What counts as Classic Rock?

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Or rather, what doesn't count as Classic Rock? It's easy to say bands like Led Zeppelin, Boston, or the Who are classic rock, but for many other rock artists it is not so easy. Does any metal count as classic rock (many FM stations seem to think Black Sabbath counts)? Do 80s or 90s alternative count? Does grunge count? Does folk rock count? Do they have to be popular to count as "classic"? Popular prog groups like Rush or Pink Floyd are often considered classic rock, but what about similar but less mainstream bands like King Crimson, Gentle Giant, or Camel?

What do you guys think?

It's a radio format, not a genre.

Therefore, it's the stuff that gets played by classic rock format radio stations. Classic rock evolved out of AOR (album oriented rock) and largely focuses on the same stuff, only it also might include some alternative rock with a similar fanbase (Pearl Jam, but probably not DRI or The Cure).

In some ways it's defined by what they don't play. They don't play pop, they don't play disco (except rarely you might rarely hear a disco song by a rock band), they don't play soul or funk or r&b, they don't play hip-hop (except maybe a hit by the Beastie Boys), they don't typically play punk or new wave, they don't typically play metal (except for 70s era metal and a few Metallica singles), they don't typically play new rock but they'll end up playing some of those songs in a decade, etc.

All of the bands you've named are probably suitable for a Classic Rock format station.

Usually, stuff from the 60s, 70s, and 80s tends to be considered classic rock, at least from what I've seen.

Yeah in hindsight it's similar to 'adult contemporary' or 'oldies' in that it's a category more than a genre.

Naturally it varies from station to station. I've moved around and I've seen very different 'classic rock' stations on the FM. Some lean into the 60s, some favor hair metal or southern rock, etc.

I guess I've been trying lately to pin down the 'platonic ideal' of the classic rock format. Like what single band is most consistently played on nominal classic rock stations? Not the best, just which one most consider to be classic rock. My guesses would be Zep, Stones, Aerosmith, Boston, and the Who.

That seems like a pretty solid roster of genre-definers. Maybe add AC/DC as well.

Like "oldies" it a radio format. And like "oldies" it migrates in meaning as time marches on.

You began to hear the term "classic rock" in eighties ads for stations that played rock that was too new for the oldies stations ( 1955 to 65 Elvis, Beach Boys, early Beatles, twist-era music), but no longer current. Basically "guitar rock" as opposed to the then current Eighties "synth rock". Late Sixties and Seventies. Late Beatles, Zeppelin, Aerosmith, Boston (even though they used synths), Who, Allman Bros., Janis Joplin, Skynyrd, Hendrix, Heart, etc.

Some Eighties music began to creep into "classic rock" playlists in the 2000s, like hair metal.

Don't remind me. The other day, the local oldies station played All Star by Smash Mouth......from 1999. Granted it was for a 90s night they were doing but damn did I feel old.

Reminds me of the lyrics to Bowling for Soup's song 1985: "She hates time, make it stop/When did Mötley Crüe become classic rock?"