For the Record: The 70s

50:23

Ep. 63: Dolly Parton at the Intersection of the...

For the Record: The 70s ·

2026/10/05

If there is any one individual who was sitting right at the intersection of the music, politics, and culture of the 1970s, it was Dolly Parton. Her appearances on "The Porter Waggoner Show" helped make her a country star, but she had eyes on more than being a side act. She had eyes on being a star and she accomplished that, all while navigating the sexism and the questions and the decisions that she made to push her career in the direction she wanted it to go. This episodes examines those choices

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56:15

Ep. 62: How Rolling Stone, CREEM, and Tiger Beat...

For the Record: The 70s ·

2026/07/31

Magazines were an important part of the 70s music experience. Rolling Stone, CREEM, and yup, even Tiger Beat gave information and access to our favorite singers and bands. Their influence was definitely not the same because their target audience was not the same. You were not going to see a Charles Manson interview in Tiger Beat, but that was not the reason for Tiger Beat's existence, but in a pre-internet world, there is little debate that print media was a strong influence in promoting the careers

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43:55

70s Rerun - The Spirit of 76: Pop Music in America's...

For the Record: The 70s ·

2026/06/15

As the U.S. approaches the 150th anniversary of The Declaration of Independence, FTR70 looks back to Episode 31, which examines 1976 and state of the nation -- and pop music -- in that bicentennal year. Things were a bit dicey in America in 1976. Gerald Ford was president, even though he only became president because of Nixon's Watergate scandal. The country was dealing with high gas prices, a shaky economy, the challenges of living with the civil rights legislation of the 1960s, and the

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54:42

Ep. 61: American Top 40 in the 80s

For the Record: The 70s ·

2026/06/04

Casey Kasem was at the height of his powers as the 1980s began. The countdown show that he launched on July 4, 1970, "American Top 40," was now an international phenomenon and could be heard on over 500 stations around the world. Casey had made rooting for your favorite single's climb up the Billboard charts akin to a sport — would your favorite song be played after the drumroll this week? He even branched out to a Top 10 countdown television show. However, you could also make the case that his

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45:52

Ep. 60: One-Hit Wonders of the 70s

For the Record: The 70s ·

2026/05/01

The 1970s gave us some of the most memorable songs ever recorded and some artists who, for one reason or another, only broke through once. In this episode, we take a closer look at those so-called "one-hit wonders" and the stories behind the songs that stuck. From the laid-back groove of "How Long" by Ace, to the quiet melancholy of "Good Time Charlie's Got the Blues" by Danny O'Keefe, we explore what made these tracks connect and why they lasted. We'll get into the funk-rock crossover of "Play That

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45:31

Ep. 59 - Bands and Booze on the Festival Express of 1970

For the Record: The 70s ·

2026/02/22

Imagine a train carrying the precious cargo that includes Janis Joplin, The Grateful Dead, The Band, and many more of our legendary performers! This was not a figment of the imagination but a real tour in the summer of 1970. This episode examines why this tour, which is not considered in the same vein as Woodstock, deserves its place in early 70s rock history.

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49:08

Ep. 58 - WKRP in Cincinnati

For the Record: The 70s ·

2025/12/29

"Baby, if you ever wondered, wondered whatever became of me, I'm living on the air in Cincinnati, Cincinnati WKRP." In this episode, WKRP in Cincinnati proves that a sitcom can be more than laughs—it can capture a cultural moment. Through sharp writing and memorable characters, the show explores the intersection of music, politics, and culture through the power of radio. In this case, it was a fictional radio station on a sitcom that aired from 1978 to 1982. However, even though it was fictional, it

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41:17

Ep. 57 - Punk and New Wave at New York's CBGB

For the Record: The 70s ·

2025/10/26

Television. The Ramones. Patti Smith. The Talking Heads. Blondie. These bands and more used the iconic club, CBGB, as their proving ground, giving rise to punk and new wave rock. The environment might have been dicey, but hey, what's a few weird smells and maybe a rat or two when you have the chance to listen to some of the most unique live music the 70s had to offer!

