@Evridiki Ioannidou

The genre’s chart-toppers, classics and lost favourites.

Every essential Classic Rock anthem you grew up on, on one convenient playlist!

This timeless instrument reflects the restless spirit of innovation.

The songs you love. The more you use Apple Music, the better the mix. Refreshed every Tuesday.

Whether it’s Monday morning or Friday night, get going with this personalised mix of upbeat music.

Songs to help you relax and unwind. Updated every Sunday.

Discover new music from artists we think you'll like. Refreshed every Friday.

The tracks you can’t get enough of lately, all in one place.

We have radio to thank for inventing classic rock. Conceived as a programming format, it emerged in the ’80s when stations began devoting heavy airtime to a mix of beloved titans from the ’60s and ’70s (The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Bob Seger) and then-current hitmakers (Tom Petty, John Mellencamp) whose music contains heavy echoes of the vintage stuff. Even when classic rock opens its ranks to ’90s alt-rockers such as Soundgarden, it’s because they sound old-school. In terms of stylistic variety, the format boasts considerable leg room. Classic rock rotation can and does include soaring ballads from Pink Floyd, The Beatles and Elton John, and even the occasional glam nugget from David Bowie. Yet at the end of the day, the format definitely relies heaviest on thunderous hard-rock anthems perfect for Friday night parties or powering you through your workday.

For soul music’s greatest artists, the ’70s meant reaching new ambitions and new levels of sophistication. Freed from the strictures they may have felt in Motown’s ’60s heyday, Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder made masterful music that confronted the troubles they saw in the world while pushing soul into uncharted territory. Meanwhile, innovators like Philly soul kings Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff expanded the sound’s scope, resulting in sumptuous string-laden hits that still boasted irresistible grooves. Of course, Al Green, Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway showed how some songs required the very softest of touches.

Elton John and Phil Collins had crossed over into the classic-rock pantheon by the time the ‘90s started, they kept releasing tracks that showed off their maturity and songcraft. Newer acts took their cues from rock’s prevailing trends: Jangle-rockers like Hootie and the Blowfish and the Gin Blossoms brought indie ideals to the masses; Alanis Morrissette and Sarah McLachlan built mysteries by diving inward, writing disarmingly honest music that spoke to deep feelings; and Red Hot Chili Peppers flipped their funk-rock and incorporated psychedelia’s nuances. Soft rock’s sprawl reflected the decade’s tumult while offering listeners a gentle landing.