NJ millennials enjoy music before their time, just as I did

Classic rock acts are headlining New Jersey venues in full force all summer. Many of these acts began over 40 years ago and are still packing in venues.

I saw this myself recently when I saw Paul McCartney at Metlife. The stadium was filled with millennials and Gen X-ers who were singing along with Beatles songs. How did they come to like these acts who were not part of their generation? I can only speak for myself.

When my family moved to Marlboro from Union City in the '70s, I was very lonely and deeply depressed. One day, I saw a TV commercial with Chubby Checker selling a box set of “The Greatest Hits Of The '50s,” this was music from before I was born but when I put it on I became a huge fan. From there, I moved into The Four Seasons, while my other high school friends were listening to Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd.

Then one night while babysitting, I watched a double feature on channel 7 of “Help” and “Hard Days Night” and just like that, five years after they broke up, I became a huge Beatles fan. To this day, I'm still a huge Beatles and Buddy Holly fan.

With technology and the Internet, we can hear anything, anytime from anywhere.
I wondered how many others were into music “before their time” on air and the phones lit up. The hour was not only filled with lots of Beatles, Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Yes, but Buddy Holly, Grateful Dead, Rush, and even Frank Sinatra.

In 1976, Jethro Tull sang “you're never too old to Rock n Roll if you're too young to die.” Now, in 2016, we've proven you're never too young either.

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