Most everyday situations you can look at and know, definitively, that there will be an appropriate GIF for that situation. But what about years, or years in music? Is it really possible to sum up any year in a single moving image?
A musician called Joshua Carrafa seems to think so, and he’s been doing a pretty good job so far on his Tumblr page, Music History In GIFs. He’s been cataloguing musical history year by year with retro videogame-style 8-bit animations, and providing captions to give an insight into his process. Starting in 1964 and so far working all the way up to 2012, he sometimes creates more than one GIF for a year to give a little more context, but it’s surprising how much just one big story or artist can sum up a big year. We’ve selected a GIF for each year from 1964-2012 – take a look below to see how well he encapsulates each era.
1964
1964. the beatles play the ed sullivan show…. – music history in gifs
1965
1965. bob dylan plays his first electric set at… – music history in gifs
1966
1966. the rolling stones release paint it, black…. – music history in gifs
1967
1967. The Who play The Smothers Brothers Comedy… – music history in gifs
1968
1968. Johnny Cash says hello to a bunch of… – music history in gifs
1969
1969. Four dudes hang out in St John’s Wood,… – music history in gifs
1970
1970. Black Sabbath releases Paranoid. It’s so… – music history in gifs
1971
1971. Led Zeppelin releases their fourth album,… – music history in gifs
1972
1972. T. Rex plays Empire Pool in Wembley. Ringo… – music history in gifs
1973
1973. David Bowie releases Aladdin Sane, his… – music history in gifs
1974
1974. Ramones play their first show. Oldie… – music history in gifs
1975
1975. Kiss comes alive by releasing their… – music history in gifs
1976
1976. Thin Lizzy has to cancel their american… – music history in gifs
1977
1977. Pink Floyd releases Animals,. They sang… – music history in gifs
1978
1978. Devo releases their debut album, Are We Not… – music history in gifs
1979
1979. Frank Zappa releases Sheik Yerbouti. He… – music history in gifs
1980
1980. The Cure releases their US Debut, Boys… – music history in gifs
1981
1981. MTV is launched. At first, it’s cool. But… – music history in gifs
1982
1982. The first album ever to be released on CD… – music history in gifs
1983
1983. Michael Jackson debuts the moonwalk on Mo… – music history in gifs
1984
1984. Talking Heads release the concert… – music history in gifs
1985
1985. Marty McFly travels back in time to 1955 to… – music history in gifs
1986
1986. Jello Biafra and Alternative Tentacles are… – music history in gifs
1987
1987. Rick Astley pulls the biggest prank in the… – music history in gifs
1988
1988. Sonic Youth releases Daydream Nation. It… – music history in gifs
1989
1989. Madonna releases Like a Prayer and plays… – music history in gifs
1990
1990. MC Hammer Scores a ridiculously popular… – music history in gifs
1991
1991. Nirvana releases Nevermind. Grunge is in… – music history in gifs
1992
1992. Guns N’ Roses releases their sweeping… – music history in gifs
1993
1993. Prince changes his name to… – music history in gifs
1994
1994. Weezer releases their debut album. They… – music history in gifs
1995
1995. Tupac releases his most sensitive… – music history in gifs
1996
1996. Beck releases his fifth album, Odelay…. – music history in gifs
1997
1997. Radiohead releases OK Computer, and it goes… – music history in gifs
1998
1998. Neutral Milk Hotel releases In the… – music history in gifs
1999
1999. Napster is launched. Vast amounts of music… – music history in gifs
2000
2000. Modest Mouse releases their masterpiece The… – music history in gifs
2001
2001. The Strokes release their debut, Is This… – music history in gifs
2002
2002. Interpol releases their debut album Turn on… – music history in gifs
2003
2003. The White Stripes release their fourth… – music history in gifs
2004
2004. The Flaming Lips officially become the… – music history in gifs
2005
2005. LCD Soundsystem releases their debut album…. – music history in gifs
2006
2006. Mastodon releases Blood Mountain. An epic… – music history in gifs
2007
2007. Radiohead releases In Rainbows as a digital… – music history in gifs
2008
2008. Vampire Weekend asks everyone about their… – music history in gifs
2009
2009. Grizzly Bear releases a sweet collection of… – music history in gifs
2010
2010. Kanye West releases My Beautiful Dark… – music history in gifs
2011
2011. St Vincent releases Strange Mercy and plays… – music history in gifs
2012
2012. Psy releases his music video for Gangnam… – music history in gifs