Live Music Archive

The term, “oldies,” refers to both popular music from the 1950s-1970s and the radio format that specializes in this type of music. “Golden oldies” regularly refers to oldies music exclusively from the 1950s-early 1960s. Oldies songs are typically from the Rythm & Blues, pop and rock music type ofs but could also include country, movie soundtrack, novelty, and other categories of popular music played on the radio from around 1950-on. Pop music type ofs that had their heyday before the 1950s (e.g., ragtime, large band) are generally thought to be “too old” to be included in the oldies radio format. Oldies music radio stations, which typically feature performers and artists such as (to name a few ) Elvis Presley, Bill Haley, Little Richard, Pat Boone, Sam Cooke, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, the Rolling Stones, the Rascals, the Association, the Temptations, the Who, Elton John, and Fleetwood Mac, cover a wide  variety of styles including early rock and roll, rockabilly, doo-wop, surf rock, girl groups, the British Invasion, folk rock, psychedelic rock, baroque pop, soul music, Motown, and bubblegum pop. Oldies music also overlaps with classic rock which focuses on the rock music of the late 1960s and 1970s as well as newer music in a similar style.

The phrase, “oldies but goodies,” has been 1st coined in 1957 by renowned deejay Art Laboe who, at around that time, used to get frequent requests from his fans for songs from the early 1950s. A central figure in L.A. radio for over half a century, Laboe has been the 1st deejay to performance rock and roll on the West Coast and one of the 1st to performance black and white artists on the same show. In 1959, he put together the 1st LP to feature (mostly older) songs by diverse artists. This immensely popular compilation album, entitled “Oldies But Goodies,” stayed on Billboard’s Top 100 LP’s chart for over three years and has, to date, spawned some 14 sequels. (Click here for a recent interview with Art Laboe.)

Soon after the release of Laboe’s 1st “Oldies But Goodies” album, the phrase, “oldies but good ies,” became commonplace and by around 1960, individuals were waxing nostalgic for 1950s doo-wop which was already starting to be classified as “oldies.” Little Caesar And The Romans’ 1961 hit, “Those Oldies But Goodies (Remind Me of You)” and its sequel, “Memories of Those Oldies But Goodies,” both pay homage to early doo-wop and doo-wop performers. This wave of nostalgia brought about a doo-wop revival in the early 1960s which was the 1st of many nostalgia movements in pop music since the term, “oldies,” was 1st applied to older pop music.

While “golden oldies” has remained a never ending over the years, the larger body of pop music that we still call “oldies” now – which is made up of core golden oldies tunes plus more modern material – isn’t fixed but has been gradually expanding forward in time to keep up with changing demographics. Nowadays, oldies music is generally considered to include all of the 1970s, even disco, and the same is expected to be true someday for the music of the 1980s, now a number of times described as “retro.” Oldies music is additionally expanding in breadth as thousands of long-forgotten tunes from the 1950s and 1960s that never made the Top 40 in their day are being re found and resurrected. Whether because of nostalgia, curiosity, or a genuine love for nice music, the oldies format has maintained a very large following and will probably continue to do so for many years to come.