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Rank the last 7 decades for music

12K views 35 replies 21 participants last post by  mollycell 
#1 ·
For me;

7. 2010s
Purely because the mainstream scene in this decade is absolute trash, filled with virtue signalling rap-ballady pop hits which way too commonly use the gimmick of substituting a "hook" with either electronic beats or an auto-tuned repetition of certain words or phrases, plus the abundance of "trap" rap artists whom only have a flash-in-the-pan amount of success before being forgotten about.
The underground music scene in this decade was great, and there are still great bands one can find on the internet, but unfortunately, it's now a lot harder for these artists to gain a following, thanks to shit like VEVO, as well as the internet becoming more corporate and advertiser-friendly, and they're promoting what is radio-friendly, leaving these underground artists out of luck.

6. 1950s
Granted, this decade is at an unfair disadvantage due to being 60-70 years ago and the standards of the music industry being a lot different back then, but the fact that its rated over the 2010s on this list is worth noting. This was truly a revolutionary decade in the music world, thanks to the advent of teen culture, which saw the music industry becoming more vibrant and youthful, as opposed to the more uniform sound of previous decades. But even the more adult-oriented music such as from the likes of Frank Sinatra and Bobby Darrin I feel were higher quality than what came out in previous decades, the advent of the LP record in the late 1940s was a significant milestone in music quality, and it shows.

5. 1980s
I'll admit, this decade is actually quite overrated, regarding music. The advent of MTV led to the commercialization of the entire music industry, as musical quality began to take a backseat to musicians having a "cool and hip" look and attitude, and out of this came a large abundance of preppy bubbly dance hits from the likes of Madonna, Cyndi Lauper, Paula Abdul, and Rick Astley, as well as an overabundance of loud "sex & party" anthems in the rock music scene, most notoriously from glam metal artists.
But I would be lying if I were to say that this was at all a bad decade for music. This was, in my opinion, the best decade for reggae music, as it was the tail end of Bob Marley's career, the peak for UB40's career, and arguably the peak for Peter Tosh's career. Plus, songs such as "Careless Whisper", "These Dreams", "Kokomo", and "One (Metallica)", plus "Red Red Wine" from the aforementioned UB40, are all in my Top 15 songs of all time, and I even enjoy a few glam metal songs, despite not finding the genre as a whole appealing. A good decade for music, but overrated.

4. 2000s
Yes, I said it, I think that the 2000s were a better decade for the music industry than the 1980s.
The biggest plus in my opinion for the 2000s is the underground music scene in this decade, which exploded thanks to the advent of MySpace and YouTube, until the former became irrelevant and the latter brought about that VEVO shit. Thanks to these sites, it became easier for underground musicians to gain a following, Emo music hit its prime in this decade, large in part thanks to the internet, and honestly, for as much flack emo gets, there are quite a few emo songs, or alt-rock songs with an emo edge, which I feel are lyrically creative and well constructed, and the raw emotion put into these songs is great. Plus, this was the decade when Eminem, whom reintroduced the hip hop genre to a suburban white audience, hit his prime, and it also featured the tail end of No Doubt before Gwen Stefani went solo, plus this was the last decade when rock music was mainstream, before going underground.

3. 1960s
Hands down the most revolutionary decade in music. The British Invasion and the Hippie Movement saw the maturation of rock music, from being a high school dance fad to being a sophisticated and well developed musical genre, and the Motown Sound featured a similar result for soul and R&B music, the musical artistry in this decade arguably began to rival the likes of Beethoven and Mozart. The liberalization of the music industry allowed for musicians to present their art in ways which were otherwise unheard of, with key examples of this including albums such as Pet Sounds, Revolver, Freak Out!, The Cowsills, Disraeli Gears, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, and Abbey Road are prime examples of this, plus I would even include softer, more folky rock hits from the likes of Bob Dylan, Simon & Garfunkel and Niel Diamond. It was also in this decade when Johnny Cash and Merle Haggard were solidifying the "Outlaw Country" genre with their songs splitting from the more conformist "Nashville Sound", Louis Armstrong released the phenomenal hit "What a Wonderful World", Frank Sinatra released "My Way", and Elvis Presley had his comeback show and released the hits "In the Ghetto" and "Suspicious Minds", plus Michael Jackson's career started out in this decade with The Jackson Five.

2. 1990s
Early within this decade, there was the grunge and acoustic movements, which were a reactionary force against the marketable bubbly sound of the 1980s, and a call-back to the more sophisticated and lyrical sound of the 1960s and 1970s. Out of this came many great grunge and alt-rock acts from the likes of Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Stone Temple Pilots, Smashing Pumpkins, The Cranberries, Hole, and even Metallica I would argue became more grungy with their self titled black album, plus in the mid-late '90s came the advent of skate-punk from the likes of the Offspring, Green Day, and Blink 182. Third-wave ska hit its peak in this decade with acts such as No Doubt, Sublime, and Reel Big Fish, and this decade featured some great reggae and reggae-fusion covers such as UB40's cover of "Can't Help Falling in Love" and Big Mountain's cover of "Baby, I Love Your Way". Plus this decade featured the g-funk era and the peak of gangsta rap music, as well as country music entering into the stratosphere of popularity with Garth Brooks.

