AOR

AOR on vinyl: rock for the radio and the turntable

In short: AOR originally stood for “album-oriented rock”: a format of American FM radio stations in the seventies that played whole album tracks rather than just singles. Later – often read as “adult-oriented rock” – it became the name for melodic, polished rock and West Coast pop, which in Japan is closely linked with city pop. The Vinyl Room currently has 18 AOR records.

What is AOR?

From the US: Ned Doheny is represented with his first album “Ned Doheny”, alongside Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers with their debut and Bruce Springsteen with “The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle”; under this style tag we also have Led Zeppelin’s “Physical Graffiti”.

From Japan and from today: Goro Noguchi is here with “Goro In Los Angeles, U.S.A.”, Tatsuhiko Yamamoto with “Boom Days”, plus the compilation “Pacific Breeze: Japanese City Pop, AOR And Boogie 1976-1986”. Dutch musician Benny Sings revisits the sound on “City Pop”.

What to look for

Our AOR records range from the seventies and eighties to the 2010s, including Japanese editions; label, catalogue number and year of release help you tell which edition you have – it’s noted with each copy.

From our stock

First pressings

New in

→ Soft rock · City pop · Pop rock · Rock on vinyl · How to spot a first pressing · Grading explained

FAQ

What does AOR mean? Originally “album-oriented rock”, later also “adult-oriented rock”.

What does AOR have to do with Japan? In Japan the term stands for melodic West Coast rock and pop and is closely linked with city pop.

Which artists are associated with AOR? Among others Toto, Boz Scaggs and Bobby Caldwell.

Which AOR records do you have? Here, for example, “Ned Doheny” and the compilation “Pacific Breeze”.