It’s All Happening: The Transcendence of the 1970s Rock Scene

By: Gianna Taft, Staff Writer Edited by: Abigail Seltzer

Two of the most notable films about the 1970s are Dazed and Confused (1993) and Almost Famous (2000), both of which are results of the 20-year nostalgia cycle. Dazed and Confused follows the light hearted nature of being a teenager in the ‘70s, while Almost Famous focuses on naive youngsters amidst the ‘70s rock and roll scene. However, with the release of X (2022), it became clear that the obsession with the 1970s was far from just a product of the nostalgia cycle. In 2023, when the Daisy Jones & The Six TV series was released, it was even more evident that it wasn’t just the 1970s culture that captivated public interest, but specifically the rock and roll scene. Overall, it's become apparent that the public has an obsession with the enigmatic themes that appear in rock and roll media.

“BookTok,” a subcommunity on TikTok in which creators recommend and share books they are currently reading, has revitalized the 1970s craze. Particularly, biographies from artists and “groupies” from the era have become increasingly popular. Viral video titles include, “books for party girls” and “read more books written by cool and messy women.” Some rising books include, Sex and Rage by Eve Babitz, which follows a young woman named Jacaranda (inspired by Babitz herself) as she navigates the LA party scene during the 1970s and ‘80s, Groupies by Sarah Priscus, which follows a young woman named Faun who gets drawn into the world of rock and roll, becoming a photographer and groupie for a famous band, and memoir I’m with the Band, written by Pamela Des Barres detailing her life as she becomes a well-known groupie in the 1960s and ‘70s, explores relationships with famous rock stars (Mick Jagger, Jim Morrison, etc.), and takes on adventures on the Sunset Strip.

With this very brief overview, the question becomes, what makes people so drawn to the 1970s rock and roll era?

The 1970s were known as the “Golden Age” of rock music for a plethora of reasons. The decade welcomed bands who experimented with longer tracks, solos, genre blending, and much more. Rather than mirroring the standard and typical three minute tracks, rock music during this era aimed to give the listener a full, dynamic experience. Where artists had typically focused on making a break-out single to be overplayed on the radio, they began focusing on creating albums that told stories and expressed themes that reflected their own lives as well as the culture and climate of the world. Themes of existentialism, social criticism, escapism, and of course, drugs and sex were new, but became increasingly common. The ‘70s were also the era of stadium concerts, seeing as classic rock was outgrowing the smaller tours and spaces they had previously inhabited. Because of this thematic shift in music, it’s hard for the ‘70s to not be referenced in modern rock conversations, the era having laid the foundation for hard and metal rock, grunge, alternative, and indie rock to flourish and thrive. 

The gritty, often unpolished and raw sound of both the instruments and vocals, paired with the sometimes somber and personal topics made the 70s stand out even more––it still strikes audiences today as poignantly authentic, and in this era of social media and globalized communication, it’s easy to understand why people continue to crave the genuinity of ‘70s classic rock. A time when, as opposed to now, artists weren’t afraid of admitting any of their imperfections or struggles, while also providing many listeners and fans with an escape from reality with energetic tunes centered around the glitz and glam of the rockstar lifestyle.

The aesthetic appeal of ‘70s rockstars is another large part of why they seem to fascinate audiences today, and it's difficult to discuss said aesthetic without acknowledging the bold  fashion that defined the era. Many men and women alike, David Bowie, Joan Jett, and Mick Jagger, adopted a glam rock style that appeared androgynous and often flamboyant, straying away from a strict and masculine or feminine style and ultimately contributing to their sense of authenticity and confidence. These rockstars were far from interested in wearing things strictly because they were trendy, and they weren’t afraid to bend gender stereotypes through their personal style. They often went on stage donned in sparkly, colorful, maximal pieces. Other than the straightforward glam looks, rockstars like Stevie Nicks continue to inspire people to incorporate more long skirts, bell bottomed sleeves, pants and excessive jewelry in their closets.

However, there was no single style, piece or aesthetic that could truly define the fashion of a rockstar. Rather, at the crux of it, people seem to find themselves less interested in the pieces themselves, and more so on who wore them.

Take Stevie Nicks, one of the lead singers of Fleetwood Mac, as an example. Nicks’s mystical and witchy fashion has certainly cemented itself in today’s culture, but her rockstar appeal transcends far beyond her physical fashion sense. Nicks’s songwriting represented ideas and emotions that audiences resonated with, and continue to resonate with today––she sang about her messy breakups (particularly with Fleetwood Mac band mate Lindsay Buckingham), heartbreak, personal resilience, and changes she and many face through everyday life. She was no one but her authentic self on stage, and people today can still see this reflected in her performances and interviews. The second TikTok rediscovered Fleetwood Mac’s Silver Springs 1997 live performance, in which Nicks angrily sang the song she wrote (originally excluded from their hit 1977 album Rumors) about the painful breakup she experienced with Buckingham to Buckingham on stage, current audiences couldn’t help but to be captivated by the raw emotion that transpired and was shared with the public. Viewers not only envied her uninhibited behavior, but they related to her as well. Here she was on stage, angry, resentful, and at her core: hurt. Her powerful emotions undoubtedly translated through the performance, making her authenticity all the more palpable.

It was this allure demonstrated by Nicks and the rest of Fleetwood Mac, as well as the tension-filled 1997 Silver Springs performance that inspired Taylor Jenkins Reid’s Daisy Jones & The Six book, and eventually the show adaptation. The book and show, set in the 1970s, focus on the complicated and intense partnership of two rockstars, Daisy Jones and Billy Dunne through their rise to fame, addiction, and all the complications that arise amid their band’s astronomical rise to success. Modern fans were drawn in once more by the authentic 1970s atmosphere, and portrayal of the “sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll” lifestyle of the era. Fans were captivated by the characters, no matter how flawed and morally gray as some of them were, because of how genuine and relatable they were. 

It’s abundantly clear that the heart of the ‘70s rock and roll scene appeal was the authenticity of the artists and art they produced. But why is this authenticity no longer present in music today? Blatantly put, this era of pure authenticity was a result of the lack of accessibility to technology. In this modern age where people’s entire lives are documented on social media, no matter how authentic someone believes their favorite celebrity or content creator to be, they aren’t, and everyone knows everything is curated to be viewed by a public audience. This curation makes it so that even when someone is being their “authentic” self on camera, the audience is still only seeing what this person wants them to see––a privilege that was not granted to these rockstars back in the ‘70s. Their genuineness was a double edged sword. They were both authentic because they wanted to be, as well as authentic because they were not given a choice otherwise. If these rockstars were caught in a bad moment, a story was run about it. If a fabricated story was made about them, that was run too. While the era had its ups and downs, musicians with  millions of eyes on them were not deterred from being vulnerable and completely themselves, whether that be on stage, backstage, or in the music––and modern audiences crave the feeling of seeing their favorite artists the way they fundamentally and wholeheartedly are––just as themselves and nothing else.

So, whether it be the carefree and reckless nature demonstrated by the band and teens in Almost Famous, or the romantic turmoil and glamor of Daisy Jones & The Six, it’s evident that audiences crave authenticity in an era of curation, and the ‘70s rock and roll scene truly isn’t going anywhere.

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