There is no genre of music known as "Classic Rock". It's a name created by radio programmers to describe a format.

Zep sent me in search of blues records by Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Robert Johnson and others myself but Skynyrd and other groups were also instrumental in that search. Years later the Honeydrippers EP would have a similar effect when I began sifting through my parents old Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis and Ray Charles albums. To this day I still love those old early rock n' roll and rockabilly sides which led me to pick up two very excellent box sets on Rhino: Loud Fast and Out of Control: The Wild Sounds of 50s Rock and Rockin' Bones: 1950s Punk and Rockabilly.

There's quite a few of those if you do a search at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Blues-Roots-Led-Zeppelin/dp/B00004Y333 I know there was a good one I saw in record stores years ago but someone bought it before I had a chance to.

It was announced from the beginning by XM that the Zep channel would only have a limited run.

If they're not going to release a new album before touring I'd almost rather see them break in new songs on the road than resort to covering Plant's solo material. I remember that chronological live box set set being mentioned in several interviews myself but even though they don't feature individual songs I thought they manifested themselves in the Led Zeppelin DVD and How the West Was Won releases.

I'm not sure of exact sales figures but I'm pretty sure Dylan's Modern Times (along with his other recent albums) and Springteen's recent outings have done pretty well not only saleswise but were also critically well received. That's not to say a new Zeppelin record would meet with the same fate, unless it were really, really good. Plant and Krauss managed to pull one out of the hat with Raising Sand so I see no reason why Zeppelin couldn't, though that's a hell of a reputation to have to live up to.

If you like some of those you might also like Drive-By Truckers, Ryan Adams, The Yayhoos, Tift Merritt and some of the other folks I mention here from time to time. I'm not into "modern country" myself but I do love me some Steve Earle and the other alt.country stuff commercial country radio refuses to play.

I've heard people refer to bands like Guns n' Roses and Metallica as "new" Led Zeppelins but I never it took it to mean soundwise, just in terms of popularity. Personally, I was never much of a fan of Metallica myself. In the 90s I did find myself getting into bands like Pearl Jam and the whole alt.country thing though. There were also a few bands that sorta slipped through the cracks like The Men, Fury in the Slaughterhouse, Animal Bag, etc. that didn't fit into the whole grunge thing.

Who was it you couldn't get through a minute of?

I've never lost my interest in finding new music. I'm always in search of that album you just want to listen to over and over again. Same for attending live shows. Not every one includes one of those moments that lifts your feet off the ground but every once in a while there's still one of those nights. That's what makes it worth it and keeps me coming back for more.

Then try further narrowing your search by looking for one of their album titles, a band member, etc. I've had no trouble finding the previous threads for Aerosmith, Deep Purple, and the other threads eagle87 has created duplicate threads for. Granted it's not the best search feature I've ever seen on a messageboard but it does work. At least it does for me and evidently at least two other members who have also posted links to the original thread within this thread. Not to mention the previous thread for Deep Purple was already right there on page one of this forum so it's not like it was all that hard to find. Like I said, myself (as well as other posters, as evidenced in this thread) have also used the Search feature to see if certain topics have been posted about before. Speaking just for myself it didn't take me 5 hours to search through the results. More like a matter of minutes and sometimes mere seconds. Yes, it does leave a lot to be desired but it's really not all that difficult.

Far from it, just making a suggestion so there aren't numerous duplicate threads. Most forums even suggest looking first so there isn't a plethora of similar threads. Some people refer to it as "netiquette". I refer to it as common sense.

Perhaps but there's also good ol' word of mouth. As I've mentioned I still hear about plenty of artists via friends and relatives that are well worth checking out. Prior to the internet I heard about lots of good music that way and still do. Besides, if someone cares enough about actually seeking out music they may like there's also the options of the internet, satellite radio, progressive and college stations (provided they're lucky enough to have one in their town) but those aren't the only means of doing those.

How is any of what I've had to say about the current state of rock n' roll "bullshit"? This coming from someone that flatout even refuses to listen to it.

Other than the new songs they debuted during the "working rehearsals" in Dublin over the summer and Supernatural Superserious, I haven't heard anything from it but the new R.E.M. album Accelerate sounds pretty good to my ears. Other than that, I don't really need to hear anything from so-called "major" artists to be moved by music. Once commercial radio went downhill in the early to mid-90s (at least in my neck of the woods) I began listening more and more to stuff that would never stand a chance on commercial radio.

Like I said, I'm no fan of rap and hip hop, I was merely speaking to it's validity as a form of music. As for Page and Puff Diddley I was just using him as an example of one of many "rock" artists who have embraced rap, I wasn't trying to say their collaboration was an indication of rap at it's peak.

Not to be rude but if you've been paying any attention at all to this thread you'd see where I've mentioned where and how I'm being turned onto new music, not just now but ever since I started listening to music period. Well, I certainly wouldn't recommend the likes of Nickelback or 3 Doors Down but there's plenty of people out there who like them. Again, just not my cup of tea. I'd liken them to the Bostons, REO Speedwagons, Kansas', Foreigners, etc. of the past. As for Pearl Jam, they're one of my favorites and I would most definitely put them up there with my favorite bands of any time period, not just the 70s.

