Music in the 1960s

In North America, Europe and Oceania, the decade was particularly revolutionary in terms of popular music as it saw the formation and evolution of rock music. At the beginning of the decade, pop and rock and roll trends of the 1950s continued, yet, the rock and roll of the 50s started to merge into a more international, eclectic variant known as rock music. By the mid part of the decade, 1950s rock and roll in its purest form started to be overtaken by pop rock, beat, psychedelic rock, blues rock and folk rock, which had grown in popularity. The country and folk-influenced style associated to the latter-half of rock music in the 1960s spawned a generation of popular singer-songwriters who wrote and performed their own work. Towards the latter half of the decade, genres such as Baroque pop, sunshine pop, bubblegum pop, progressive rock and heavy metal started to grow popular, with the latter two finding greater success in the following decade. The 1960s additionally saw the rise in popularity of funk and soul music; rhythm and blues in general remained popular throughout the decade, and this style was commonly associated to girl groups of the time, whose fusion of R&B and gospel with rock and roll enjoyed success until the mid-part of the decade. Aside from the popularity of rock and R&B music in the 1960s, Latin American as well as Jamaican and Cuban music achieved a degree of popularity throughout the decade, with genres such as bossa nova, the cha-cha-cha, ska, and calypso being popular. From a classical point of view, the 60s were also an important decade as they saw the development of experimental, jazz and contemporary classical music, notably minimalism and free improvisation.

Music in the 1970s

In North America, Europe, and Oceania, the decade saw the rise of disco, which became one of the biggest genres of the decade, especially in the mid to late 1970s. In Europe, a variant known as Euro disco rose in popularity towards the end of the 1970s. Aside from disco, funk, smooth jazz, jazz fusion, and soul remained popular throughout the decade. Rock music played an important part in the Western musical scene, with punk rock thriving throughout the mid to late 1970s. Other sub-genres of rock, particularly glam, hard rock, progressive, art rock, and heavy metal achieved various amounts of success. Other genres such as reggae were innovative throughout the decade and grew a significant following. Hip hop emerged during this decade, but was slow to start and didn't become significant until the late 1980s. Classical began losing a little momentum; however, through invention and theoretical development, this particular genre gave rise to experimental classical and minimalist music by classical composers. A sub-genre of classical, film scores, remained popular with movie-goers. Alongside the popularity of experimental music, the decade was notable for its contributions to electronic music, which rose in popularity with the continued development of synthesizers and harmonizers; more composers embraced this particular genre, gaining the notice of listeners who were looking for something new and different. Its rising popularity, mixed with the popular music of the period, led to the creation of synthpop.

Music in the 1980s

The decade of the 1980s saw the emergence of pop, dance music and New Wave. As the term disco fell out of fashion by the early part of the decade. Genres such as post-disco, Italo disco, Euro disco and dance-pop became more popular. Rock music continued to enjoy a wide audience; sub-genres such as New Wave, soft rock, and glam metal emerged and

developed a significant following. Adult contemporary, quiet storm, and smooth jazz gained popularity. The 1980s are commonly associated with the usage of synthesizers, thus, synthpop music and other electronic genres featuring non-traditional instruments exploded in popularity. Also during this decade, several major electronic genres were developed, including electro, techno, house, freestyle and Eurodance, rising in prominence during the 1990s and beyond. Throughout the decade, R&B, hip hop and urban music in general were becoming commonplace, particularly in the inner-city areas of large, metropolitan cities; rap was especially successful in the latter part of the decade, with the advent of the golden age of hip hop. These urban genres, rap and hip hop particularly, would continue their rise in popularity through the 1990s and 2000s.