Middle of the road
Overview
Middle of the road music is a commercial radio format
(rather than a musical genre) which encompasses several styles. MOR music is broadly popular music
, but not technically avant-garde
; generally, it is strongly melodic
and often features vocal harmony
technique and orchestral arrangements. During the 1960s and the 1970s, the Beautiful Music
radio stations were "MOR radio", while its contemporary analogues are the Smooth Jazz
and the Soft AC formats.
The middle of the road music category usually includes these genres:
As an AM radio format in North America, MOR's heyday was the 1960s and the 1970s.
Radio format
A radio format or programming format not to be confused with broadcast programming describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. Radio formats are frequently employed as a marketing tool, and constantly evolve...
(rather than a musical genre) which encompasses several styles. MOR music is broadly popular music
Popular music
Popular music belongs to any of a number of musical genres "having wide appeal" and is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. It stands in contrast to both art music and traditional music, which are typically disseminated academically or orally to smaller, local...
, but not technically avant-garde
Avant-garde
Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
; generally, it is strongly melodic
Melody
A melody , also tune, voice, or line, is a linear succession of musical tones which is perceived as a single entity...
and often features vocal harmony
Harmony
In music, harmony is the use of simultaneous pitches , or chords. The study of harmony involves chords and their construction and chord progressions and the principles of connection that govern them. Harmony is often said to refer to the "vertical" aspect of music, as distinguished from melodic...
technique and orchestral arrangements. During the 1960s and the 1970s, the Beautiful Music
Beautiful music
Beautiful music is a mostly instrumental music format that was prominent in American radio from the 1960s through the 1980s...
radio stations were "MOR radio", while its contemporary analogues are the Smooth Jazz
Smooth jazz
Smooth jazz is a genre of music that grew out of jazz fusion and is influenced by R&B, funk, rock, and pop music styles ....
and the Soft AC formats.
The middle of the road music category usually includes these genres:
- Easy listeningEasy listeningEasy listening is a broad style of popular music and radio format that emerged in the 1950s, evolving out of big band music, and related to MOR music as played on many AM radio stations. It encompasses the exotica, beautiful music, light music, lounge music, ambient music, and space age pop genres...
- Traditional pop musicTraditional pop musicTraditional pop or classic pop or standards music denotes, in general, Western popular music that either wholly predates the advent of rock and roll in the mid-1950s, or to any popular music which exists concurrently to rock and roll but originated in a time before the appearance of rock and roll,...
of the pre-rock & roll era; and, later, imitative recordings of the style - Orchestral ballads
- Musical theater songs
- Smooth jazzSmooth jazzSmooth jazz is a genre of music that grew out of jazz fusion and is influenced by R&B, funk, rock, and pop music styles ....
melodies - Soft rockSoft rockSoft rock is a style of music which uses the techniques of rock music to compose a softer, more toned-down sound. Soft rock songs generally tend to focus on themes like love, everyday life and relationships. The genre tends to make heavy use of acoustic guitars, pianos, synthesizers and sometimes...
songs and melodies - Quiet StormQuiet stormQuiet storm is a late-night radio format, featuring soulful slow jams, pioneered in the mid-1970s by then-station-intern Melvin Lindsey at WHUR-FM, in Washington, D.C. Smokey Robinson's like-titled hit single, released in 1975 as the title track to his third solo album, lent its name to the format...
As an AM radio format in North America, MOR's heyday was the 1960s and the 1970s.
Discussions