Highly recommended viewing if you ever get a chance to see it:

Speaking of which, take a look at No Depression magazine's website. They may have gone out of publication as a print medium but the editors are already asking for suggestions on how to improve their website. Take a look at the blogs of co-editors Grant Alden and Peter Blackstock: http://www.nodepression.net

Bullshit. I'm no fan of Hip Hop or Rap but they're perfectly valid forms of music, they're just not my particular taste. Remember, many of the same criticisms leveled at rock n' roll are the very same ones the small minded place on Rap and Hip Hop. Look back at the early days of rock n' roll when people were burning records, saying they were detrimental to society and youth and Elvis could only be shown from the waist up on TV. Oh, and my favorite: "Rock n' Roll is just a fad". People were saying the same thing about Rap and Hip-Hop back in the 80s but it's done nothing but grow since then. Hell, even artists such as Rush and Jimmy Page (gasp!) have embraced it.

...or, as famed singer/songwriter Townes Van Zandt (best known for the song Poncho and Lefty, made famous by Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard) was often quoted as saying, "There are two kinds of songs: blues and zippity do dah."

I'll be tuning into Border Radio hosted by Rick Cornell on Duke's WXDU tonight at 8 pm, here's a sample playlist from a few weekends ago along with the link so you can listen online if so inclined. It's followed by the very excellent Soul City, also hosted by Rick. http://www.wxdu.org/listen Border Radio - WXDU 88.7, Durham, NC Saturday nights 8-9 February 16, 2008 Tonight's show sponsored by Copper Hook, a new seasonal offering from Red Hook. Sometime when you have absolutely nothing better to do, I'll tell you my story about touring the Red Hook brewery in Seattle.... * A Wreck of a Man - Arty Hill and the Long Gone Daddys - Bar of Gold * Ol' What's Her Name - Dave Insley - West Texas Wine * Broken Heart with Alimony - Buck Griffin - Frank's Best (homemade mix--thanks, Andy T.) * I Hope You're Happy - Jim Lauderdale & the Dream Players - Honey Songs * Heaven Sent - The SteelDrivers - The SteelDrivers <Good ol' pure country. Baltimore's Arty Hill carried the Jason Ringenberg stamp of approval. Among Jim Lauderdale's--excuse me, make that *Grammy Award-winning* Jim Lauderdale (congrats, Mr. Lauderdale and Yep Roc)--Dream Players are James Burton and Al Perkins.> * Be with You - Tim Krekel Orchestra - Soul Season * Bottom of My Bottle - David Childers and the Modern Don Juans * Playing for Keeps - Beaver Nelson - Little Brother * Sugarbowl - Kelly Hogan - Because It Feel Good * Cry Like a Baby - Hacienda Brothers - Music for Ranch & Town <A set of soul-ish country- and roots-rock. This is the kind of thing that only liner-notes scholars give a rat's ass about, but "Be with You" was cowritten by Tim Krekel and the SteelDrivers' (see previous set) Chris Stapleton. Beaver Nelson was by request. And like most of the world, I have a crush on Kelly Hogan. It's that voice *and* that sense of humor.> * Coney Island Heart - Tom Laverack - Cave Drawings * Back in the High Life Again - Warren Zevon - Life'll Kill Ya * Slaves of Gravity - Ronny Elliott - Jalopypaint * Half a Man - Will Kimbrough - (EP) <I don't know, these songs just seemed to fit together for no apparent reason...> * A Woman Left Lonely - Cat Power - Jukebox

I witnessed one of my favorite stations go from one that was very instrumental in breaking local and regional artists to one that no longer played any new music, local or otherwise. That's a problem that's presently plaguing radio stations nationwide, thus we have musicians such as Tift Merritt and Mike Mills of R.E.M. speaking to Congress about returning localization to our airwaves. I'm fortunate enough to live in an area that has a very vibrant music scene. Back in the 70s and 80s it wasn't unusual to hear local artists on the local airwaves. Now, they don't stand a snowball's chance in hell at airplay. Thankfully there's still college radio and stations such as KGSR out of Austin and KEXP out of Seatlle that aren't afraid to play artists outside of the norm that you'd never hear on Clear Channel controlled radio stations. Thanks to the internet those stations (as well as many others) are just a mouse click away.

Point taken but I don't even look at "Classic Rock" as a time period, only as a radio format. I say this because I've heard such "alternative" artists as R.E.M., U2 and others on so-called "Classic Rock" stations which just goes to show that term has no clear definition. Hell, a few years ago radio programmers even came up with a format called "Classic Alternative" as if to confuse matters even more. In regards to my posts, thanks. I've discovered some of my favorite artists due to word of mouth from relatives, friends, etc. With the internet, that way of spreading the word about music that moves us got a whole lot bigger.