1. 1970s
This was hands down the decade when music hit its artistic peak, before the commercialization of the music industry, which large in part started at the end of this decade with Video Concert Hall and "Video Killed the Radio Star".
Motown legends such as Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson and Aretha Franklin were still going strong throughout this decade, and Marvin Gaye in particular released the socially conscious hit "What's Going On", which was a monumental moment in music industry. Plus there was Al Green's "Lets Stay Together", Lou Rawl's "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine", Dorothy Moore's cover of "Misty Blue", and Peaches & Herb's "Reunited", which are all constructed so beautifully in both lyrical and musical content, this was definitively the peak of funk and soul, and even many disco songs, despite the cheesiness, are orchestrated very well, as disco is essentially a hybrid genre of funk and soul. Speaking of disco, it was out of the disco movement where rap music became mainstream, with the Sugarhill Gang's "Rappers Delight".
Folk-rock and soft-rock hit its peak in this decade with artists such as John Denver, Jim Croce, Kenny Loggins, The Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, and the Bee Gees "How Deep Is Your Love". Country music saw Kenny Rogers hit his peak with "The Gambler", and outlaw country hit its peak in this decade, with musicians such as Kris Kristoffen, Waylon Jennings, and Willie Nelson entering the mainstream.

So how would you rank each of these decades, regarding music?
Let me know down below.
 
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#2 ·
My post won't be anywhere as detailed or knowledgeable as OP's, and I'm going to rank my list subjectively in terms of how much I enjoy each decade rather than how important I perceive them to be. But here we go.

7. 1950s

Obviously, many of the artists were very talented and a lot of positive change happened within the music industry. I just do not want to listen to music from this decade.

6. 2010s

I'm not opposed to mainstream music or anything, but Top 40 during this decade became largely unenjoyable to me. A big emphasis on rap and repetitive dance music in the chart, two styles of music of which I am not fond.

I like modern metal music a lot, though. I think there's so many bands to choose from and discover now. So many subgenres to check out.

While it's hard for underground bands to gain a big following, I like how accessible music has become, if you're willing to look for it.

5. 1960s

A lot of progress was made during this decade, and a lot of influential bands such as The Beatles and similar artists changed music. I just can't get into the biggest 1960s bands. I've tried listening to the British Invasion and folk groups several times, but I guess I'm not cultured enough to enjoy them outside of a couple songs.

4. 1980s

It has a lot of great stuff, but some stuff I don't like. I don't like some of their biggest acts (like Madonna or Michael Jackson). Dance pop in general has never been my thing. But there are a lot of pop songs that I do consider to be peak pop music. (I agree with OP that "Careless Whisper" and "One" are some of the best songs of this decade.)

Speaking of "One," metal started getting good in this era with early Metallica, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, etc.

3. 1970s

Pop music was a lot of fun. I could list a lot of individual tunes I really like, but I don't have the time or energy. I do have to say that 70s Billy Joel is one of the few things I absolutely love in this world. The Stranger is a masterpiece.

2. 1990s

A great decade for metal and rock. Maybe the best decade. That's all I have to say.

1. 2000s

Fuck it, I love the 2000s. My views are tainted heavily by nostalgia, but this era was ideal for me. Technology was just right. It was easy to discover bands without having the same artists being pushed on us. Pop music was also a lot of fun back then. Alternative music shone during this era. Most of my favorite bands and artists were most active in the 2000s.
 
#3 ·
1980's
As far as fun it is hard to choose between the 70's and 80's. I definitely have more bands I like from the 70's but the 80's just have so much fun with those chorusy guitars and we are still constantly living in the 80's. It is unreal how popular this decade is for music. Also, my favorite Rush songs/albums are from this decade.

1970's
This is a sort of decade for the start of all the great classic rock bands. This I consider peak British invasion. You get Led Zeppelin, Yes, and ELP.

1990's
Most of my favorite game soundtracks came out this decade: a Link to the Past and Ocarina of Time, all the good Final Fantasies.

1960's
The Beatles carry this decade on their backs. There was also the Yardbirds and Cream.

1950's
I am not a big fan of Elvis, but I have listened to my share of Doowop.

2000's
Video games have less great soundtracks and all the pop music is pretty detestable.

2010's
Same as the 00's but going downhill.
 
#19 ·
#1: 60s
#2: 70s
#3: 50s/80s (hard to be "objective" with this one, since I grew up in the 80s and would rather listen to that due to nostalgia)
#4: early-to-mid 90s

That's it. There is no good "mainstream" music (in USA) post-1995.

It died with Selena.
I'd say mainstream music died around 1993-1994ish period. I think Gladys Knight was right when she said music was going downhill around that period
 
#8 ·
This is tough for me to do because I don't listen to much popular music (classical is my favorite genre) and because I prioritize beautiful melodies and complexity in music (which aren't tightly bound to a decade but are very dependent on genre).

