I'm doing this project for school about the 70s. The point is to make the project fun, and we're supposed to focus on the music/clothes/culture of this time.

One of the questions I have to answer is how were the 70s unique? For those orgers who were lucky enough to live during the 70s, could you help me out?

For one, there was no such thing as "retro" in the 70's.

AIDS was still unheard of

the us was winding down its involvement in vietnam...

the gulf states realized that oil was a valuable commidity...

drugs became designer chic..

the beatles were not a group...starland vocal band won the grammy for best new artist..

disco...

platform shoes...

plato's retreat...

waiting in line to buy gas..

BlackAdder7 said:

i was wearing bell bottom pants

and tie dyed shirts

underneath a fringed leather vest

snapping my fingers

humming along to the age of aquarius..

those were the days people. those were the days

groovy, man.

As an aging hipster who was 11 - 20 in the '70's, let me tell you what I liked best.

1. The cars. The cars were the BOMB. Especially muscle cars. The Plymouth Superbird, the Mustang Shelby, the Chevrolet Camaro Z-28, the Dodge Challenger, the Pontiac Trans Am SD 455, the Plymouth Hemi' Cuda, the Chevrolet Chevelle SS 454 - the list goes on and on. These are the most desirable and valuable performance cars on the market today. A '71 Hemi 'Cude convertible can go for as much as $2 million. Other cars were great, too. Personally, I think the 1977 Pontiac Grand Prix is the greatest two-door sedan ever built. But the cars were just awesome.

2. The music. Even Prince has referred to the '70's as the Golden Age of music. Rock and roll was never better (and, sadly, probably never will be). The '70's was the peak of the "Real music by real musicians" era. There were NO electronics, samplers, hard drives, or programmable anythings. If you wanted music, it had to be played by an instrument. So the players were way, WAY better than what we have today.

But it wasn't just their playing, it was their musicology. Since you had to be able to play, you naturally came to understand music theory - chords, melodies, harmonies, etc. And since you understood that, if you had even one iota of imagination, you expanded on what had been done in the '60's. That's why the music of the '70's still sounds fresh today. "Complicated" isn't necessarily the best word for it - maybe "developed" is a good adjective. I don't mean to offend, but there's no argument that music stopped progressing, and started REGRESSING, after about 1990. Call me a hater if you want, but the advent of rap and of electronics made making music way too easy, which killed music's development and growth. There aren't four popular artists from the last ten years that would have gotten record deals if they played that kind of crap in the '70's. They would have been laughed out of the building.

3. California was the nuts. It was exploding in every conceivable way. EVERYONE wanted to move to California, and whatever happened in California set the tone for every aspect of popular culture. Hollywood was the greatest symbol ever, and we had real movie stars that could act. The surf movement of the '60's had infused the entire country with the notion that life was groovy on the West Coast, and all you had to do was slap "California" on whatever you had, and it was a hit. This holds true today. Just look at the Red Hot Chili Peppers or Katy Perry. Every time they want to sell some records, they throw "California" in the title (especially the RHCP).

4. Fashion-wise, there really wasn't all that much going on. The '60's were the decade that blew everyone away with their clothes. About all the '70's will be remembered for are the disco outfits, which were OK. But if you've noticed, the stuff they wore in "Saturday Night Fever" never did come back around as a popular style, even though the music in it did.

5. Drugs and sex were much different. There wasn't much in the way of drugs in the beginning of the '70's, although that changed later on in the decade. My entire high school and half my college was in the '70's and about all there was out there drug-wise was pot. There were other drugs, sure, but very few people used them. I never knew anyone in high school or college that did heroin, LSD, speed or anything else hard. I only even heard of cocaine once, and that was in college.

As ZombieKitten said, there was no AIDS. There wasn't even herpes (davetherave, you were born too late). Those that participated in pre-marital sex had nothing to worry about that a shot of penicillin wouldn't cure right away. Oddly enough, though, I think that promiscuity among high school students is far more prevalent today than it was in the '70's. I don't think the attitude of boys has changed - they've always wanted the same thing. But nowadays, it seems being known as one who sleeps around isn't a detriment to the girls. In the '70's, if a girl got around and everyone knew about it, EVERYONE considered her a slut. The girls that gave it up tried their hardest to keep that a secret. Today, it doesn't seem that way. But maybe I'm just looking at that from a different perspective.

