Musi 1003 Final
Back to basic stances
Funk -Recapturing dance as expressive social ritual -Body-music relationship revitalized (groove) -Critique of corporate music making Hip-hop (rap) -Recapturing language as expressive tool -Media-music literacy relationship reframed -Challenge to corporate music ownership model
West coast rap
Gangsta Rap -Gangsta lifestyle <-> survival --Productivity decline, targeted drug traffic, youth/gang violence - Systemic brutality and neglect N.W.A. Straight Outta Compton (1988) -West Coast Identity social realities "F-ck Tha Police" - Rhetoric politically condemning -Harrowing accounts of gang life (life in the hood) -Smoother, laid-back accent - angrier and darker rapping -System of order, or racializing, systemic oppression?
Punk music
"Do It Yourself" (DIY) spirit Clothing, media, advertising, marketing. Garage-band movement as predecessor. Cheap recording production costs. Low-down musicianship in terms of skills Raw energy and subversive performance Seeming anarchy and chaos was translated into aesthetic movement on the stage The Stooges The dramatic contortions and screeching voice coupled with the repetitive lyrics and obstinate guitar riffs of a rather simple nature gave punk music an aura of simplicity, a reaction against complexity of capitalist production
Dystopic effects of rap
"It is also clear that gangsta recordings ... may have served inadvertently to reinforce old and pernicious stereotypes of black masculinity that date back to the knife-toting dandy of the 19th century minstrel show." (S & W - p. 519) "The lived experience of coping with a life of horrifying meaninglessness, hopelessness, lovelessness...a numbing detachment from others and a destructive disposition toward the world." (Cornel West 1993) -Reflects the accumulating historical effects of inequity that characterize a racialized system of social, economic, and political organization. (Ramos-Kittrell 2020)
Rapping
"Toasting" + MCing -Hustler's Convention (1973) - toasts of urban underworld. -Kool Herc inspired: verbal performers/MCs -Mcing referred to the master of ceremonies in an official event main host -Toasting the delivery of rhymes over a specific beat chosen by the mc which was his original material Poetic social realism -"The Message" (1982) - Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five -Life in South Bronx: ironic look on social expectations for Afro-American youth.
Views of Alterity
("Not A Pretty Girl") - "What makes this track an alternative folk recording is the introduction of instrumental textures and vocal style from punk rock, and the fact that it was released on a small independent label managed by the artist herself." (S & W - p. 538) "...[their] 'alternative' perspectives are deeply informed by the historical knowledge of the particular genres in which they have chosen to work." (S & W - p. 539) "In a business where...any hint of a feminist perspective is generally enough to propel an artist into the 'alternative' category, DiFranco and lang have been able to achieve a degree of commecial success without compromising their passionate and distinctive voices." (S & W - p. 539) -I.e., only sales merit commentary and inclusion. "[Both artists] are committed to creating popular music that engages with contemporary social issues, particularly the rights of women and children." -"Music that makes unattended issues pertaining gender, sexuality and race contemporary is alternative to the narratives of culture, heritage, and social belonging that have been historically promoted in the public sphere."
Social Visibility Issue
1980s - MTV's neglect of black music -David Bowie's interview -Rap, funk, r&b, pop... (Michael Jackson cannot get on MTV?) -Racial bias out of "social concern"? (Sales concern, really) 1970s - Grandmaster Flash, "The Message" -Socially-conscious rap "Real music" (i.e., of the street) - marketing challenge -Indie-label corporate approach, street scouting. -Distribution deals with major labels
Record producers format for their markets
33 r.p.m. LP and 45 r.p.m. single LP: Classical music (symphonies, opera), broadways casts Frank Sinatra and LP possibilities: different songs by an artist Reserved for music consumed by young or middle age and elder people Single: rock n' roll Whole teenage culture created in 1950s by singles format: stories, narrative Elvis, Chuck Berry, Little Richard
Funk
Album-oriented rock music -Listening over embodiment -The body as focus of music experience --Catchy melodies --Call-response --Intense and repeated rhythmic patterns James Brown "Cold Sweat" -"Repeated vamp" concept Focus on rhythmic groove -Bass and bass drum -Interlocking repeated patterns on brass, guitar, keyboards. -Emphasizes the entire band by using the entire band to emphasize the drums -Emphasizing the first beat
What characterizes salsa musically?
An attempt to go back to roots. Polyrhythmic complexity from afro Caribbean music. Complex structure to salsa music that begins with the elaboration of the tumbao coming out of the clave rhythm. Interest to expand on expressive possibilities of brass sections typical big band type of ensemble. The need/interest to incorporate harmonies and textures from jazz as a point of elaboration
the Ramones
An example of the DIY and utter simplicity Bought instruments and records but couldn't play. So, they started by writing their own songs in any way they could Songs -Short (less than 2 minutes) -Basic frenetic rhythmic guitar riff. -Fast tempo -Fast lyrics with recurring hook -No self-indulgent solos -"I Wanna Be Sedated" (1978) -Change in harmony and chords
Pedro Navaja
Arrangement Tumbao basis Increased, layered orchestration: tumbao, piano, brass Rising harmonic movement - tension. Free story telling - no chorus + verse form Montuno: commentary on story Only structured part of the song. Sarcasm on white view of minority life (West Side Story critique) "I like to live in America..." "La vida te da sorpresas..."
