Old Music Friday – 3 Ways to Discover Classic Artists

New Music Friday has become a staple for many when it comes to music discovery, but what about all the great old music we may be unaware of? We have no Old Music Friday. There’s no day dedicated to unearthing long lost tunes. This is why I want to share some of the ways I discover artists from bygone eras.

If you think about it, our first experiences with music involve older music. It’s either our parents, or another relative, playing their favorite albums, or singing to us. For me it was my parents’ record collection, and them having the oldies station on during weekend family dinners.

It isn’t until we get closer to double digits in age that we discover things like Top 40 radio, or I guess for younger generations, the internet, and start caring about what’s new.

At that point the focus for many of us becomes what’s new, and cool, and our old music discovery falls by the wayside … at least for a little while.

So how, as full grown adults in the year 2025, when we’re inundated with everything that’s new at a record (pun intended) pace, do we go about discovering things that are old?

Here are three ways I discover classic artists.

Musician autobiographies 

In addition to having more albums than I have room for, I’m also a voracious reader, and with my love of music, and music history, it should come as no surprise that a lot of the books I read are musician autobiographies.

I’m not breaking the bank here, because most of the books I pick up are from my local library’s annual book sale, but that’s what allows me to buy a dozen, or so, books a year, and when it’s just a couple bucks per book I’m far more willing to read 300 pages on someone I think may be interesting, even if their albums don’t pepper my collection.

Through all this reading I’ve found that when you read enough musician autobiographies you start to see some of the same names pop up as influences, and sometimes they’re names you aren’t totally familiar with because they aren’t artists who receive classic rock, or oldies, radio station airplay.

Two of my favorite discoveries that came through reading are from totally opposite ends of the spectrum – John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, and Laura Nyro.

John Mayall is a name that comes up in a lot of classic rock artists’ autobiographies because of how hugely influential he was in the British blues scene, and how many legendary artists spent time as part of his Bluesbreakers band. At one point in time both Eric Clapton and Mick Fleetwood were playing with him.

After seeing Mayall’s name so many times, I think it was Mick Fleetwood’s autobiography that finally made me say – I gotta find a Bluesbreakers album.

It took a little while, but I finally came across one while looking through used vinyl, and it’s an absolute gem.

Laura Nyro, on the other hand, is a name I’ve only seen in one autobiography, but it’s a big one, both literally, and figuratively – Clive Davis’ 500+ life story. He gushed about Nyro, and her talents as both a songwriter, and a singer.

Even though she penned songs that became hits for others, Nyro never really wanted to play the music industry game herself, which is why despite being, at the very least, on the same level as Joni Mitchell, and Carly Simon, her own music never received the same acclaim. She also passed away young, at the age of 49, from cancer.

With Clive Davis’ seal of approval, I went looking for Laura Nyro albums, and have found three of them while going through used vinyl. She really was a special artist.

Taking a chance while digging through CDs/vinyl 

As you can already tell, I like going through used vinyl, and CDs. Not only is it cost efficient – like feeding my book habit – no matter how many albums I own, it still feels like there’s an endless supply of albums I haven’t heard.

When I go for one of my digs, usually with a friend, I have a short list of artists I’m looking for – like the Bluesbreakers, and Laura Nyro – but I also keep myself open for discovering something random.

I’ve had a lot of great discoveries this way, with three of my favorites being Ray Parker Jr., The J. Geils Band, and Romeo’s Daughter.

Ray Parker Jr. is someone I was already familiar with, as most of us are, from his epic theme song for the movie Ghostbusters. This, however, came after a tremendous career that those of us who grew up in the ‘80s were completely unaware of.

I discovered this part of his career when I saw an album by his old band, Raydio, while digging through used vinyl. With a price tag of $3 I said – what the heck, let’s hear what he did before “Ghostbusters.”

When I put it on it blew me away. The R&B / funk tunes were amazing, and I needed to know more. That’s when I really discovered Ray Parker Jr.

The album didn’t have complete liner notes, which I thought was odd, especially since I wanted to know who was strumming the killer bass lines, and what genius was behind the keys. After doing some Googling I found out the answer to both was Ray Parker Jr. That, however, is just part of his legend. The man was responsible for the vocals (both lead, and backing), guitar, bass, keys, and drums. He was basically Prince before Prince!

I now own three of this albums – he had a Greatest Hits album before “Ghostbusters” – and circling back to my reading habit, I learned even more about him from the aforementioned Clive Davis autobiography.

One fascinating note from the book is that Ray had a music video where the concept was a date gone wrong when night falls, and they wind up in the midst of a group of ghoulish creatures of the night. Yes, it was basically “Thriller” before “Thriller,” and apparently the reason MTV wouldn’t air it was because the woman who was the romantic lead was white, and MTV refused to show an interracial couple.

The J. Geils Band is another act I was well aware of, having grown up in the ‘80s, and cranked up songs like “Centerfold,” and “Freeze-Frame,” but it wasn’t until I happened upon their 1970 debut album while digging through used vinyl that I discovered they were originally a blues band.

Their self-titled debut sounds nothing like the pop-rock they hit it big with in the ‘80s, and made me want to dive deeper into the band, and their history. So now, whenever I see a J. Geils Band album, I pick it up!

Unlike Ray Parker Jr., and The J. Geils Band, Romeo’s Daughter was a band I hadn’t heard of, but when I saw the very ‘80s rock looking cover of their self-titled debut album, and flipped it over to find every song was produced by either Mutt Lang, or John Parr, it was an immediate buy.

Not only did I like the album, I tracked down the band, and caught up with them for an interview where they told some fantastic stories!

My favorite artists’ liner notes, and social media posts 

OK, so before I get too deep into this one, I realize streaming has made liner notes a thing of the past, and that’s a shame, because at times – although certainly not all the time – they revealed an inspiration, or two.

Nowadays, the best way to potentially get that info is through an artist’s social media accounts. Whether they’re posting a cover of a song they love, a happy birthday to an artist who’s an influence, or a tribute to an artist who passed away, they’re providing insight into who they appreciate.

Sometimes, if you’re lucky, they’ll simply outright post about an artist they love solely for the purpose of attempting to get people to give them a listen. This is how I wound up digging past just the hits of Bill Withers.

Larkin Poe, who I’ve been writing about for nearly a decade now, randomly posted one day about how they felt Withers’ Live at Carnegie Hall album is a must-own. Normally I shy away from live albums, but figured if a band I love says it’s a must-own, and I’m already familiar with some of the songs, I should pick it up.

That turned out to be a great decision, as it’s become one of my go-to R&B albums.

Social media also affords us the opportunity to ask our favorite artists who their inspirations are. Of course, some artists don’t check their mentions, but you never know who may reply, and give you your next dive into old music discovery! 

So while it may be New Music Friday today, take a minute or two and consider making it an Old Music Friday. There are a lot of great artists just waiting to be rediscovered!