Rule of 25 shared by Modesto-area ‘classic’ car and music fans

Classic-rock authorities and some classic-car enthusiasts share a rule of thumb: To be a classic, it has to be at least 25 years old. If the fast math escapes you, that means 1990 now counts.

Push for specifics, though, and you’ll find folks citing examples far more from the 1960s and ’70s than the ’80s.

At a classic-car show earlier this month at the Masonic Lodge on Rose Avenue in Modesto, several entrants and attendees shared their thoughts on what qualifies as classic and what they’re seeing coming out now that could become classics.

Ron Marlow, there with his 1929 Ford Model A two-door, said he likes the Challengers, Roadrunners and other muscle cars of the mid-’70s. “I think next year, the mid-engine Corvette is going to be hot,” he added. “But you need a Brink’s truck to go buy one.”

Marty Reis was right there with Marlow on the old muscle cars, saying he’s a fan of the Chevelles, Roadrunners and Novas of the 1968-70 era. He also defined a classic as a car you can tune and tinker with yourself.

“Those days are gone,” said Marty, who was showing his 1963 Pontiac Grand Prix. Newer cars are “fun drives,” but with older ones, “you can rebuild them yourself to have all the amenities of a new car but the classic look.”

“I’m old school,” said Mary Vecchione, who was checking out a row of newer-model Corvettes at the show. The most recent cars she considers classics are “1969 to ’75, that’s where the era starts and stops.”

Don and Georgie Hughes were showing their 1939 Chevrolet two-door sedan.

“Twenty-five years is a good rule,” Don said, though he added that some newer models of cars with a great pedigree – he cited Dodge Vipers and Ford Mustangs – are classics, too. As for what’s being built these days, he said some of the 650- to 700-horsepower Corvettes and Camaros are sure bets.

But looking past model years, “any car can be a classic,” Don said. “Some cars, it’s hard to describe what it is, but something grabs you.”

The music industry looks at classic rock much the same way. For an artist to be eligible for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, his or her first album must have come out at least 25 years prior, said Richard Perry, program director of Modesto’s classic-rock radio station, 104.1 The Hawk. But being eligible doesn’t mean being inducted, of course.

“Classic rock lives mostly in the ’70s – that’s where the bulk of the music we play comes from,” Perry said. “We play some newer music, because as we get older, newer bands become classic. Guns N’ Roses is a perfect example. ...

“But when people ask me about classic rock, I don’t think it’s defined as much by years but by the sound. And in the car world, ‘classic’ probably is defined by design and style. Just because it’s 25 years old doesn’t mean it’s classic rock, and when I go to a car show, I’m not expecting to see cars from the ’90s but from the ’60s and ’70s.”

And just as classic-car buffs look upon newer Mustangs, Camaros and ’Vettes with longing and excitement not lavished upon new makes and models without such distinguished history, the same is true with music, Perry said.

“I play Tom Petty from the 2000s, but it’s because of his longevity,” he said. “If The Who puts out a new song, would I play it? Of course. But would I play something new from a new artist? No. And you don’t go to a classic car show to see rows of Corollas.”

This story was originally published May 24, 2015 at 4:01 PM with the headline "Rule of 25 shared by Modesto-area ‘classic’ car and music fans."