.

I hope this helps!

[Edited 6/12/11 6:32am]

I didnt like the 70's... granted I was still a kid but the whole 1976 thing drove me CRAZY! All that bicentenial stuff

I wasnt a fan of the music or the clothes, and my mom kept making me get a Dorothy Hamill haircut

I lived in California for 4 years in the late 70's.. It was a scary time for a young girl coming from a small town in Nebraska to a town called Santa Maria! I was always TERRIFIED! I used to have panic attacks and hyperventilate.. Mom wouldnt let us go anywhere by ourselves and the place seemed so HUGE to me! Thats probably part of my dislike for the 70's

RodeoSchro said:

As an aging hipster who was 11 - 20 in the '70's, let me tell you what I liked best.

1. The cars. The cars were the BOMB. Especially muscle cars. The Plymouth Superbird, the Mustang Shelby, the Chevrolet Camaro Z-28, the Dodge Challenger, the Pontiac Trans Am SD 455, the Plymouth Hemi' Cuda, the Chevrolet Chevelle SS 454 - the list goes on and on. These are the most desirable and valuable performance cars on the market today. A '71 Hemi 'Cude convertible can go for as much as $2 million. Other cars were great, too. Personally, I think the 1977 Pontiac Grand Prix is the greatest two-door sedan ever built. But the cars were just awesome.

2. The music. Even Prince has referred to the '70's as the Golden Age of music. Rock and roll was never better (and, sadly, probably never will be). The '70's was the peak of the "Real music by real musicians" era. There were NO electronics, samplers, hard drives, or programmable anythings. If you wanted music, it had to be played by an instrument. So the players were way, WAY better than what we have today.

But it wasn't just their playing, it was their musicology. Since you had to be able to play, you naturally came to understand music theory - chords, melodies, harmonies, etc. And since you understood that, if you had even one iota of imagination, you expanded on what had been done in the '60's. That's why the music of the '70's still sounds fresh today. "Complicated" isn't necessarily the best word for it - maybe "developed" is a good adjective. I don't mean to offend, but there's no argument that music stopped progressing, and started REGRESSING, after about 1990. Call me a hater if you want, but the advent of rap and of electronics made making music way too easy, which killed music's development and growth. There aren't four popular artists from the last ten years that would have gotten record deals if they played that kind of crap in the '70's. They would have been laughed out of the building.

3. California was the nuts. It was exploding in every conceivable way. EVERYONE wanted to move to California, and whatever happened in California set the tone for every aspect of popular culture. Hollywood was the greatest symbol ever, and we had real movie stars that could act. The surf movement of the '60's had infused the entire country with the notion that life was groovy on the West Coast, and all you had to do was slap "California" on whatever you had, and it was a hit. This holds true today. Just look at the Red Hot Chili Peppers or Katy Perry. Every time they want to sell some records, they throw "California" in the title (especially the RHCP).

4. Fashion-wise, there really wasn't all that much going on. The '60's were the decade that blew everyone away with their clothes. About all the '70's will be remembered for are the disco outfits, which were OK. But if you've noticed, the stuff they wore in "Saturday Night Fever" never did come back around as a popular style, even though the music in it did.

5. Drugs and sex were much different. There wasn't much in the way of drugs in the beginning of the '70's, although that changed later on in the decade. My entire high school and half my college was in the '70's and about all there was out there drug-wise was pot. There were other drugs, sure, but very few people used them. I never knew anyone in high school or college that did heroin, LSD, speed or anything else hard. I only even heard of cocaine once, and that was in college.

As ZombieKitten said, there was no AIDS. There wasn't even herpes (davetherave, you were born too late). Those that participated in pre-marital sex had nothing to worry about that a shot of penicillin wouldn't cure right away. Oddly enough, though, I think that promiscuity among high school students is far more prevalent today than it was in the '70's. I don't think the attitude of boys has changed - they've always wanted the same thing. But nowadays, it seems being known as one who sleeps around isn't a detriment to the girls. In the '70's, if a girl got around and everyone knew about it, EVERYONE considered her a slut. The girls that gave it up tried their hardest to keep that a secret. Today, it doesn't seem that way. But maybe I'm just looking at that from a different perspective.

.

I hope this helps!