60s best jazz

2000s best metal

70s best low-key rock (Beatles, etc.) and R&B. best popular music overall maybe

80s birth of one of the most gorgeous genres ever, New Wave. last decade whose songs weren't full of sex, misogyny, and vile stuff

90s for the birth of alternative rock, although half of it was garbage. last decade that had rap I could bear to listen to (I mostly hate rap), but gangsta rap kinda started killing it early on

2010s probably mostly garbage, maybe the electronic genres have improved since electronic shit seems to be in everywhere now. I haven't listened to much music from this era (and don't want to), but every pop song I've gotten an earful of is simple, talent-free, repetitive, and annoying. Some of that started in the 2000s
 
#10 ·
I'll tell you what. I collect CD's of all the music I wanna own, which numbers in the 3 digits, and also vinyl copies for my most treasured albums, which numbers 86 vinyl albums. I will rank the decades based on how many vinyls I have from each of them, and further mention how many by different artists. Got that? Here goes:

1. 70's- 35 vinyls

6 Pink Floyd, and
3 Syd Barrett solo,
1 Richard Wright solo
6 Genesis
6 Aerosmith
0 The Beatles, but
3 Paul McCartney solo or Wings,
1 George Harrison solo,
1 John Lennon solo
4 Camel
2 AC/DC
1 Miles Davis
1 Led Zeppelin

2. 60's- 20 vinyls

7 The Beatles, and
1 George Harrison solo
5 Pink Floyd
2 John Coltrane
2 The Beach Boys
2 Led Zeppelin
1 Frank Zappa/ The Mothers of Invention

3. 90's- 10 vinyls

5 Alice In Chains
1 Sepultura
1 Nirvana
1 Megadeth
1 Opeth
1 Radiohead

4. 80's- 9 vinyls

2 Sepultura
1 Pink Floyd, and
1 Nick Mason solo
1 Genesis
1 Aerosmith
1 Slayer
1 Megadeth
1 Metallica

5. 10's- 8 vinyls

4 Opeth
3 King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard
0 Pink Floyd, but
1 Roger Waters solo

6. 00's- 4 vinyls

1 Radiohead
1 Slayer
1 Portishead
0 Alice In Chains, but
1 Jerry Cantrell solo

7. 50's- 0 vinyls, but I have a Fats Domino greatest hits CD that I treasure like a vinyl

I also have a good amount of stuff for the 60's that I treasure like vinyls, but can only own on CD.
 
#13 · (Edited)
Oh wow. Just looked at this again. The differences now would be that there are 4 Syd Barrett vinyls from the 70's instead of 3. 2 Aerosmith from the 80's instead of 1. And from the 10's:
1 Alice In Chains, and
1 William Duvall solo

I think that covers it.

Oh fuck, I almost forgot! And..........
6 Yes from the 70's,
1 Yes from the 60's

So......

70's- 42 vinyls
60's- 21 vinyls
80's- 10 vinyls
90's- 10 vinyls
10's- 10 vinyls
00's- 4 vinyls
50's- Fats Domino
 
#12 ·
2010s:
4/10: sounds like most of the music was manufactured by a Mexican robot.

2000s:
8/10: Some great stuff came out the 2000's, including some of the best rock music I've ever heard with bands like Chevelle, The Strokes, Coheed and Cambria and A Perfect Circle, but 2000's music could get rather maudlin at times as well. This was also a big era in Country: I'm not a fan of country.

1990s:
8.5/10: Not a great fan of grunge, but I did like a lot of the rock bands that came out of the 90's, also early 90's R&B/hip hop is usually really good and fun to listen to. Mainstream pop music from the 90's was still pretty good with hits by Mariah Carey, No Doubt, Whitney Houston, and of course Micheal Jackson. A lot of the music of all genres was pretty good

1980s:
9/10: 80's pop was good. 80's rock was good: populated by hair bands, and some interesting stuff by classic bands. 80's R&B and hip hop was good, the latter being relatively new and rather revolutionary. 80's electronica was also revolutionary. It was a great cross section of older musicians redefining themselves with new technologies and new sounds from new talent, a mixture of established artists and one hit wonders.

1970s:
10/10: The 70's in music were absolute perfection!!!!!!!!! Every genre was good. There was a lot of variety from low key folk to hard rock. There was expansion, there was experimenting, there was raw emotion, true creativity and vision. Prog rock from the 70's is nothing less than absolutely epic with albums like The Yes Album (if you count 1970 as the 1970s which I do) Dark Side of the Moon and 2112. I have a playlist I call "1970's diner" filled with the more poppy 70's tunes I'd expect to have played at diners back in that day. I didn't even get started on artists like Stevie Wonder, Fleetwood Mac, Steely Dan, Supertramp, and ELO, some of the greatest musicians and composers of the 20th century.

1960s:
8/10: Yes a lot of great musical movements started in the 1960s, and, yes, there were the Beatles, but I find that while 60's music was good, the 70's really took it that step further that it needed.

1950s:
6/10: I personally think Elvis is a bit overrated. Yeah I get the kind of revolution he stood for, but he sang other people's songs, and I often end up liking the original versions better, like when Big Mama Thornton belted out "You ain't nothin but a hound dog". I do like Buddy Holly, and find his music to be fun and engaging. Also can't leave out Bill Haley and the Comets and that "Rock Around the Clock" song that's so easy to get into your head. There was also the work of Little Richard, Fats Domino, and Jerry Lee Lewis. Overall, though, I find a lot of 50's music to be repetitive.

1940s:
8/10: Yes, big band!!!! Billie Holliday, Nat King Cole, Duke Ellington: the music of the 40's had such a classy sound to it. I love vintage 30s and 40s things. I think the 40's was the first decade that really kicked of the style of music that has been popularized up to this day.
 
#14 ·
7. Decade #202 (2011-2020): There is much good that came from this decade. However, I believe that the wheels fell off in the music industry this decade. If it wasn't for the internet, it is doubtful how many of the good songs I would know today. In addition, I don't like to rank songs that have only been released within the last ten years, making these songs modern and not old enough to be considered "classics" in any way. This decade will probably beat out Decade #196 and maybe even Decade #197 in time, but for now I will not list it any higher.