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53:35

Ep. 56 - Talk Shows of the 1970s

For the Record: The 70s ·

2025/08/17

Americans watched a lot of television in the 70s and talk shows were among the most popular shows to watch. Talk shows were the true intersection of music, politics, and culture. This episode will examine some of the most popular talk shows of the 70s including "Dinah!" "The Mike Douglas Show," and, of course, "The Tonight Show" with Johnny Carson. Its hard to discuss 70s politics without Richard Nixon entering the fray, which he does in his attempts to deport Mike Douglas's co-host, John Lennon,

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46:37

Ep. 55: Heartland Rock is about More than the Heartland

For the Record: The 70s ·

2025/06/24

The heartland is an American region, but heartland rock is not regional. In fact, it can be argued that it is more of a culture than a sub-genre of rock. This episode discusses the origins of heartland rock and the themes that attracted fans to it, which are far more universal than record companies and music executives of the 70s and 80s would have liked to admit. Artists such as Bob Seger, Bruce Springsteen, and John Mellencamp created music that touched on feelings and issues that many people

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07:38

FTR70 Sound Bite: Remembering Sly Stone

For the Record: The 70s ·

2025/06/10

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46:23

Ep. 54: Into the 80s! What Came Next for 70s Heavy...

For the Record: The 70s ·

2025/05/04

How did heavy metal change from the 70s to the 80s? This episode examines the birth of "hair metal" and how, for a short but LOUD period of time, heavy metal was one of the most popular genres in American music. Bands such as Quiet Riot, Def Leppard, and even Van Halen benefitted from widespread exposure on MTV as the visual aspect of a band's image became as important as the music. *This also marks a change in venue for 80s music topics as FTR80 will be merged into the FTR70 feed. Look for 80s

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42:30

Ep. 53 - More than Charley Pride: African Americans...

For the Record: The 70s ·

2025/03/23

The roots of country music are black and white. So, why do most people think of country as a white person's genre? This episode considers answers to that question and examines the contributions that African American artists made to country music in the 1970s.

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37:45

Ep. 52 - 70s Christmas Music

For the Record: The 70s ·

2024/11/27

It isn't easy to write an original Christmas song that stands the test of the time, but artists of the 70s gave us several, such as "Feliz Navidad" by Jose Feliciano and "Step into Christmas" by Elton John. These songs, combined with some iconic covers, added a wide variety of Christmas music created in the 70s to the holiday song canon.

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45:29

Ep. 51 - The Softer Side of 70s Rock

For the Record: The 70s ·

2024/10/13

Rock critics may have hated it but millions of music fans loved so-called "soft rock." This episode examines possible theories for this genre's popularity and makes the case that this "safer" version of rock music may have actually been an expansion of it that is still part of popular music. *Fans of this podcast should also check out "For the Record: The 80s!*

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0:51

Do You Want Your 80s?

For the Record: The 70s ·

2024/08/26

The latest episode of For the Record: The 80s has dropped! Find it in your favorite podcast app, subscribe, and share!

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38:26

Ep. 3 - Nostalgia, Race, and Rebels in 70s Southern...

For the Record: The 70s ·

2024/07/16

Southern rock from bands such as the Allman Brothers and Lynyrd Skynyrd was not just loved by Americans from the South. Southern rock has broad appeal. For many white southerners, though, this form of rock tapped into a desire for nostalgia, rebellion, and a reclaiming of the South as a distinct region. This episode discusses the question of how we should think about that music now, as well as the very thorny question of what the Confederate flag has to do with any of it.

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48:45

Ep. 50 - The Travolta Trilogy

For the Record: The 70s ·

2024/05/13

In just over a two-year span as the 1970s marched on toward the 1980s, John Travolta starred in three cultural touchstone movies: "Saturday Night Fever" (released on December 12, 1977), "Grease" (released on June 16, 1978), and "Urban Cowboy" (released on June 6, 1980). This episode examines the cultural significance of those films, the music in them, and how much Travolta himself had to do with the popularity of the movies.

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43:41

Ep. 49 - Austin City Limits and the 70s Country Music...

For the Record: The 70s ·

2024/03/30

In 1974, a local Austin PBS station aired the first episode of "Austin City Limits" and, with that, took the first step to showing the entire country how Austin, Texas celebrated and encouraged experimentation with country music. One of the founders of the show carried a business card that described the show's music as "free form country folk rock science fiction gospel gum existential bluegrass guacamole opera music." As the show celebrates it's 50th anniversary in 2024, it continues to be an

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43:53

Ep. 48 - The "Worst" of the 70s? The Music of 1974

For the Record: The 70s ·

2024/03/01

The year 1974 shoulder much of the blame for the so-called worst music of not only the 1970s, but the worst of all time. Is this true? While we know that 1974 had much good to offer, is it true that it also had the worst of the worst? If so, does it matter. This episode takes a closer look at some songs considered the all-time worst, including "Seasons in the Sun" by Terry Jacks, "Cat's in the Cradle," by Harry Chapin, and "Billy, Don't Be a Hero" by Bo Donaldson and the Heywoods.

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