[Edited 6/12/11 6:32am]

Thanks for this!

Here is a pic of my brother and I in late 1970's... He has my roller skates Everything about this pic is so 70's! Look at the house decor!!

I still dont understand my hair.. I think its a shag..

[img:$uid]http://i875.photobucket.com/albums/ab320/vicantq/scan0021.jpg[/img:$uid]

[Edited 6/12/11 6:52am]

um, they were unique because of these awesome things:

wood panelling

mustaches

headbands

The Bronx in the late 70's

and The Ramones

I loved the 70's as a kid. The music, fashion, and entertainment were

more unique imo. I loved the rollerskates, tv shows, movies, the

Rock em Sock em robots, the electronic football field with the motion

players sliding across , the Ohio Players, etc.

PunkMistress said:

RodeoSchro said:

As an aging hipster who was 11 - 20 in the '70's, let me tell you what I liked best.

1. The cars. The cars were the BOMB. Especially muscle cars. The Plymouth Superbird, the Mustang Shelby, the Chevrolet Camaro Z-28, the Dodge Challenger, the Pontiac Trans Am SD 455, the Plymouth Hemi' Cuda, the Chevrolet Chevelle SS 454 - the list goes on and on. These are the most desirable and valuable performance cars on the market today. A '71 Hemi 'Cude convertible can go for as much as $2 million. Other cars were great, too. Personally, I think the 1977 Pontiac Grand Prix is the greatest two-door sedan ever built. But the cars were just awesome.

2. The music. Even Prince has referred to the '70's as the Golden Age of music. Rock and roll was never better (and, sadly, probably never will be). The '70's was the peak of the "Real music by real musicians" era. There were NO electronics, samplers, hard drives, or programmable anythings. If you wanted music, it had to be played by an instrument. So the players were way, WAY better than what we have today.

But it wasn't just their playing, it was their musicology. Since you had to be able to play, you naturally came to understand music theory - chords, melodies, harmonies, etc. And since you understood that, if you had even one iota of imagination, you expanded on what had been done in the '60's. That's why the music of the '70's still sounds fresh today. "Complicated" isn't necessarily the best word for it - maybe "developed" is a good adjective. I don't mean to offend, but there's no argument that music stopped progressing, and started REGRESSING, after about 1990. Call me a hater if you want, but the advent of rap and of electronics made making music way too easy, which killed music's development and growth. There aren't four popular artists from the last ten years that would have gotten record deals if they played that kind of crap in the '70's. They would have been laughed out of the building.

3. California was the nuts. It was exploding in every conceivable way. EVERYONE wanted to move to California, and whatever happened in California set the tone for every aspect of popular culture. Hollywood was the greatest symbol ever, and we had real movie stars that could act. The surf movement of the '60's had infused the entire country with the notion that life was groovy on the West Coast, and all you had to do was slap "California" on whatever you had, and it was a hit. This holds true today. Just look at the Red Hot Chili Peppers or Katy Perry. Every time they want to sell some records, they throw "California" in the title (especially the RHCP).

4. Fashion-wise, there really wasn't all that much going on. The '60's were the decade that blew everyone away with their clothes. About all the '70's will be remembered for are the disco outfits, which were OK. But if you've noticed, the stuff they wore in "Saturday Night Fever" never did come back around as a popular style, even though the music in it did.

5. Drugs and sex were much different. There wasn't much in the way of drugs in the beginning of the '70's, although that changed later on in the decade. My entire high school and half my college was in the '70's and about all there was out there drug-wise was pot. There were other drugs, sure, but very few people used them. I never knew anyone in high school or college that did heroin, LSD, speed or anything else hard. I only even heard of cocaine once, and that was in college.

As ZombieKitten said, there was no AIDS. There wasn't even herpes (davetherave, you were born too late). Those that participated in pre-marital sex had nothing to worry about that a shot of penicillin wouldn't cure right away. Oddly enough, though, I think that promiscuity among high school students is far more prevalent today than it was in the '70's. I don't think the attitude of boys has changed - they've always wanted the same thing. But nowadays, it seems being known as one who sleeps around isn't a detriment to the girls. In the '70's, if a girl got around and everyone knew about it, EVERYONE considered her a slut. The girls that gave it up tried their hardest to keep that a secret. Today, it doesn't seem that way. But maybe I'm just looking at that from a different perspective.