6. Decade #196 (1951-1960): I tried making a list of my favorite songs that were released before the year 1960 and the list wasn't very big. It is not a decade that I refer back to very often and I am likely to drop the memory of this decade altogether as I get older. But for now, the songs from this period that I do like are old enough to be considered "golden oldies" seperated from the current day by more than sixty years.

5. Decade #198 (1971-1980): At the moment, I actually prefer decade #197 to this decade. I am likely to one day dismiss anything released before 1971 as being somewhat "prehistoric", but #197 has The Beatles, which at the time of this posting keeps #198 stuck in fifth place.

4. Decade #197 (1961-1970): Flower power, hippie...whatever was going on from about the middle of this decade onwards, I love it. You also have some great songs in the early part of this era as a bonus. If it wasn't so long ago, this could've made the top three.

3. Decade #199 (1981-1990): An excellent time for Scottish music. Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark gave another great contribution. I could actually go on and on. Misses out on the top two only by a hair.

2. Decade #201 (2001-2010): I actually like this decade enormously. It doesn't rank higher because it isn't truly old yet. Therefore, the nostalgia for this time is not as strong. The mainstream began to weaken around 2006 or 2007 and there was a noticeable drop in mainstream quality in 2008. That said, Coldplay and a decent listing of great Amercian rock help to push this era above #199.

1. Decade #200 (1991-2000): What a decade this was! Grunge, boy/girl bands, that Euro scene...WOW! Some serious nostalgia for me here. Even if I ignored the nostalgia, I'd still feel justified for placing this span at the very top because of the amazing quality of music in the first half of this time.
 
#16 ·
Hmm. That's actually a good point, I think. As much as I love the boy band/girl group offering from the late 90s and even the 2000s until the "scene" crowd took over, there was probably more depth in the music from 1990 and earlier. This might be why I mentioned liking "classics" more in my previous post. Around 1998, I would say that music started having less depth (in general).

If I gave more weighting to depth, 1983-1986 or thereabouts would score more points because the produce during the later part of the new wave era was meaningful.
 
#21 ·
there is some last.fm tool that determine from which decade you listen most music... Apparently i listened already more of the 2020's than from the entire 2000's in my life!! HAHA.

I however listen much more music from the 80's and 90's than 00's apparently.
 
#23 ·
I'll do an attempt however:

1. 2010's
2. 1980's
3. 1990's
4. 1960's
5. 2000's
6. 1970's

Of course with earlier decades we wouldn't have the 2010's, and if it wasn't for the internet, it would probably be last. The 2010's is when music diverged in two movements: underground & mainstream, because of the rise of the internet.

I love the 80's for the post-punk, new wave and origin of post-rock, dream pop and shoegaze, but the 90's is when the best stuff from it came out.

The 2000's are not my thing, except for Radiohead, Animal Collective and some cult albums, but otherwise not my cup of tea.

1970's is weird. I like early 1970's (but it was the 60's wave that was dying, while at the end of it, the foundation of the 80's was being laid, but by itself what the 1970's have to offer is kinda lacklustering IMO. Except if you like hard rock or daddy's rock, which i don't.)

1960's is good, but you'll have to ignore Beatlemania. George Harrison's solo album is good though, but that's 70's stuff (and i suspect Lennon is also okay solo)
 
#25 ·
The problem I have with constantly searching for new music is that in my experience it leads to duds 95% of the time, and I don't feel like putting a bunch of effort into listening to mediocre or shitty music 95% of the time just to find the 5% when I can simply spend my time listening to music I already know I dig.
 
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#28 · (Edited)
I don't know really, I often don't know exactly when something is from, but I listen more to new-ish stuff (meaning from the last two decades) I think. Guessing:

00s (when I started to really look for music and find my own taste properly, so a lot of my taste is shaped by things from this period I guess, lots of good pop and pop-ish varieties of other stuff)
10s (a lot of the artists from the 00s are still going on, and there's a lot of good new things, I find it a bit difficult to get an overview though, it is more like a find a good song here and there. There is a lot of good instrumental music, a lot of electronic, focus on sounds, and the soundpicture/room, atmosphere)
60s/70s (can't keep track of what might be from what of those, I listen quite a lot to what we call "prog" which isn't the same as the genre called that in english, it is a bit odd and often political music... difficult to explain, also lots of classics of course)
90s (I am not so impressed by 90s music in general, but some of my favourites are from this time, otherwise it might be last on the list, perhaps also because I was a child and associate it to annoying music directed at children, like Aqua and Rednex...)
50s (I don't listen much this music, but I often like it if I do)
80s (perhaps I listen more to 80s stuff than I think? but my association is purple and pink and metal can-sounds, poodle rock and overly cheery pop, it can be poetic and heartfelt though)
 
#29 ·
Isn't this going to be generational? I'm a GenXer and I think chronologically is just right.

1. 50s - Out of blues, jazz, and country was born rock and roll
2. 60s - Absolutely innovative music that matched the cultural revolution it was part of
3. 70s - Hard rock and mellow music combined to make a signature sound
4. 80s - Technology and prosperity created all new kinds of music
5. 90s - Grunge and alternative rock came of age
6. 00s - The full realization of the digital age killed music
7. 10s - Yawn. The gems are few and far between
 
#30 ·
Isn't this going to be generational? I'm a GenXer and I think chronologically is just right.

