Web sites help baby boomers get hip to a new bag of tunes

There is a reason such classic acts as the Police, Santana, Bruce Springsteen and Rush continue to fill big venues this summer: Many people who formed their core audiences in the '60s, '70s and '80s are still locked into that music.

Although those sounds were revolutionary in their heyday, many of the original listeners have gotten less adventuresome as the years have passed. They may have fewer entertainment dollars and less time available for discovering fresh music when mortgages, kids and demanding jobs are factored in.

"People have lots of options, other ways to spend their money," says Richard Gehr, who writes about music for AARP. "I know some people (middle-age and older) who are still rabidly inquisitive and curious music fans ... whereas others would rather watch HBO, read a good book or Netflix a million movies."

For those tired of hearing "Hotel California," "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" or "Black Magic Woman" for the 10,000th time, as well as for parents who are curious about the music their teens are listening to, the Internet is the key.

There are scores of Web sites that allow visitors to listen to and discover all types of music, for free in most cases or for a small monthly fee.

"When people start to discover new music, which is an experience they haven't had in a while, they really get lit up about it," says Tim Westergren, founder of the popular Pandora.com site. "It's like suddenly they're 18 again."

Here is a sampling of sites where baby boomers can venture beyond the classic sounds of their teens and 20s:

Pandora.com: This free site provides users with (likely unfamiliar) music that matches their tastes. Pandora is based on the Music Genome Project, which Westergren claims is the most comprehensive analysis of music ever undertaken.

Users create "stations" by typing in the name of an artist or song title, and Pandora plays back a series of songs with similar melodies, harmony, rhythm, lyrics and instrumentation. Listeners can give a "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" rating to steer toward other material.

A station created around Elvis Costello, the '70s-spawned pop-rocker who has opened for the Police on their reunion tour, turned up newer sounds by the Strokes and the Graham Colton Band amid classics by Talking Heads and Paul McCartney.

The site displays other visitors and the music they enjoy, providing more new tunes to sample. Registered users can chat or post comments on message boards.

MeeMix.com: The brains behind this site have developed an algorithm that can predict tastes in music, CEO Gilad Shlang says.

"It doesn't matter how familiar you are with computers, the Internet, browsers," he says. "You will only have to tell us what you like and then receive a world of music based on that information."

The free site lets users create their own "Mee Stations" based on artist, song or genre. Listeners can rate songs from "hot" to "not" (vote against classic songs that bore you). A "mood control" lets users seek surprises, often spawning selections by new bands. The site also offers videos.

Like Pandora, MeeMix lets users see who else is listening and sample their music. Chatting, questions and comments are encouraged.

Imeem.com: This social-networking site lets music fans click into a wide array of styles to check on which artists and songs are the most popular and most discussed.

This is a quick way to get exposed to new music in a favorite genre because the most popular songs are often new hits. A country fan stuck in the '60s might be introduced to rising star Taylor Swift, a favorite on the site.

"What's amazing is you can plug in any artist and (often) stream entire albums immediately for free," AARP's Gehr says. "It's the closest thing to music on demand that I've found."

This free site also has music videos and allows users to network with friends and groups, much like the popular MySpace.com.

MySpace.com: Speaking of this site, it's a great tool for tracking down a new artist you may have run across.

"If you hear about somebody, you go to MySpace and you find them in about two seconds," Gehr says.

Thousands of musicians, both obscure and famous, have MySpace pages where visitors can sample their music and videos, find concert dates and explore the tastes of friends displayed on a site.

Just go to MySpace.com, search for a name under the "music" category and the material will appear. Older users needn't be intimidated now that MySpace also has become home to mainstream-media outlets.

Last.fm: This site is helpful along the same lines as MySpace — getting information on a new artist that you saw mentioned in a magazine or heard your kids talking about.

Let's say your child is listening to Death Cab for Cutie. A search of the band at this site will indicate that Last.fm visitors think it has musical elements in common with such established acts as Counting Crows, Coldplay and John Mayer.

Sound interesting? Then view a video, listen to album samples and read a full biography of the band.

Finally, surprise your young rocker at the dinner table by remarking that Ben Gibbard of Death Cab seems to be a very talented songwriter.

This site also provides extensive social networking, concert listings and the opportunity for musicians to post their work.

eMusic.com: Listeners who want to dive into the newest "indie" bands — most of whom aren't signed to mainstream record labels — should consider paying the $10 monthly fee for this site.

Customers may download 30 songs monthly at no additional cost, so those tracks wind up costing 33 cents each.

The "new on eMusic" area spotlights recent releases, with details about the bands. The quirky "Dozens" feature lets experts list 12 albums linked in any manner. An online magazine is brimming with columns explaining new music in grown-up terminology.