.

I hope this helps!

[Edited 6/12/11 6:32am]

Thanks for this!

Thank you so much! Thanks to everyone really. Now I feel like I have a good general idea about what the 70s were about. Thank you thank you thank you!

tinaz said:

Here is a pic of my brother and I in late 1970's... He has my roller skates Everything about this pic is so 70's! Look at the house decor!!

I still dont understand my hair.. I think its a shag..

[img:$uid]http://i875.photobucket.com/albums/ab320/vicantq/scan0021.jpg[/img:$uid]

[Edited 6/12/11 6:52am]

This picture makes me smile

RodeoSchro said:

As an aging hipster who was 11 - 20 in the '70's, let me tell you what I liked best.

1. The cars. The cars were the BOMB. Especially muscle cars. The Plymouth Superbird, the Mustang Shelby, the Chevrolet Camaro Z-28, the Dodge Challenger, the Pontiac Trans Am SD 455, the Plymouth Hemi' Cuda, the Chevrolet Chevelle SS 454 - the list goes on and on. These are the most desirable and valuable performance cars on the market today. A '71 Hemi 'Cude convertible can go for as much as $2 million. Other cars were great, too. Personally, I think the 1977 Pontiac Grand Prix is the greatest two-door sedan ever built. But the cars were just awesome.

2. The music. Even Prince has referred to the '70's as the Golden Age of music. Rock and roll was never better (and, sadly, probably never will be). The '70's was the peak of the "Real music by real musicians" era. There were NO electronics, samplers, hard drives, or programmable anythings. If you wanted music, it had to be played by an instrument. So the players were way, WAY better than what we have today.

But it wasn't just their playing, it was their musicology. Since you had to be able to play, you naturally came to understand music theory - chords, melodies, harmonies, etc. And since you understood that, if you had even one iota of imagination, you expanded on what had been done in the '60's. That's why the music of the '70's still sounds fresh today. "Complicated" isn't necessarily the best word for it - maybe "developed" is a good adjective. I don't mean to offend, but there's no argument that music stopped progressing, and started REGRESSING, after about 1990. Call me a hater if you want, but the advent of rap and of electronics made making music way too easy, which killed music's development and growth. There aren't four popular artists from the last ten years that would have gotten record deals if they played that kind of crap in the '70's. They would have been laughed out of the building.

3. California was the nuts. It was exploding in every conceivable way. EVERYONE wanted to move to California, and whatever happened in California set the tone for every aspect of popular culture. Hollywood was the greatest symbol ever, and we had real movie stars that could act. The surf movement of the '60's had infused the entire country with the notion that life was groovy on the West Coast, and all you had to do was slap "California" on whatever you had, and it was a hit. This holds true today. Just look at the Red Hot Chili Peppers or Katy Perry. Every time they want to sell some records, they throw "California" in the title (especially the RHCP).

4. Fashion-wise, there really wasn't all that much going on. The '60's were the decade that blew everyone away with their clothes. About all the '70's will be remembered for are the disco outfits, which were OK. But if you've noticed, the stuff they wore in "Saturday Night Fever" never did come back around as a popular style, even though the music in it did.

5. Drugs and sex were much different. There wasn't much in the way of drugs in the beginning of the '70's, although that changed later on in the decade. My entire high school and half my college was in the '70's and about all there was out there drug-wise was pot. There were other drugs, sure, but very few people used them. I never knew anyone in high school or college that did heroin, LSD, speed or anything else hard. I only even heard of cocaine once, and that was in college.

As ZombieKitten said, there was no AIDS. There wasn't even herpes (davetherave, you were born too late). Those that participated in pre-marital sex had nothing to worry about that a shot of penicillin wouldn't cure right away. Oddly enough, though, I think that promiscuity among high school students is far more prevalent today than it was in the '70's. I don't think the attitude of boys has changed - they've always wanted the same thing. But nowadays, it seems being known as one who sleeps around isn't a detriment to the girls. In the '70's, if a girl got around and everyone knew about it, EVERYONE considered her a slut. The girls that gave it up tried their hardest to keep that a secret. Today, it doesn't seem that way. But maybe I'm just looking at that from a different perspective.

.

I hope this helps!

[Edited 6/12/11 6:32am]

This is great.

