Australian Music During the 1970s
Focus Question: Outline the changes in influence, style and broadcasting of music in Australia during the 1970s.
Australian perspectives on immigration, war, sexual morality, the role of women and the environment were undergoing radical change. In 1974, the White Australia Policy was scrapped. And throughout the decade, women won the right to equal pay and maternity leave and Indigenous peoples made progress on land rights. In 1972, Australian troops were withdrawn from Vietnam and in 1975, the nation was rocked by the dismissal of Prime Minister Gough Whitlam. The 1960s hippie movement also continued into the early 1970s, with many young people adhering to the values of peace, love and freedom and protesting against issues concerning the environment, politics and war. These changing aspects in society gave way to the development of new music and broadcasting means.
Radio
FM radio was introduced to Australia in the mid 1970s. It provided a higher quality broadcast than the current AM radio technology. This new radio frequency created airspace for the development of stations like SBS, 2MBS and ABC. In 1975, a new 24-hour youth rock station 2JJ (which later became Triple J) began broadcasting.
In the early 1970s, Australian music acts struggled to achieve sustained success, mostly due to a lack of radio airplay. American, British and other foreign acts continued to saturate the market.
In 1973, however, fears about the overwhelming volume of American music flowing into Australia led to an increase in local content quotas. In 1973, the Australian Broadcasting Control Board (ABCB) set down a code of practice that required radio stations to ensure that 10 percent of the music they broadcast was Australian. In 1976, this was raised to 20 percent.
The introduction of local content quotas led to a revival in the Australian music industry. Throughout the 1970s, the music programme Countdown and 2JJ were also crucial in providing national exposure to many emerging
Australian perspectives on immigration, war, sexual morality, the role of women and the environment were undergoing radical change. In 1974, the White Australia Policy was scrapped. And throughout the decade, women won the right to equal pay and maternity leave and Indigenous peoples made progress on land rights. In 1972, Australian troops were withdrawn from Vietnam and in 1975, the nation was rocked by the dismissal of Prime Minister Gough Whitlam. The 1960s hippie movement also continued into the early 1970s, with many young people adhering to the values of peace, love and freedom and protesting against issues concerning the environment, politics and war. These changing aspects in society gave way to the development of new music and broadcasting means.
Radio
FM radio was introduced to Australia in the mid 1970s. It provided a higher quality broadcast than the current AM radio technology. This new radio frequency created airspace for the development of stations like SBS, 2MBS and ABC. In 1975, a new 24-hour youth rock station 2JJ (which later became Triple J) began broadcasting.
In the early 1970s, Australian music acts struggled to achieve sustained success, mostly due to a lack of radio airplay. American, British and other foreign acts continued to saturate the market.
In 1973, however, fears about the overwhelming volume of American music flowing into Australia led to an increase in local content quotas. In 1973, the Australian Broadcasting Control Board (ABCB) set down a code of practice that required radio stations to ensure that 10 percent of the music they broadcast was Australian. In 1976, this was raised to 20 percent.
The introduction of local content quotas led to a revival in the Australian music industry. Throughout the 1970s, the music programme Countdown and 2JJ were also crucial in providing national exposure to many emerging