For Gen Xers (born 1965 - 1980), my vote goes to the brilliant 1977 punk song "Blank Generation" by Richard Hell and the Voidoids.
For Baby Boomers (born 1946 - 1964), like me, I'll go with The Beach Boys "Good Vibrations" released in 1966.
I imagine that 80%+ of Pinsiders were born between 1946 and 1980. I think that "Blank Generation" was more influential lyrically whereas "Good Vibrations" was more significant musically. Which songs do you think were impactful to your generation?
Bought Agents of Fortune when it first came out because of “Don’t Fear the Reaper”.Still hear it/play it today so that’s my choice.
In this live version of "Blank Generation," a Bally Wizard makes an appearance toward the end as the camera retreats from the stage.
Quoted from ZNET:For Gen Xers (born 1965 - 1980), my vote goes to the brilliant 1977 punk song "Blank Generation" by Richard Hell and the Voidoids.
I guess influential means obscure?
Quoted from gandamack:I guess influential means obscure?
Richard Hell was well-known to fans of early punk. You may be unaware of his influence if you were not a fan of that genre. . .think Lou Reed and The Velvet Underground, another influential group from genesis of the genre.
"Blank Generation" utilizes lyrics gleaned from a popular counter-culture poet of the time (Hell's own poetry published under the pseudonym, Theresa Stern) arguably prescient in retrospect, albeit less known to mainstream pop music AM radio listeners. The song was voted among the "Top 500 songs that Shaped Rock" by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame writers.
Needless to say, The Beach Boys are the polar opposite of obscure. Which artists do you find influential of those eras?
As a millennial I would have to say “My humps” by the Black eyed peas checks all the boxes, hits me right in the feels every time lol
I wasn't born in the official age bracket of the GenX'ers, but I identify as one.
With that said, the most influential I would say is "Fortunate Son" (1969) by CCR.
Quoted from ZNET:"Blank Generation" utilizes lyrics gleaned from a popular counter-culture poet of the time
It's also somewhat of a take-off on "Beat Generation" from 1959 (Brunswick 55140 is the American issue), written by poet Rod McKuen!
.................David Marston
Quoted from Electronmagic:I'm a generation exer, and I've never heard that song. Didn't influence me one bit.
Okay. No song in history influenced every single member of a generation. Anecdotal arguments don't negate anything.
I am Blank Generation.
The few, the proud, the ones that don't care about what Boomers or GenX like or want.
As a Gen X'er, there is nothing more Boomer than picking Blank Generation as a representative song for Gen X.
Quoted from gambit3113:As a Gen X'er, there is nothing more Boomer than picking Blank Generation as a representative song for Gen X.
Gotcha covered bro.
Quoted from o-din:Gotcha covered bro.
I'd pick that all day as more influential. Thanks, brah.
Interesting factoid.
Generation X was a term first coined as the title of a 1953 photo essay about young men and women growing up immediately following WWII.
First I ever heard it was here.
Quoted from gambit3113:As a Gen X'er, there is nothing more Boomer than picking Blank Generation as a representative song for Gen X.
And more to your point, I always felt Blank Generation was just that. Or the inbetweeners. Sure Wikipedia and other scholarly websites give an exact date when one generation ends and another starts, but myself and many others from the early to mid 1960s don't see it that way. Obviously those "scholars" are not part of our group.
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Gig Harbor, WA
Seen them do this many times!!