I absolutely love '70s movies. The '70s was hands-down the best decade in cinema ever. I think you could apply a lot of what RodeoSchro said about music and apply it to filmmaking then. There was an emphasis on storytelling and letting the film breathe that was way more natural.

On a totally different note, I'm going to mention corduroy. The '70s were very corduroy.

Efan said:

I absolutely love '70s movies. The '70s was hands-down the best decade in cinema ever. I think you could apply a lot of what RodeoSchro said about music and apply it to filmmaking then. There was an emphasis on storytelling and letting the film breathe that was way more natural.

On a totally different note, I'm going to mention corduroy. The '70s were very corduroy.

I agree.

Watched 3 Women in the weekend for the 2nd time, it has ALL signs of a 70s flick,,,,,it even seemed like every damn filmmaker was on something when they shot their films

RodeoSchro said:

2. The music. Even Prince has referred to the '70's as the Golden Age of music. Rock and roll was never better (and, sadly, probably never will be). The '70's was the peak of the "Real music by real musicians" era. There were NO electronics, samplers, hard drives, or programmable anythings. If you wanted music, it had to be played by an instrument. So the players were way, WAY better than what we have today.

But it wasn't just their playing, it was their musicology. Since you had to be able to play, you naturally came to understand music theory - chords, melodies, harmonies, etc. And since you understood that, if you had even one iota of imagination, you expanded on what had been done in the '60's. That's why the music of the '70's still sounds fresh today. "Complicated" isn't necessarily the best word for it - maybe "developed" is a good adjective. I don't mean to offend, but there's no argument that music stopped progressing, and started REGRESSING, after about 1990. Call me a hater if you want, but the advent of rap and of electronics made making music way too easy, which killed music's development and growth. There aren't four popular artists from the last ten years that would have gotten record deals if they played that kind of crap in the '70's. They would have been laughed out of the building.

That much freedom was a blessing and a curse It was a blessing for the artists who created their art with so much freedom and gave their all to the listener, it was a curse for the following generations because it set the bar so high that some of them even gave up trying to keep up, of course the listener in this case also pays the price for having to endure mediocre material.

[Edited 6/12/11 9:11am]

There was some truly atrocious TV in the 70's but it was great if you were in elementary school:

The Incredible Hulk, Wonder Woman, The Bionic Woman, The Six Million Dollar Man, The prime time variety show specials on tv with comedy and music guests, Charlie's Angels, Starsky and Hutch, Policewoman, Hawaii 5 'O, MASH, Emergency...

okay some of the tv was good. You can't deny MASH!

Just a small list of the songs that inspired the 70's

1 ---superstition - stevie wonder (1972)
2 ---la grange - zz top (1973)
3 ---roadhouse blues - the doors (1970)
4 ---what's going on? - marvin gaye (1971)
5 ---whole lotta love - led zeppelin (1970-in US)
6 ---get up (i feel like being a) sex machine - james brown (1970)
7 ---superfly - curtis mayfield (1972)
8 ---let's stay together - al green (1972)
9 ---comfortably numb - pink floyd (1979)
10 --imagine - john lennon (1971)

11 --sultans of swing - dire straits (1978)
12 --vienna - billy joel (1977)
13 --war - edwin starr (1970)

14 --papa was a rolling stone - the temptations (1972)
15 --blue - joni mitchell (1971)
16 --me & mrs. jones -billy paul (1972)
17 --brown sugar - the rolling stones (1971)
18 --midnight rider - gregg allman (1970)
19 --abc - the jackson 5 (1970)
20 --gypsy woman - curtis mayfield (1970)
21 --message in the bottle - the police (1979)
22 --maggie may - rod stewart (1971)
23 --tear the roof off the sucker - parliament (1976)
24 --bang a gong (get it on) - t.rex (1971)
25 --ziggy stardust - david bowie (1972)
26 --be thankful for what you got - william de vaughan (1974)
27 --september - earth wind and fire (1978)
28 --bob marley - no woman, no cry (1974)
29 --aero smith - walk this way (1975)

30 --hotel california - the eagles (1977)

Just to name a few. The songs of the seventies embodied a cornicopia of unique sounds and freedom in music for that generation.

They were beige as fuck.

I'm feelin' Rodeo on that '77 Grand Prix...I wish I still had that car. We also had a '77 Nova Concours.

