The History of Rock 'n' Roll (TV Mini Series) The '70s: Have a Nice Decade (1995) User Reviews

Well Worth Watching!

[Little_Loie · 10/10 · 4 September 2002]

This is a fantastic documentary that should be viewed by anyone who liked anything about the 70s. This film covers it all - from classic rock to punk rock and everything in between. David Bowie's narration is a treat. 10/10

"It was a great time to be alive." - David Lee Roth

[classicsoncall · 10/10 · 23 September 2017]

This entry in "The History of Rock 'n' Roll" series examines the manner in which bands began searching for their own originality during the decade of The Seventies. The music became a hybrid of everything that came before - rhythm 'n' blues, jazz, country, and rockabilly - but with the challenge of staking out it's own territory. The first part of the program looks primarily at the bands one might describe as heavy metal, groups like Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, and follows up with a quick look at other forms like reggae, alternative rock and even disco, which many mainstream rock 'n' roll enthusiasts simply hated with a passion.

One surprising comment made in this episode came from Pete Townshend of The Who, stating that he never liked Led Zeppelin. He did qualify it by saying that there was some concern that Zeppelin might have gotten bigger than his own band, and that he did like all the members of Led Zeppelin individually. But he couldn't bring himself to say that he liked the group or their music, although one suspects he might have been putting the interviewer on as he smirks a bit to himself in the cut away.

There must have been one particular aspect to the era that blew right by me, because in this and prior episodes of the series, there was an artist named George Clinton offering commentary and I didn't know who he was. Nor had I ever heard of Parliament Funkadelic, and seeing his group perform in archival footage did nothing to refresh my memory. They were right smack dab in the middle of Seventies music so I can't really explain how they got by me.

As for all the rest, it was great to see and hear commentary from guys like Jackson Browne, Peter Frampton, Alice Cooper, Gregg Allman and Lindsey Buckingham. Alice Cooper spoke about the the time an audience member threw a live chicken on stage and not knowing what to do with it, threw the chicken back out into the crowd expecting it to fly away, since he knew nothing about farm animals. The crazed fans tore it apart and threw the remnants back on stage, thereby starting the legend of Cooper biting a chicken's head off. When Ozzy Osbourne asked him the next day if it was true, Cooper told him what happened. Osbourne told him to go with the rumor instead - the fans loved it!

Episode 8: The '70s Have a Nice Decade

[ebiros2 · 6/10 · 24 October 2005]

After the end of the '60s many of the major players who've carried the era died such as Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison, Brian Jones, Mama Cass Eliott. This left the void for new players to come to the scene.

In this episode, personalities that defined the '70s are featured such as:

Elton John, Alice Cooper, David Bowie, Queen, KISS, Steely Dan, Doobie Brothers, Led Zeppelin, Peter Frampton, Fleetwood Mac, Aerosmith, Allman Brothers Band, Bob Marley, The Funkadelics, Stevie Wonder, Yes, Pink Floyd, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, and Bruce Springsteen.

These artists and the phenomenon that was the Disco is featured in this episode in the history of rock n roll in the '70s.

hustling through the 70's

[postmanwhoalwaysringstwice · 6/10 · 16 April 2007]

The generally quality documentary series "The History of Rock & Roll" really hits a roadblock with the eighth installment, "The 70's - Have a Nice Day". The musical landscape of the 1970's saw music branching out into many disparate styles as well as the extreme popularity of the disingenuous, overly calculated disco genre. Many styles are discussed during the episode's hour long format, some of which are less "rock" than others and certain artists are over explored, while others are ignored or barely mentioned. This segment feels particularly slapdash, and clearly wanting to be given the multi-installment treatment of the sixties music, which was represented in some way by a staggering seven. There's a lot of quality music, historical information, and artist given commentary to make this worthwhile viewing, but a music fan who understands the importance of the music from that era recognizes the missing chunks of information.