What was it like in the 60's and 70's?

Remember when the batteries died? And they had some extra ones in the boat? But they were dead too? And the professor said "Sometimes batteries die even if you never used them?" So he made a battery out of a potato, I think?

That was awesome.

I had the same radio as Gilligan. I was really proud of that.

Gerinski wrote: And for the musicians themselves, maintaining a Mellotron in smooth working order required more dedication that a sick pet puppy, often a dedicated guy for the big bands which could afford it.

Dean wrote: tamijo wrote: Not to mention that the price of an album was very high campared to the wages of especialy younger people. Making a collection of just 100 albums, was almost impossible for young people, most of had 30-50 albums to chose between. The price was almost the same as today, but the wages was very low. Absolutely. The price of music has remained pretty much constant since the late 80s. I remember not buying Tales From Topographic Oceans when it was released simply because I could not afford it. Wages were such that if I behaved myself and was very careful with my budget I could just about manage to buy an album every two weeks. Of course that makes the 300+ albums I did buy between 1971 and 1980 all the more special.

Yes it was a big deal to buy an LP then. You'd have to save up to be able to. On the other hand, there wasn't much else to spend money on, only books. It was always a dilemma, what do I want the most, a book or a record.  

Today there are so many expensive distractions from what's important in life.  Can't believe how much money young people  spend on clothes for instance, just because they want a certain brand.   

^ So true! The elation I felt when I made a good choice was matched only by the disappointment I felt when I made a bad one. Buying albums was a big deal back then. I remember waiting years (or so it seemed) to buy Living in the Past because it was a double album and cost 30% more than a single album. But when I did I was so thrilled with the music and the 12"x12" book of photos it ended up being the best $12.00 (or whatever it was) I ever spent. Compare that to the disappointment when I bought A, or Asia, or Duke, or Love Beach... of course it was the '80's by then and it happened a lot.

Dean wrote: In the 60s most people listen to music on one of these:   and to the radio on one of these:   In the 1970s the "music centre" was the most common form of "hifi":     Nostalgia is seeing the world through rose-tinted spectacles.

ExittheLemming wrote: I also think that anyone who was involved in making music at home on an amateur budget between say 1980 and 1995, would remember the revolutionary cassette based portastudio, which facilitated very limited multitrack overdubbing capability. The limitation was that after you bounced more than once, everything sounded like it was recorded in a wind tunnel.

There were far more "indy" record stores and a lot were dedicated to "prog" music plus, you had the option of getting the domestic version or the imported version (or both). The radio stations were more likely to introduce you to those bands aw well (I first heard Gentle Giant "Three Friends" on the radio). Those were the days!

In the 60s most people listen to music on one of these:

Music across the boards.. from recordings to radio to concerts was better.  Better.. I mean in a quality sense.. not convenient.

Concerts were affordable.. for most anyone.  We were more concerned about GETTING to the concert than paying $10 for a ticket to see YES or Robin Trower.

Musicians had a much higher bar to compare themselves to.  Whether rock or prog.. bands had to practice.  Musicians had a lot less distractions.  No internet, texting or cell phone calls during rehearsal.  Music sound better because anyone who had a quality set up had BIG SPEAKERS and tube amps.. not thes cheap flimsy ipods and smart phone with plastic ear buds that most people are listening to.

Radio was better because you could find an educated DJ who had control of his show.. and would TURN PEOPLE ON to good stuff.  You would follow a DJ's show.. and learn about stuff.  If you got to know a DJ... you might be able to record some of his albums that you couldn't get onto a cassette tape and listen to it that way.. and it could SOUND GOOD on analog tape if you recorded it correctly. 

Festivals were a great way to discover new bands.. you would see Gentle Giant playing with Black Sabbath or Santana. 

Another important element is that there were HOT CHICKS who dug PROG.. believe it or not.  I once met a 20 year old girl who loved to have sex to side one of Tales From Topographic Oceans.  Find a girl like that now that age.. good luck. 

Techno didn't exist yet.. nor did silly 80's hair metal bands. 

Rush was a great band playing complex hard rock with wonderful compositions and execution.. not having to use computers as a crutch. 

Bands were forced to keep it real and record onto tape machines.. not copy and pasting sound files on a computer and proclaiming to be musicians.

The college circuit offered a great way for more experimental bands to find a great audience.  Now college radio is playing too much computer music. 

Vinyl records helped you get into the band more.. all the great artwork.. lyrics.. posters.. etc.  now it's a download of a crappy MP3 file.  What a joke.

All the great bands did it without computers. 

Computers ruined music.