1. 50s - Out of blues, jazz, and country was born rock and roll
2. 60s - Absolutely innovative music that matched the cultural revolution it was part of
3. 70s - Hard rock and mellow music combined to make a signature sound
4. 80s - Technology and prosperity created all new kinds of music
5. 90s - Grunge and alternative rock came of age
6. 00s - The full realization of the digital age killed music
7. 10s - Yawn. The gems are few and far between
Let's be real here. Shit was changing for the worse before the new millennium around the early 90s to say the least
 
#34 ·
For me;

7. 2010s
Purely because the mainstream scene in this decade is absolute trash, filled with virtue signalling rap-ballady pop hits which way too commonly use the gimmick of substituting a "hook" with either electronic beats or an auto-tuned repetition of certain words or phrases, plus the abundance of "trap" rap artists whom only have a flash-in-the-pan amount of success before being forgotten about.
The underground music scene in this decade was great, and there are still great bands one can find on the internet, but unfortunately, it's now a lot harder for these artists to gain a following, thanks to shit like VEVO, as well as the internet becoming more corporate and advertiser-friendly, and they're promoting what is radio-friendly, leaving these underground artists out of luck.

6. 1950s
Granted, this decade is at an unfair disadvantage due to being 60-70 years ago and the standards of the music industry being a lot different back then, but the fact that its rated over the 2010s on this list is worth noting. This was truly a revolutionary decade in the music world, thanks to the advent of teen culture, which saw the music industry becoming more vibrant and youthful, as opposed to the more uniform sound of previous decades. But even the more adult-oriented music such as from the likes of Frank Sinatra and Bobby Darrin I feel were higher quality than what came out in previous decades, the advent of the LP record in the late 1940s was a significant milestone in music quality, and it shows.

5. 1980s
I'll admit, this decade is actually quite overrated, regarding music. The advent of MTV led to the commercialization of the entire music industry, as musical quality began to take a backseat to musicians having a "cool and hip" look and attitude, and out of this came a large abundance of preppy bubbly dance hits from the likes of Madonna, Cyndi Lauper, Paula Abdul, and Rick Astley, as well as an overabundance of loud "sex & party" anthems in the rock music scene, most notoriously from glam metal artists.
But I would be lying if I were to say that this was at all a bad decade for music. This was, in my opinion, the best decade for reggae music, as it was the tail end of Bob Marley's career, the peak for UB40's career, and arguably the peak for Peter Tosh's career. Plus, songs such as "Careless Whisper", "These Dreams", "Kokomo", and "One (Metallica)", plus "Red Red Wine" from the aforementioned UB40, are all in my Top 15 songs of all time, and I even enjoy a few glam metal songs, despite not finding the genre as a whole appealing. A good decade for music, but overrated.

4. 2000s
Yes, I said it, I think that the 2000s were a better decade for the music industry than the 1980s.
The biggest plus in my opinion for the 2000s is the underground music scene in this decade, which exploded thanks to the advent of MySpace and YouTube, until the former became irrelevant and the latter brought about that VEVO shit. Thanks to these sites, it became easier for underground musicians to gain a following, Emo music hit its prime in this decade, large in part thanks to the internet, and honestly, for as much flack emo gets, there are quite a few emo songs, or alt-rock songs with an emo edge, which I feel are lyrically creative and well constructed, and the raw emotion put into these songs is great. Plus, this was the decade when Eminem, whom reintroduced the hip hop genre to a suburban white audience, hit his prime, and it also featured the tail end of No Doubt before Gwen Stefani went solo, plus this was the last decade when rock music was mainstream, before going underground.

3. 1960s
Hands down the most revolutionary decade in music. The British Invasion and the Hippie Movement saw the maturation of rock music, from being a high school dance fad to being a sophisticated and well developed musical genre, and the Motown Sound featured a similar result for soul and R&B music, the musical artistry in this decade arguably began to rival the likes of Beethoven and Mozart. The liberalization of the music industry allowed for musicians to present their art in ways which were otherwise unheard of, with key examples of this including albums such as Pet Sounds, Revolver, Freak Out!, The Cowsills, Disraeli Gears, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, and Abbey Road are prime examples of this, plus I would even include softer, more folky rock hits from the likes of Bob Dylan, Simon & Garfunkel and Niel Diamond. It was also in this decade when Johnny Cash and Merle Haggard were solidifying the "Outlaw Country" genre with their songs splitting from the more conformist "Nashville Sound", Louis Armstrong released the phenomenal hit "What a Wonderful World", Frank Sinatra released "My Way", and Elvis Presley had his comeback show and released the hits "In the Ghetto" and "Suspicious Minds", plus Michael Jackson's career started out in this decade with The Jackson Five.

2. 1990s
Early within this decade, there was the grunge and acoustic movements, which were a reactionary force against the marketable bubbly sound of the 1980s, and a call-back to the more sophisticated and lyrical sound of the 1960s and 1970s. Out of this came many great grunge and alt-rock acts from the likes of Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Stone Temple Pilots, Smashing Pumpkins, The Cranberries, Hole, and even Metallica I would argue became more grungy with their self titled black album, plus in the mid-late '90s came the advent of skate-punk from the likes of the Offspring, Green Day, and Blink 182. Third-wave ska hit its peak in this decade with acts such as No Doubt, Sublime, and Reel Big Fish, and this decade featured some great reggae and reggae-fusion covers such as UB40's cover of "Can't Help Falling in Love" and Big Mountain's cover of "Baby, I Love Your Way". Plus this decade featured the g-funk era and the peak of gangsta rap music, as well as country music entering into the stratosphere of popularity with Garth Brooks.

