Chapter 10: The late 1960s

Aretha Franklin

Achieved her breakout as a pop star in 1967. She basically produced nothing but hit albums for five years after that. Her songs embodied female empowerment, like the song "Sisters are Doin' it for Themselves". She inspired generations of female singers after her.

Bob Dylan

Acoustic folk music exploded during the early 1960s. Bob Dylan began as a folk singer, but by 1963 he was a folk rocker. Urban folk music was becoming a lot more politicized during the late 1960s, particularly because of the Vietnam War. His writing, particularly in "Blowin' in the Wind", showcases his gift for concise, poetic writing. This song is strophic in nature. Some of his songs had an ironic undertone, like "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right". Many people thought this was a love song, but in fact the title refers to what people might tell themselves to make themselves feel better. He wrote Like a Rolling Stone in 1965, which changed music forever.

Patsy Cline

Began her career in 1957 with crossover success from country to pop. She was still able to do this even in 1961 when there was increasing segregation between the country and pop markets. Her songs were ballads with broad appeal and not really teen records. She demonstrated the influence of the Nashville sound on pop music, as did Connie Francis and Brenda Lee.

James Brown

James Brown and Aretha Franklin embodied soul music. Brown had a repetitive riff based style that pioneered early rap music. His music was very strophic and often didn't include chord changes.

Psychedelic Rock

Psychedelic Rock was the counterculture of the 1960s. It was music for the people who weren't into the mainstream rock 'n' roll music. This was the music of the hippies, who had long hair and beards and wore beads as well as peasant or Eastern shirts, as well as blue jeans. Sometimes they also listened to Indian classical music. There was a lot of freedom in sexual activity as this was around the time female birth-control pills were successfully marketed. LSD was also a big part of the psychedelic rock counterculture.

Respect

Recorded by Aretha Franklin in 1967. This song is a cover of a song originally written by a man, and Aretha's version twists the gender roles so that the woman is in power.

Papa's Got a New Bag

Recorded by James Brown in 1965. This song uses the 12-bar blues pattern and also contains blues based stanzas. Features something called stoptime where the singing stops and there's a jazz solo for a bit which is followed by more intense singing.

Roots Rock

Rock music that came out during the late 1960s and early 1970s, an era when psychedelic music was popular, but sounded like rock music from the 1950s. This music was devoid of the weird psychedelic touches found in acid rock and other counterculture musical styles. The first Roots Rock band was the Credence Clearwater Revival.

Creedence Clearwater Revival

Ruled the pop charts in 1969, a year when counterculture was extremely popular due to political turmoil. They were and old-fashioned rock 'n' roll band that played 1950 tunes without any of the psychedelic touches. They were the first roots rock band. Their music wasn't reactionary, as it was still progressive and political without a specific style, similar to the style of Bob Dylan's music.

Soul Music

Sam Cooke was a pioneer of soul music. Cooke started off as a gospel singer who used his gospel influences to make pop music. The pop audience thought he was bringing a spiritual perspective to pop music. James Brown and Aretha Franklin embodied soul music. Brown had a repetitive riff based style that pioneered early rap music. His music was very strophic and often didn't include chord changes.

Jefferson Airplane

The first successful band to emerge from the San Francisco psychedelic scene. Began as an acoustic folk-rock band that played covers of Bob Dylan songs. They were part of what was called "acid rock". They were the paradoxical link between counterculture and profit-motivated bands.

Jimi Hendrix

The most influential guitarist of the rock era and the most African American rock musician of the late 1960s. He had a wild performance style where sometimes he even made love to his guitar or set it on fire. He was an iconic model for counterculture and rock musicians. He originally found success in England because you couldn't really get anyway in the US as a young black musician who didn't have any interest in the traditional black music of the style. None of Hendrix's songs ever made it onto the R&B charts.

Ray Charles

The most remarkable and unexpected synthesis of country with R&B music. His music also showed a lot of gospel influence. Didn't have major crossover success until 1959. He was extremely versatile, with talents in jazz as well as mainstream pop. He also had a very memorable and recognizable voice. One of his songs, "Hallelujah, I Love Her So" was banned on national radio for being too sexual. When he sang Tin Pan Alley songs he didn't try to turn them into R&B songs and he didn't try to turn himself into a crooner. He added shakes, moans, and other improvised touches and added some jazz elements. In 1962 he tried to break into country and everyone thought it was going to be a joke. However, his country-influenced songs expanded his audience and turned out to be successful. He didn't really show up on the country charts though.

Janis Joplin

The most successful white blues singer of the 1960s. Also a San Francisco native. She wasn't a success with black audiences and never crossed over into the R&B charts. Her recording of "Summertime" by George and Ira Gershwin gave the impression that she was a sweet, vulnerable person whose tough exterior and reliance on drugs was a defense mechanism against life's disappointments.

Like a Rolling Stone

This song was recorded by Bob Dylan in 1965. It changed music forever. The song was almost 6 minutes long and it was enormously popular. Up until then, recorded songs were almost never more than three minutes, but this changed that rule completely. The song is of the folk-rock genre. It has a unique sound because of the piano and organ, which overwhelm any of the other instruments in the background. This was the time period when the baby boomers were reaching adulthood, and around 1965 rock music in general became more relevant to adult issues. This song in particular asks new adults how it feels to be without a home, out on their own, since school hasn't really prepared them for real life. The Rolling Stones were eventually associated with Satanism and violence.

The Nashville Sound

This was the characteristic country-tinged pop sounds of musicians like Elvis.