Apps for listening to old music: a flashback to the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s on your phone.
Put Creative Geek Writing
22
Just three seconds of introduction. The guitar kicks in, the drums set the tone, and you're already singing the whole song, eyes closed, just like back when it played on the kitchen radio. Old music has that power: it opens a drawer in your memory that no photo can ever open.
And now that drawer fits in your pocket. With the right app, you can listen to flashback radio stations from all over the world, playlists from each decade, and those rare recordings that have never surfaced again. This guide contains the best apps for listening to old music, in the easiest way to get started.
TuneIn Radio: flashback radio stations from all over the world.
TuneIn brings together thousands of live radio stations in a single app, many of which play only old hits: flashbacks, oldies, classic hits from the 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s. It has a 4.9 rating on Google Play, with over 2.8 million reviews, more than 100 million downloads, and a 4.8 rating on the Brazilian App Store.
- Real radio: Announcer, jingle, and a sequence of hits chosen by people who know their stuff.
- From all over the world: Flashback radio stations from Brazil, the United States, Italy, Argentina, and dozens of other countries.
- Favorites: Save your favorite radio stations and open them directly next time.
- Free: The app uses ads.
How to find an old music radio station on TuneIn
- Install TuneIn using the button at the top of this page, or from Google Play or the App Store.
- Open the app and tap the search magnifying glass.
- Type “flashback”, “oldies”, “80s” or “classic hits”.
- Tap on one of the radio stations from the list. The broadcast will start on time.
- Did you like it? Tap the heart or the star to save it to your favorites.
Radio Garden: spin the globe and listen to radio from any city.
Radio Garden shows the planet covered in tiny green dots. Each dot represents a live radio station. You rotate the globe with your finger, stop in Rome, Buenos Aires, or a small town in the countryside, and listen to what's playing there at that exact moment. For those who enjoy old music, it's a treat: many small radio stations play hits from past decades. The app has a 4.7 rating on Google Play, over 10 million downloads, and a 4.7 rating on the Brazilian App Store.
Spotify: a playlist for every decade
Spotify has a 4.6 rating on Google Play and has over 1 billion downloads. Search for "60s," "70s," "80s," "flashback," or the name of your favorite artist, and ready-made playlists with the greatest hits of each era will appear. Tap the three dots next to a song and open its radio: the app creates an endless sequence in the same style. The free plan includes ads.
YouTube Music: Rare recordings and old concerts
There's old music that only survived on video: the television performance, the concert recorded on tape, the live version that was never released on record. YouTube Music brings together this collection with official albums. It has a 4.4 rating on Google Play, over 5 billion downloads, and a 4.8 rating on the App Store. The free version has ads. Listening with the screen off and downloading music are available with a Premium subscription.
Shazam: Discover the name of that old song.
Did it play on the radio, in a movie, or at a party and you can't remember the name? Open Shazam and tap the button: in seconds it shows you the song, the artist, and the album, with a shortcut to listen to it again in your music app. Shazam has a 4.9 rating on Google Play, with over 12 million reviews, more than 500 million downloads, and a 4.9 rating on the App Store.
If you only remember the melody, open the Google app, tap the microphone, and choose... Search for a song. Hum or whistle for a few seconds and Google will show you the most similar songs.
Build your time machine.
- A playlist for each decade: Create separate playlists for the 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s, and add the songs as they appear on the radio.
- The family trail: Ask your parents and grandparents what songs marked their youth and create a playlist to listen to together.
- Radio from another country: Use TuneIn or Radio Garden to listen to flashbacks from other cultures. The old hits from Italy or Mexico are a trip all in themselves.
- In the car: Connect your phone via Bluetooth or cable and let the flashback radio play on the road.
Which app to choose?
| Application | Best for | Note on Google Play | Downloads |
|---|---|---|---|
| TuneIn Radio | Live flashback radio stations from around the world. | 4,9 | 100 mi+ |
| Radio Garden | Listen to radio from any city around the globe. | 4,7 | 10 mi+ |
| Spotify | Ready-made playlists for each decade | 4,6 | 1 bi+ |
| YouTube Music | Rare recordings and old shows | 4,4 | 5 bi+ |
| Shazam | Discover the name of the song. | 4,9 | 500 mi+ |
To get started, try TuneIn: it's free, has flashback radio for all tastes, and requires nothing more than a tap of play. Install it using the button at the beginning of this page and travel back in time today.