1. 1970s
This was hands down the decade when music hit its artistic peak, before the commercialization of the music industry, which large in part started at the end of this decade with Video Concert Hall and "Video Killed the Radio Star".
Motown legends such as Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson and Aretha Franklin were still going strong throughout this decade, and Marvin Gaye in particular released the socially conscious hit "What's Going On", which was a monumental moment in music industry. Plus there was Al Green's "Lets Stay Together", Lou Rawl's "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine", Dorothy Moore's cover of "Misty Blue", and Peaches & Herb's "Reunited", which are all constructed so beautifully in both lyrical and musical content, this was definitively the peak of funk and soul, and even many disco songs, despite the cheesiness, are orchestrated very well, as disco is essentially a hybrid genre of funk and soul. Speaking of disco, it was out of the disco movement where rap music became mainstream, with the Sugarhill Gang's "Rappers Delight".
Folk-rock and soft-rock hit its peak in this decade with artists such as John Denver, Jim Croce, Kenny Loggins, The Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, and the Bee Gees "How Deep Is Your Love". Country music saw Kenny Rogers hit his peak with "The Gambler", and outlaw country hit its peak in this decade, with musicians such as Kris Kristoffen, Waylon Jennings, and Willie Nelson entering the mainstream.

So how would you rank each of these decades, regarding music?
Let me know down below.
1970"s hands down the best decade.
Dark Side of the Moon
The Wall
Sticky Fingers
Exile on Main St.
Quadraphenia
Who's Next
Night at the Opera
Led Zeppelin IV
At Fillmore East
Blood on the Tracks
Rumors
What's Going On
Van Halen
For me;

7. 2010s
Purely because the mainstream scene in this decade is absolute trash, filled with virtue signalling rap-ballady pop hits which way too commonly use the gimmick of substituting a "hook" with either electronic beats or an auto-tuned repetition of certain words or phrases, plus the abundance of "trap" rap artists whom only have a flash-in-the-pan amount of success before being forgotten about.
The underground music scene in this decade was great, and there are still great bands one can find on the internet, but unfortunately, it's now a lot harder for these artists to gain a following, thanks to shit like VEVO, as well as the internet becoming more corporate and advertiser-friendly, and they're promoting what is radio-friendly, leaving these underground artists out of luck.

6. 1950s
Granted, this decade is at an unfair disadvantage due to being 60-70 years ago and the standards of the music industry being a lot different back then, but the fact that its rated over the 2010s on this list is worth noting. This was truly a revolutionary decade in the music world, thanks to the advent of teen culture, which saw the music industry becoming more vibrant and youthful, as opposed to the more uniform sound of previous decades. But even the more adult-oriented music such as from the likes of Frank Sinatra and Bobby Darrin I feel were higher quality than what came out in previous decades, the advent of the LP record in the late 1940s was a significant milestone in music quality, and it shows.

5. 1980s
I'll admit, this decade is actually quite overrated, regarding music. The advent of MTV led to the commercialization of the entire music industry, as musical quality began to take a backseat to musicians having a "cool and hip" look and attitude, and out of this came a large abundance of preppy bubbly dance hits from the likes of Madonna, Cyndi Lauper, Paula Abdul, and Rick Astley, as well as an overabundance of loud "sex & party" anthems in the rock music scene, most notoriously from glam metal artists.
But I would be lying if I were to say that this was at all a bad decade for music. This was, in my opinion, the best decade for reggae music, as it was the tail end of Bob Marley's career, the peak for UB40's career, and arguably the peak for Peter Tosh's career. Plus, songs such as "Careless Whisper", "These Dreams", "Kokomo", and "One (Metallica)", plus "Red Red Wine" from the aforementioned UB40, are all in my Top 15 songs of all time, and I even enjoy a few glam metal songs, despite not finding the genre as a whole appealing. A good decade for music, but overrated.

4. 2000s
Yes, I said it, I think that the 2000s were a better decade for the music industry than the 1980s.
The biggest plus in my opinion for the 2000s is the underground music scene in this decade, which exploded thanks to the advent of MySpace and YouTube, until the former became irrelevant and the latter brought about that VEVO shit. Thanks to these sites, it became easier for underground musicians to gain a following, Emo music hit its prime in this decade, large in part thanks to the internet, and honestly, for as much flack emo gets, there are quite a few emo songs, or alt-rock songs with an emo edge, which I feel are lyrically creative and well constructed, and the raw emotion put into these songs is great. Plus, this was the decade when Eminem, whom reintroduced the hip hop genre to a suburban white audience, hit his prime, and it also featured the tail end of No Doubt before Gwen Stefani went solo, plus this was the last decade when rock music was mainstream, before going underground.

