Time Machine Dial
1930
Your Age in Songs
The Soundtrack of Your Lifetime
Find out how old you are in songs! Enter the year you were born below and get the 10 songs each year since you were born.
Your 10
Community Archives
If you'd like to feature your own version of this project here, send me your top ten per year using the contact form at the bottom of this page.
100 years.
1000 songs.
10 songs a year.
An alternative, ear-crafted, selection of the best songs from 1930s-2030s.
A Reminder of time and self in sound.
Click the dot next to each song to hear a preview.
What were the songs the year you were born?
Use the Radio Music Time Machine
What are your 10 songs a year? Add your curation.
Genres & Movements
The Journey of Change
Appendix & Methodology
The Journey of Sound: 1930 – 2030
Archival Methodology
This 100-year music timeline is a curated ear-crafted digital archive. It follows a strict 10 songs per year. You could say it's a digital data art project to map the evolution of sound from of 1930s to 2030s. Or you could not. But it's much more fun to measure time in songs than hours, minutes, seconds etc!
Primary Sources
I check stuff against Wikipedia but keep coming across Library of Congress, the Alan Lomax Archive, and historical catalogs from seminal record labels including Decca, Columbia, Polydor, and Blue Note.
Selection Logic
Songs are selected based on ones I like. If I hear a song I like more than another on the list. I'll take it out and add the new one.
Frequently Asked Questions
How was this music timeline created?
This project was built by listening to songs. You could say it as serves as a visual and auditory map of the 20th and 21st centuries, tracking genres from Delta Blues and Jazz to Electronic and beyond. But it's just songs I like. 10 a year for 100 years.
What are the most influential music genres featured?
Do you like the Beatles? Great. There will be something for your here. But basically this is my attempt at trying to work out movements, including the birth of Rock & Roll, the evolution of Folk, and the global spread of Jazz. You can explore these specifically in my Genres Journey section. It's all about interconnected links and anchor points. Something like that.
Is this a complete history of recorded music?
No. It's songs I like ordered by year. But start at 1996. You'll find that from that point all of these songs interconnect forwards and backwards. They all interelate! I heavily rely on friends, family and radio. Particularly John Peel, John Kennedy, Nick Grimshaw (who kindly spoke to me about the initial incarnation of this idea on 6 Music), Lauren Laverne, Steve Lamaq, Deb Grant, Mark Radcliffe and Marc Riley.
Why isn't there much pop, classical, or hip hop?
You won't find much classical, mainstream pop, or hip hop in my curation. This is just what I like 10 songs a year! I'd listen to these styles outside of this project. Same with bands I am missing a lot of the greats. Sometimes you hear songs too many times! Also it is my taste so even when I thought new music had passed me by I scratched the surface and found stuff I liked. I am hoping to add others cutations to the site.
How do I export my playlist to Spotify?
Once you've built a playlist, click the Export CSV button. To easily move these tracks to Spotify, I recommend using TuneMyMusic's CSV to Spotify tool. Just upload your downloaded CSV file, connect your streaming account, and it will generate the playlist for you automatically.
External Archives & Discovery
BBC Radio 6 Music
Good ol 6 Music.
Dave's Music Database
Dave makes lists.
The Alan Lomax Archive
A bespoke digital collection of field recordings that preserved the roots of the 20th century.
Registry
The Archive of Contributors
Your Playlist
Long-press (Mobile) or Double-click (Desktop) songs to add them.
Contact
Inquiries & Feedback