‘70s Music is Staying Alive

by J. Faith Malicdem

The resurgence in ‘70s music among my generation was brought to my attention when I walked into the ABBA revival band’s debut at the Hollywood Bowl over the summer alongside my mom and sister. My fondness of the Swedish group’s music stemmed from my mom’s obsession. I recall the almost-daily karaoke sessions she and I would routinely partake in before my siblings were born. Belting “The Winner Takes It All” was our thing. At the Bowl, I couldn’t help but notice the wide range of ages tucked into the rows of seats. A triad of teenage girls to my right was wrapped in sparkly Donna and the Dynamos boas and colorful bell-bottom pants. A club of ABBA fans behind us strutted around with glasses filled with wine and sourdough bread crackling in hand. The middle-aged women wore matching T-shirts that read Dancing Queens. To my left, a rowdy group of men in their 20s danced around, practically moshing to “Chiquitita.” My mom said she’d figured there were so many young people at the Bowl because of Mamma Mia 2: Here We Go Again’s release last summer. 

Over the next few months, I noticed musical influences like Queen, Fleetwood Mac, and Elton John increasingly flooding my friends’ Spotify playlists—and not just the pretentious, avid music nerds who’d promote their curated playlists on their Instagram stories. But what perpetuated the inflow from this era more so than other classic, music-defining periods? Why now? Why my generation?

‘70s Music Groups on the Silver Screen

Mamma Mia’s release in 2008 and subsequent prequel-sequel crossover Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again release ten years later catalyzed an immense influx of ABBA fans, reviving their music for generations who didn’t live to see ABBA’s reign in the 1970s. The premiere of the highly anticipated Bohemian Rhapsody in 2018 prompted audiences of all ages to flood my hometown’s ArcLight theater as multigenerational groups chanted “Galileo! Galileo!” in unison. My YouTube recommendations were swarmed with “Crocodile Rock” covers after Rocketman took theaters by storm just this past summer. Twitter’s Discover page is headlined with the news of Graham King securing the rights to Bee Gees music for an upcoming biopic. 

In utilizing older music groups’ music to tell a new story through modern storytelling in film, a resurgence in and of itself is encouraged. ‘70s music is reaching a younger audience through association to older, vintage times, as the actual music is being paired with a brand new lens of special effects, scriptwriting, and plotline embellishments. Younger audiences have been experiencing these groups’ music and live performances secondhand through older generations’ storytelling, and now those stories are plastered onscreen. There’s a certain appeal to genre-defining groups of their time, and these bands are well-deserving of the new wave of attention they’re receiving, proving their music is timeless. 

Music Licensing in Cinema and Television

In order for the aforementioned movies to have been executed on the silver screen, directors and producers had to wrestle for music licenses and rights to specific songs. Karen Han tackles the inner workings of music licensing in the Vulture’s article “Why Is John Denver’s Music in So Many Movies This Year?” after Denver’s music had made a notable return to the silver screen. In order to secure a song of Denver’s in a film’s soundtrack, the scene it would be playing behind had to convey positive messages of “peace and compassion,” according to Han. Denver’s main goal was to maintain a perception and association of all things good with his music, and he accomplished doing so in 2017 with the release of Alien: Covenant, Okja, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul and Logan Lucky, all of which feature “Take Me Home, Country Roads” with the same positive usage. 

The NBC series Freaks and Geeks allocated a substantial chunk of their budget toward the rights to 120-track long soundtrack, ensuring that it featured songs that were true to the setting of the series’ era— and although the show took place in the early ‘80s, it often reminisced ‘70s music culture. Van Halen’s “Jamie’s Cryin’” and Joe Jackson’s “Get Sharp!” are reminiscent of the time period, instilling feelings of cheap nostalgia in viewers who have discovered the show through Netflix, and viewers who followed along when the series first aired in 1999. The series received more traction through Netflix’s platform, among audiences who would’ve been infants at the time of the show’s initial release. 

Music licensing plays a vital role in the resurgence of ‘70s music, as it has breathed life into the incorporation of older music into newer forms of entertainment.

LGBTQ+ and Feminist Icons 

So, what about the artists behind the music? How have their personas affected the grasp of their music in a new era? Kate Bush’s “Wuthering Heights” topped the UK charts, making her the first female artist to have made it to #1 as the writer of her own lyrics. EMI Records had initially wanted her to approach the song in a more bubblegum-pop manner, but she refused. She continued to stand in defiance, refusing to be marketed as a sex icon just because of her femininity. Today, her music and image embody feminist ideals.

