Nirvana - Classic Rock?

In my city, we have a radio station that dedicates itself to playing Classic Rock music. Today on my way to work, the station started playing Nirvana's Smells Like Teen Spirit. It mad me feel not only old but confused as they tend to play mostly music from the 60's, 70's and 80's.

Would you consider Nirvana to be in the classic rock category?

I think I made a thread asking what's your favorite Nirvana Album about a month or two. But anyways, Nirvana has always been my favorite classic grunge bands band growing up in the 90's, I just about love every song on their album to be honest.

@davillain-: Would they be considered a classic rock band though?

No.

Now if there was an overrated rock station, should be played there!

@crimsonbrute: Hard to say as far as being label classic rock band, but in my opinion, I do in fact see them as classic rock bands, a time when music wasn’t produced by the bunch of Amps. My first Nirvana song was "Rape Me" and since then, I been a fan of their musics growing up but like I said, I like just about every Nirvana song.

If Kurt Cobain didn't kill himself, he would be a washed up former Rocker in the same vein as many other washed up drug addicted grunge rockers. Even the biggest of the biggest Grunge rock lead singers are shells of their former selves. Hooked deep into drugs, or on some new crazy musical kick. Kurt wouldn't have likely fared slightly better Chris Cornell.

Fun fact: In the game Infamous: Second Son, they remade my other favorite song: Heart-shaped Box from Nirvana.

Nirvana hit the radio around 1991 and their last album was released in 1993. After 26 years I think it's safe to label them classic rock. The band members and their fans are nearing the 50 years old mark.

I feel sooo

Nirvana a classic rock band : Yes.

Nirvana best of it's era: Sorry no.

Nirvana overrated : Yes, definitely.

Kurt Cobain overrated :Fu*k Yes.

If it wasn't for Nevermind, a lot of people wouldn't even have known about Nirvana even existed.

Bands like AC/DC, Metallica, Iron Maiden, etc... Have lots of hit albums and songs. Nirvana would be nowhere to be seen.

The thing I don't think a lot of people get is that classic rock is an umbrella referring to....any rock music that has been around for a while and gained notoriety.

Everyone gets so offended by labels. Even back in the early 90's a lot of bands didn't classify themselves as "grunge", and indeed that was a blanket term used to describe the kind of music a lot of groups were making at the time.

A lot of groups that are already a part of "classic rock" are from different eras and are in different styles. I'm not sure why anyone would think rock stopped being classic classic after the 80's, if anything some of the best rock music came along since then.

Yeah. Believe it or not there is a rock station that does indeed play them and yes, they are pretty overrated.

@crimsonbrute: it’s weird for me since I was listening to bands like Nirvana in high school but yeah....Nirvana has been on classic rock stations for years now. It’s so weird to me! Lol. I don’t like calling it classic rock as it was 90s alternative but yeah....I feel old when it happens.

Yes, it's weird to hear more stuff I grew up on considered "classic".

Watching them play up a bit of 90s nostalgia in Captain Marvel also triggered a bit of that.

I was always under the impression that "classic rock" was rock from the 60's and 70's. Jimmi Hendrix, The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and so on. "Classic Rock" was not just a decade, it was an era. I think that is why it is important to make that distinction, and separate it from other genres and decades.

Then it was simply "80's music", then "90's music" (sub-genres of grunge and alternative), and so forth.

I don't think something enters "classic rock" status simply because it's 20+ years old.

Also, I am not saying that other rock cannot become "classic" (as in the dictionary definition of the word), but that does not qualify it as "Classic Rock".

Classic rock is not a genre. It's a marketing tool.

Nirvana are grunge/alternative rock, classic rock is generally much older than Nirvana and doesnt sound anything like it.

Classic rock is generally rock music from about the late 1960s to about the mid 1980s.

I dont think classic rock is defined on how old a song is, its the period of time its from.

Bands from 1980s onward fall into different Rock/Metal sub genre labels.