3. 1960s
Hands down the most revolutionary decade in music. The British Invasion and the Hippie Movement saw the maturation of rock music, from being a high school dance fad to being a sophisticated and well developed musical genre, and the Motown Sound featured a similar result for soul and R&B music, the musical artistry in this decade arguably began to rival the likes of Beethoven and Mozart. The liberalization of the music industry allowed for musicians to present their art in ways which were otherwise unheard of, with key examples of this including albums such as Pet Sounds, Revolver, Freak Out!, The Cowsills, Disraeli Gears, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, and Abbey Road are prime examples of this, plus I would even include softer, more folky rock hits from the likes of Bob Dylan, Simon & Garfunkel and Niel Diamond. It was also in this decade when Johnny Cash and Merle Haggard were solidifying the "Outlaw Country" genre with their songs splitting from the more conformist "Nashville Sound", Louis Armstrong released the phenomenal hit "What a Wonderful World", Frank Sinatra released "My Way", and Elvis Presley had his comeback show and released the hits "In the Ghetto" and "Suspicious Minds", plus Michael Jackson's career started out in this decade with The Jackson Five.

2. 1990s
Early within this decade, there was the grunge and acoustic movements, which were a reactionary force against the marketable bubbly sound of the 1980s, and a call-back to the more sophisticated and lyrical sound of the 1960s and 1970s. Out of this came many great grunge and alt-rock acts from the likes of Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Stone Temple Pilots, Smashing Pumpkins, The Cranberries, Hole, and even Metallica I would argue became more grungy with their self titled black album, plus in the mid-late '90s came the advent of skate-punk from the likes of the Offspring, Green Day, and Blink 182. Third-wave ska hit its peak in this decade with acts such as No Doubt, Sublime, and Reel Big Fish, and this decade featured some great reggae and reggae-fusion covers such as UB40's cover of "Can't Help Falling in Love" and Big Mountain's cover of "Baby, I Love Your Way". Plus this decade featured the g-funk era and the peak of gangsta rap music, as well as country music entering into the stratosphere of popularity with Garth Brooks.

1. 1970s
This was hands down the decade when music hit its artistic peak, before the commercialization of the music industry, which large in part started at the end of this decade with Video Concert Hall and "Video Killed the Radio Star".
Motown legends such as Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson and Aretha Franklin were still going strong throughout this decade, and Marvin Gaye in particular released the socially conscious hit "What's Going On", which was a monumental moment in music industry. Plus there was Al Green's "Lets Stay Together", Lou Rawl's "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine", Dorothy Moore's cover of "Misty Blue", and Peaches & Herb's "Reunited", which are all constructed so beautifully in both lyrical and musical content, this was definitively the peak of funk and soul, and even many disco songs, despite the cheesiness, are orchestrated very well, as disco is essentially a hybrid genre of funk and soul. Speaking of disco, it was out of the disco movement where rap music became mainstream, with the Sugarhill Gang's "Rappers Delight".
Folk-rock and soft-rock hit its peak in this decade with artists such as John Denver, Jim Croce, Kenny Loggins, The Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, and the Bee Gees "How Deep Is Your Love". Country music saw Kenny Rogers hit his peak with "The Gambler", and outlaw country hit its peak in this decade, with musicians such as Kris Kristoffen, Waylon Jennings, and Willie Nelson entering the mainstream.

So how would you rank each of these decades, regarding music?
Let me know down below.
For me;

7. 2010s
Purely because the mainstream scene in this decade is absolute trash, filled with virtue signalling rap-ballady pop hits which way too commonly use the gimmick of substituting a "hook" with either electronic beats or an auto-tuned repetition of certain words or phrases, plus the abundance of "trap" rap artists whom only have a flash-in-the-pan amount of success before being forgotten about.
The underground music scene in this decade was great, and there are still great bands one can find on the internet, but unfortunately, it's now a lot harder for these artists to gain a following, thanks to shit like VEVO, as well as the internet becoming more corporate and advertiser-friendly, and they're promoting what is radio-friendly, leaving these underground artists out of luck.

6. 1950s
Granted, this decade is at an unfair disadvantage due to being 60-70 years ago and the standards of the music industry being a lot different back then, but the fact that its rated over the 2010s on this list is worth noting. This was truly a revolutionary decade in the music world, thanks to the advent of teen culture, which saw the music industry becoming more vibrant and youthful, as opposed to the more uniform sound of previous decades. But even the more adult-oriented music such as from the likes of Frank Sinatra and Bobby Darrin I feel were higher quality than what came out in previous decades, the advent of the LP record in the late 1940s was a significant milestone in music quality, and it shows.

5. 1980s
I'll admit, this decade is actually quite overrated, regarding music. The advent of MTV led to the commercialization of the entire music industry, as musical quality began to take a backseat to musicians having a "cool and hip" look and attitude, and out of this came a large abundance of preppy bubbly dance hits from the likes of Madonna, Cyndi Lauper, Paula Abdul, and Rick Astley, as well as an overabundance of loud "sex & party" anthems in the rock music scene, most notoriously from glam metal artists.
But I would be lying if I were to say that this was at all a bad decade for music. This was, in my opinion, the best decade for reggae music, as it was the tail end of Bob Marley's career, the peak for UB40's career, and arguably the peak for Peter Tosh's career. Plus, songs such as "Careless Whisper", "These Dreams", "Kokomo", and "One (Metallica)", plus "Red Red Wine" from the aforementioned UB40, are all in my Top 15 songs of all time, and I even enjoy a few glam metal songs, despite not finding the genre as a whole appealing. A good decade for music, but overrated.