To me the best thing about the 70s was the music, especially the funk bands. It was a time when the bar of musicianship was so high that everybody had to bring their A-game in order to make it. The 70s possibly featured more diverse styles than any other period because there were so many bands and they all strived to create their own sound.

Dances like the hustle, the bump, the watergate and the shaft walk were popular and we can't forget disco which really exploded with Saturday Night Fever.

Fashionwise, it was all about halter tops, platform shoes, maxi dresses/skirts, popcorn blouses, palazzo pants and gauchos. For the guys it was polyester leisure suits and gold chains, pimp hats and Superfly suits.

This was also the era of the Blaxploitation flicks. Shaft, Superfly, The Mack, Across 110th St. Shaft In Africa, Blackula...classic stuff!

People were drinking Boone's Farm, Bali Hai, Wild Irish Rose and Champale in our hood.

Maaan, I remember the first concert I ever attended was the Jackson 5 back in '72. I was decked out in my purple hot pants suit with white hercules sandals and a blow out afro. You couldn't tell me nothin' honey 'cuz I was CLEAN!

And don't forget horoscopes, back then the first thing to ask when you met somebody was "what's your sign?"

Then of course you had your mood rings, streakers, pet rocks.

Does anybody remember earth shoes?

And don't even lie...who had the black light zodiac poster with all the sex position on it?

RodeoSchro said:

4. Fashion-wise, there really wasn't all that much going on. The '60's were the decade that blew everyone away with their clothes. About all the '70's will be remembered for are the disco outfits, which were OK. But if you've noticed, the stuff they wore in "Saturday Night Fever" never did come back around as a popular style, even though the music in it did.

So wrong. The fact that 70s fashion didn't interest you doesn't mean "there really wasn't all that much going on."

In 1976, Yves Saint Laurent unveiled his Russian Collection - to this day, considered the best of all time by any designer. It influenced collections by several other designers - including the great Oscar de la Renta - in the years that followed. And in 1971, Saint Laurent was the first to use camouflage on the runway.

Also in the 70s, Halston revolutionized the use of knits for everyday clothing - making simple-yet-elegant dresses and jumpsuits.

And the 70s were the first decade of designer ready-to-wear clothing. Calvin Klein intro'd his infamous jeans - selling 200,000 pairs in 1978 (I owned two of those pairs). And he put his name on t-shirts and other "designer" apparel. It was also the first decade of designer fragrances. And who doesn't remember Pierre Cardin! Dude was everywhere - with designer eyeglasses, fragrances, neckties, jewelry - you name it.

I could go on and on.

omg stuff that comes to mind

platform shoes

flares

walkman stereo

ghastly wallpaper

garish carpets

dusty bin & the generation game

teabags

star wars

jaws

bionic man, charlie's angels, george & mildred, the hulk,

starsky & hutch, man from atlantis!!.. kojak! amazing american shows

sindy dolls

stylophone

the osmonds & abba

disco

punk,

purdy haircuts, farrah fawcett do.. feather cut

vesta curry

hand knitted woolies

triangular headscarfs

spacedust sweets

orange and brown

JerseyKRS said:

um, they were unique because of these awesome things:

wood panelling

mustaches

headbands

The Bronx in the late 70's

and The Ramones

Dude, NYC in the 1970s was AMAZING. They made documentaries about it. It's also the era when Urban Radio was born too (Frankie Crocker - ever see the Ladies' Man? A lot of his radio bits were courtesy of Mr Crocker).

Gloria Stienam and Shirley Chisholm.....these would be good names to look up too...

Efan said:

I absolutely love '70s movies. The '70s was hands-down the best decade in cinema ever. I think you could apply a lot of what RodeoSchro said about music and apply it to filmmaking then. There was an emphasis on storytelling and letting the film breathe that was way more natural.

On a totally different note, I'm going to mention corduroy. The '70s were very corduroy.

Music was in the art era. Symphonies, rock art, 1970s music was supposed to be aural art.

JerseyKRS said:

um, they were unique because of these awesome things:

wood panelling

mustaches

headbands

The Bronx in the late 70's

and The Ramones

Shag carpeting,

Released March 25, 1970 (US

June 12, 1970 (Uk

Recorded January 1, 1970 at the Fillmore East