Fixed it for you. :)

No, Nirvana is not classic Rock. Anything influenced by changes made with the punk/New Wave and post-punk/alternative in in the late 70's/early 80's is not Classic Rock.

Classic Rock began in 1965 with The Beatles, Stones, Kinks, Dylan, and The Byrd's, and was still going strong up through Springsteen, Bob Seger, John Mellancamp, Journey, Van Halen, Rush, and several conservative hair bands.

Metallica is not a Classic Rock Band, they were influenced by the punk movement, as were the thrash bands.

They've been classic rock for about 10 years now. "Classic" just means "old". I've come to accept it, but I don't have to like it :)

@warmblur: I chuckled at this, sad but true. lol.

I've heard RHCP, Metallica, Hootie and Foo Fighters on my local classic rock station. Time to face facts, we're getting old.

Buuut...if Classic Rock is a genre, can you have...new classic rock?

No, they are "Seattle Sound" or grunge music. The music is just old enough to be considered "classic".

Nirvana's Smells Like Teen Spirit my favourite song by Nirvana.

Classic Rock..?? Don't think so. Maybe they just went off the sound of this particular song..? ;)

@br0kenrabbit:

No, most classic rock ended by the end of the 1970's. I guess one could include 80's conservative mainstream hair bands like Def Leppard or Poison.

Just a guess, but I think the term was probably coined around mid-1980's. It referred to music that was made prior to or was unaffected at the time by the changes going on in then modern Rock music. Guns and Roses strattles the line, but I don't think punchy,edgier metal bands like Motley Crue or Iron Maiden are classic rock, and definitely thrash bands influenced by punk like Metallica, Megadeth, Anthrax, or Slayer are not Classic Rock. That's how I see it anyways. Not really Classic Rock if made by a band that started after the 1980's even if it's similar.

I always thought The KISS revolutionize Rock?

Classic rock is not a genre. It's a radio label applied so listeners know they are playing older music. Which evolves as time passes.

You are confusing it with prog, blues rock, country rock etc.

@LJS9502_basic:

Fair enough, I will concede my point. I see now that it simply applies to older Rock music. While I was growing up it seemed to simply apply to Rock music that had not evolved with the times (at that time the 1980's), but I see now it that it constantly shifts and is not a static time period. In this context I guess it could be said that Nirvana is included as Classic Rock as the band started nearly 30 years ago.

Yup. That sounds closest to my view as well. Nirvana, Pearl Jam, STP, AIC.... They're putting on the years.

Some of those "kids" who used to listen to them look older than me now.

The label 'Classic Rock' is usually garbage. Just because something is older doesn't mean it's classified as 'classic'. Just as 'classical music' doesn't mean it's old. It's a type of music in Europe developed during the 1700s-1900s.

Nirvana is grunge.

Whatever classification they used to be, they're "Dad Rock" now. Oldies to the younger set.

@mrbojangles25: Even the bands you bring up sound nothing alike and fall into separate rock genres. The Beatles - pop rock, Pink Floyd - progressive, Jimmi Hendrix - psychedelic, Skynard - southern rock. Nirvana falls under the grunge blanket and classic rock must include the classics in order to stay relevant.

Q107 is a radio station in Toronto Canada that for years played the same 30 songs on repeat. It’s audience was dying off. They expanded their rotation to grunge, 80’s and 90’s rock and their popularity surged. Naturally they must play Rush and Tragically Hip about 5 or 6 times a day, but they kinda have to as they are hometown favourite bands.

Where else would you hear The Fly’s - Got You Where I Want You? I forgot the song existed until I heard it the other day.

Going to see Kiss on another farewell your in Manchester in July.

Kiss have several labels, there music has changed over the years, they could also be classed as Glam Metal & Heavy Metal in parts of their career.

@warmblur: Honestly I'd say Metallica and Nirvana are both overrated. That said Metallica has made much better music than Nirvana as well as much worse music.