4. 2000s
Yes, I said it, I think that the 2000s were a better decade for the music industry than the 1980s.
The biggest plus in my opinion for the 2000s is the underground music scene in this decade, which exploded thanks to the advent of MySpace and YouTube, until the former became irrelevant and the latter brought about that VEVO shit. Thanks to these sites, it became easier for underground musicians to gain a following, Emo music hit its prime in this decade, large in part thanks to the internet, and honestly, for as much flack emo gets, there are quite a few emo songs, or alt-rock songs with an emo edge, which I feel are lyrically creative and well constructed, and the raw emotion put into these songs is great. Plus, this was the decade when Eminem, whom reintroduced the hip hop genre to a suburban white audience, hit his prime, and it also featured the tail end of No Doubt before Gwen Stefani went solo, plus this was the last decade when rock music was mainstream, before going underground.

3. 1960s
Hands down the most revolutionary decade in music. The British Invasion and the Hippie Movement saw the maturation of rock music, from being a high school dance fad to being a sophisticated and well developed musical genre, and the Motown Sound featured a similar result for soul and R&B music, the musical artistry in this decade arguably began to rival the likes of Beethoven and Mozart. The liberalization of the music industry allowed for musicians to present their art in ways which were otherwise unheard of, with key examples of this including albums such as Pet Sounds, Revolver, Freak Out!, The Cowsills, Disraeli Gears, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, and Abbey Road are prime examples of this, plus I would even include softer, more folky rock hits from the likes of Bob Dylan, Simon & Garfunkel and Niel Diamond. It was also in this decade when Johnny Cash and Merle Haggard were solidifying the "Outlaw Country" genre with their songs splitting from the more conformist "Nashville Sound", Louis Armstrong released the phenomenal hit "What a Wonderful World", Frank Sinatra released "My Way", and Elvis Presley had his comeback show and released the hits "In the Ghetto" and "Suspicious Minds", plus Michael Jackson's career started out in this decade with The Jackson Five.

2. 1990s
Early within this decade, there was the grunge and acoustic movements, which were a reactionary force against the marketable bubbly sound of the 1980s, and a call-back to the more sophisticated and lyrical sound of the 1960s and 1970s. Out of this came many great grunge and alt-rock acts from the likes of Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Stone Temple Pilots, Smashing Pumpkins, The Cranberries, Hole, and even Metallica I would argue became more grungy with their self titled black album, plus in the mid-late '90s came the advent of skate-punk from the likes of the Offspring, Green Day, and Blink 182. Third-wave ska hit its peak in this decade with acts such as No Doubt, Sublime, and Reel Big Fish, and this decade featured some great reggae and reggae-fusion covers such as UB40's cover of "Can't Help Falling in Love" and Big Mountain's cover of "Baby, I Love Your Way". Plus this decade featured the g-funk era and the peak of gangsta rap music, as well as country music entering into the stratosphere of popularity with Garth Brooks.

1. 1970s
This was hands down the decade when music hit its artistic peak, before the commercialization of the music industry, which large in part started at the end of this decade with Video Concert Hall and "Video Killed the Radio Star".
Motown legends such as Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson and Aretha Franklin were still going strong throughout this decade, and Marvin Gaye in particular released the socially conscious hit "What's Going On", which was a monumental moment in music industry. Plus there was Al Green's "Lets Stay Together", Lou Rawl's "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine", Dorothy Moore's cover of "Misty Blue", and Peaches & Herb's "Reunited", which are all constructed so beautifully in both lyrical and musical content, this was definitively the peak of funk and soul, and even many disco songs, despite the cheesiness, are orchestrated very well, as disco is essentially a hybrid genre of funk and soul. Speaking of disco, it was out of the disco movement where rap music became mainstream, with the Sugarhill Gang's "Rappers Delight".
Folk-rock and soft-rock hit its peak in this decade with artists such as John Denver, Jim Croce, Kenny Loggins, The Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, and the Bee Gees "How Deep Is Your Love". Country music saw Kenny Rogers hit his peak with "The Gambler", and outlaw country hit its peak in this decade, with musicians such as Kris Kristoffen, Waylon Jennings, and Willie Nelson entering the mainstream.

So how would you rank each of these decades, regarding music?
Let me know down below.
Dark Side of the Moon
The Wall
What's Going On
Young Gifted and Black
Sticky Fingers
Exile on Main St
Led Zeppelin IV
At Fillmore East
Quadraphenia
Who's Next
Blood on the Tracks
Off the Wall
Van Halen 1
I could go on but I'll rest my case right there.
 
#35 ·
00s
90s
10s
60s
70s
50s
80s

I mainly listen to new/modern stuff. There's some excellent music out there, just not the radio friendly popular tunes.

Tbh, if I'd base this on 90s-10s mainstream, my list would look a bit different. I don't listen to mainstream though so I base it on the stuff I listen to.
 
#36 · (Edited)
It's nice to hear such opinions signed with arguments. It is essential because people need to start understanding what good music is and mediocrity, the pursuit of money. Unfortunately, people often do more, but the quality suffers greatly from this, which is why their work as a whole is not distinguished by something outstanding. It's sad, but these are the modern realities of our life, where only the one who has more money in the account survives, and creativity fades into the background. I have not yet figured out what is more acceptable for me from the years you described in your post. So far, I'm trying to listen to everything I can find on show4me.com and other similar services. I hope that I will cultivate a good taste in music soon
 
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