summer Nat King Cole
Nature Boy Nat King Cole
All The Way Frank Sinatra
Cry Me A River Julie London
Jezebelle Frankie Lane
September Song Jimmy Durante
.....and as they say many more!

Yes my parents were older, but they put up the record player while I was very young. They got me one and I had my own records. My parents also liked Elvis and the Beatles so they did a good job of keeping current. Mom was a Crosby fan and some of that rubbed off on me. I was an only child and even in the car I had control of the radio....so go figure!

 

[vchimpanzee]

That Sunday, That Summer Nat King Cole

That's a great one. I didn't get to know this one until recently, but what makes this so good, in addition to Nat's own great voice, is those backup singers.

Yes my parents were older, but they put up the record player while I was very young. They got me one and I had my own records. My parents also liked Elvis and the Beatles so they did a good job of keeping current.

My parents didn't stay current, but we only had AM in the car until 1983, and I remember "Knock Three Times" and "Popcorn" but also "High Hopes".

We listened to AC in the car in the 70s, though at some point my mother would only listen to beautiful music, and she wouldn't listen to AC any more. I got to that same point myself.

 

[tradrev]

This question is directed at those of you who, like me, are fans of Adult Standards music but are outside the age demographic that most people would expect would like the music (55-60 yrs. of age or older; I am 26). How did you come to like Standards? What was your "introduction" to the genre?

I've got a long, long answer for this one. Not today. But for starters have a look at my login name to get a clue to where I'm coming from. My interest in American Standards / Adult Classics / Beautiful Music / Lounge & Exotica / Easy Listening / Space Age Bachelor Pad Music / Beat Jazz etc was part of a longer & larger trend toward Traditionalism, as I came to grapple with the overarching "revolutionary" changes in society in recent years and decades and their relation to the civilization they were rebelling against. I came to see that the revolution is a farce, that we are in a period of decadence that is a hallmark of a dying civilization, and that the music culture art people and way of life that existed at its peak mid-century was perhaps the height of European civilization, and that it is a civilization worth saving and defending. All that talk about how the pre-hippie age was "conventional" and "stultified" and that convention should be "questioned" so that we can all be "free" and "creative" is silly hogwash aimed at distracting the minds of the young and/or uninquisitive. Lots of big minds have been at this problem, notably Jacques Barzun (last chapter of FROM DAWN TO DECADENCE), Morris Berman (THE TWILIGHT OF AMERICAN CULTURE), many more all back to Oswald Spengler. So I consider the interest in "beautiful music" as part of a return to TRADITION, to the civilization that is now on the verge of being swept away. There are dozens of miniature "movements" like this out there, all part of it, but so far all unconnected & not entirely cognizant of each other. IF these disparate movements and ideas can connect (which would happen through most likely a work of popular art that would synthesize it), then ladies and gentlemen we would have the strongest and most significant counter-revolution against the forces of chaos, darkness and decay in centuries.

Merry Christmas!

 

[tradrev]

My wife was recently instructed by her doctor to wear some heavy,orthopedic type shoes. Her response to the doctor: "Would you date someone who wore shoes like that?" This is mostly directed to the 26 year-old and I'm not trying to be rude or anything but do you have very old parents or are you actually able to make a direct connection to the pop culture of your grandparents? I remember older people listening to Standards but I remember it was "their music" from "their time". "They" had an emotional connection to the music but I was a generation removed. I wasn't around when Glenn Miller was so his music wasn't a part of me, even though I knew his music. You are a generation behind me! I would think it would be very difficult to make this connection and still relate to your peers.

Here's the problem with that logic -- if more people followed it, we'd never be able to appreciate any art from any time. Listen to Bach? Aw no man, that's oooold! Read a BOOK? Oh no, that old stuff, who cares! We'd degenerate to animals, be no different than the apes.

I'm young and listen to Standards and relate very well to people my age whether or not they are also aware of this music. Part of it is that I think the pop culture of today is garbage and I want no part of it. And also that it's an act of revolution to openly reject it and appreciate the music and culture of my heritage. There are young acts who play "retro" music and increasingly there are many who take it much further than the surface level of a certain style or a certain cultural period. This is more revolutionary than the misfits in Malcolm McLaren's fashion shop because this is anti-decadent, and intellectual, and honest, and open.

There are so many other genres and styles of popular music, from rock to country -- does it mean that a person can't relate to anyone except for those who listen to the same category of music they do? It's a strange view, made popular I think by the Baby Boomers who are so attached to their hippie-punk-pop world.

 

[vchimpanzee]

I know we're supposed to rebel against our parents. I did, but not musically.

 

[vchimpanzee]

I want to add a couple more details. I am not open to new experiences as a rule. I want roast turkey and corn bread dressing on Thanksgiving. I want sweet potatoes, not sweet potato casserole (K & W doesn't do it the way I like, but there is often a lunch at my church where I genrally do get what I want). I want cranberry without any other ingredients (I remember a restaurant that served what looked like a whole bowl full of used bubble gum).

Anyway, hearing David Crosby instead of Bing Crosby is going to be quite an adjustment, but I generally have Dial Global anyway.