Similarly, Debbie Harry rebranded punk as she took the music industry by storm. Her success didn’t reach its peak until the formation of Blondie at age 30. The group scored a spot on the top charts with “Heart of Glass” and “One Way or Another”. Debbie prefaced femininity in the music industry in the late ‘70s with a new take on defining her own career and her own look. 

With the growth in LGBTQ+ visibility, audiences today have become fond of the flamboyant fashion and eccentric personas Elton John, Freddie Mercury, and ABBA branded themselves with. And of course, along with the recognition of these artists for their contributions to the gay community came the resurfacing of their music. Modern musical spearheads have countlessly covered these artists’ music, (some personal favorites of mine include the Regrettes’ rendition of “Don’t Stop Me Now” and Miley Cyrus’ cover of “The Bitch Is Back”) while others pay homage by dressing up as the legends for Halloween. 

However, ABBA’s legacy is a special case. It isn’t the actual members of the group who stand alone as LGBTQ+ icons—it’s their music that resonates with the community collectively. “Dancing Queen” is arguably the most popular anthem in the gay and drag culture. In an interview with Gay Times, ABBA member Björn Ulvaeus said “We found out quite early that “Dancing Queen” had become an anthem and we were very proud that we’ve been chosen by the community.” In fact, ABBA is making a comeback with two songs to be released later this year. Ulvaeus credits the gay community for the group’s return to music. It’ll be their first new music release in 40 years. As the spectrum of sexuality and the power of women grow more visible, it is no doubt that these artists’ music will continue to grow to serve as anthems of celebration.

Artists and Their Farewells 

Sometimes music doesn’t resurge in a positive light. Two days after David Bowie’s release of Blackstar in January of 2016, the icon died of liver cancer. Its commercial success, in the wake of Bowie’s death, resulted in the album topping the Billboard 200 charts—the only Bowie album to ever do so. Younger generations recognize Bowie as someone who “normalized weird,” and as someone who shifted the way experimental and art rock would be executed forever. 

In a bittersweet attempt to bid adieu to his musical career, Elton John announced the Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour in early February of 2018. The tour is set to last until December 2020, with Elton John continually adding dates to each leg of it. As fans who grew up with Elton follow the hype of the “farewell” notion, so do their children. It’d be a foolish move to pass up any opportunity to witness a versatile, quintessential performer do a final dance on stage, right? With that being said, younger audiences feel compelled to witness a once-in-a-lifetime performance, especially following the release of Rocketman. Suffice to say, a swan song prompts listeners to reflect upon an artist’s repertoire, rightfully so. 

Social Media 

In honor of 50 years of music-making, Fleetwood Mac embarked on a tour, which began this fall and is set to run through Spring 2020. A friend of mine got tickets to go see them at TD Garden in October and was kind enough to invite me to accompany him (thank you, Vincent!). We found ourselves amidst a sea of middle-aged fans with drinks in hand, bouncing their shoulders in anticipation, awaiting the one and only Fleetwood Mac to reign the stage. Vincent and I were gobbling up a slice of New York Pizza when a woman decked out in Stevie Nicks merch tapped me on the shoulder. “I’m so glad fun, young people are going to be dancing with me all night!” she exclaimed. Vincent and I were the youngest audience members in sight. That’s when the pitch idea for this deep dive was born. 

On March 22nd, 2018, Twitter user @bottledfleet tweeted a meme that would bring Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams” back to the Billboard Hot 100 charts, ranked at a solid No. 14, 40 years after the song’s initial release. 

Admittedly, Fleetwood Mac was a foreign artist whose music I’d only heard because my mom would shuffle a playlist on YouTube. Only after seeing the meme did I become an avid fan. That night, I almost shit my pants when Stevie Nicks came onstage. 

The resurgence of specific waves of music has much to do with a mere reminder of a group’s music—whether that reminder is in the form of a film, a television show, a movement, death or a social media post. Artists today undoubtedly draw inspiration from ‘70s music and bands, paying homage to a groovy time. Charli XCX claims to have looked up to Kate Bush stylistically, My Chemical Romance collaborated with The Used for an “Under Pressure” live performance, and a Bee Gees biopic is in the works. What a time to be alive!