Motown as a business
Artist Roster: Every act a hit - attention to all detail Diana Ross and The Supremes Stevie Wonder The Jackson Five (Michael Jackson) Exclusively an African-American enterprise Relied not only on the selling of the music with african american roots but also had the coveted and sought after swing in the rhythm and spice in inflection in vocals without making it race music An attempt to make a mainstream sound of young america Creating a sound to sell it. High-quality music, top musicians, exceptionally produced. "The sound of young America" No R&B evocation, 12-bar patterns rare. No doo-wop or references to Rn'R (Chuck Berry, Little Richard) Very subtle blues/gospel slant on the choruses Nothing so extreme and identifying as gospel or soul music (like Aretha Franklin)
Artist development
Artists as story lines Specific personae Progress/improvement idea There must be consistency in product: Chris Gaines story Market-savvy artists: mass-media, public perception, music/tour production
Reactions against commercialism (rap)
Awareness for decline of urban black communities -Public Enemy, It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back (1988) --One of the many to bring back social awareness --Socio-political analysis: streetwise, authoritative content --"Party For Your Right to Fight" ---Attention back to real problems of urban black communities. ---Criticism of the beastie boys fight for your right to party and commercialization that mtv had launched for hip hop music "Night Of The Living Baseheads" (1988) -Chilling imagery and message - crack cocaine african americans -Awareness of historically accumulating destructive conditions. --Dope jam/define dope now --Survival and coming ahead destruction of the community.
Psycho Killer (1977)
Based on Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho Musical schizophrenia Story of murder Nervous, distressing vocals Shift in languages Pop, catchy instrumental riffs Intellectualized (produced) side of punk Commentary on capitalist culture Corporate mentality as social disease
How is salsa a forum to represent Puerto Rican social reality in the U.S.? Why/how is language important (Spanish)?
Became a cultural stance to represent through the lyrics the actual violence and harsh reality of what it meant to be a minority in the United States. Also the use of language was part of the same effort towards cultural differentiation to depict an actual brought in baggage of culture and history and to see how it was incorporated and how it was fitting or not in US society
Artists of the 1980s
Before: talent qualities important and physique (or not - punk) Producer steps in - a colorful and expansive aural environment. Charisma is a selling point. 1980s: Performers, writers, musicians, models, acting, media-conscious (how to act in interviews) Polymorphous personae and creators
Hitsville, U.S.A
Berry Gordy, Jr. beyond Phil Spector's model Complete control of process. Handpicked house band, writers, arrangers, and artists: The Funk Brothers. (the band that played on every single record) Focused on entire product: presence, performance, on and off-stage code. (how to appear off stage, how to pose and talk to the press) Focus on quality, not quantity Artists can grow as soloists out of their groups Signed a limited amount of artists onto his label Extreme attention to detail
hip hop
Big emphasis on 70s music repository of images within a record
Crossover of 1960s (boogaloo)
Boogaloo: Social negotiation Diverse experimentation - boogaloo just one part. Demise of boogaloo Old generation resistant: Tito Puente Didn't see it as music Gig politics: Boogaloo bands at bay - displacement feeling exacerbated
how/why was the 45 rpm single important to the development of the music industry?
By making the hit single the text of a teenage type of music culture the 45 rpm became the historical document of this narrative
How did hip-hop alter the media-music literacy relationship?
By punching in bits and pieces that were collected from previous recordings and all mixed together in order to make something new. The DJ developed a new instrument, the use of the turntable to develop a different type of language and a different type of literacy orbit or virtuosity that it was used to make music
How does the emergence of motown play with racial tensions transpiring in the music industry?
Capitalizing on the concept of the crossover as the most important act to put in the mainstream of consumption by doing this, by providing a very careful approach towards production by selling really really good music motown becomes the first african american enterprise that completely revamps and shapes the landscape of society and culture as far as music is concerned
Puerto Rico
Commonwealth, in 1954 Uplifting economy Encourages foreign investment: agro-business Peasants dispossessed forced to migrate Pro-migration (1970s - 60% urban population) Lack of self sufficiency in island Migration to New York, 1950s And in the 1970s it was accelerated NY important discourse of identity in PR culture Assimilating to a European legacy of exploitation was not easy Puerto Ricans usually found more common ground with african americans Nyc became an important ground for culture for Puerto Ricans
MTV phenomenon (metal)
Concert Experience: epic productions -Visually mesmerizing, catchy refrain, repeated guitar riff -"Looks That Kill" - Mötley Crüe (Nikki Sixx, 1983) --Has a strophe refrain strophe refrain structure with an underlying repeated guitar riff until the guitar solo comes in --These song writing elements were the main identifiers of the structure that was typical of pop music- doesn't mean metal is pop Pop Turn Around -Competing for Billboard spot -Refrain more melodic - less repetitive, obstinate riffs and harmonies. --Became less aggressive in the refrain and lyrics became more watered down -"Unskinny Bop" - Poison (1990) -Beautiful hair and beautiful melodies -Sexuality drive the industry
Gendered stories
Corporate emergence of women's experiences. -Space for unheard, uncomfortable stories. K. D. lang - gay country singer -Traditional country, honky-tonk music -Trying to market a gay woman in country market -Traditional image: "K.D. lang and The Reclines" --Traditional sound untraditional themes/elements ---Androgynous image, critique of patriarchy Sire Records (1987) -Corporate visibility and momentum -Grammy Award Best Female Country Vocal Performance (1989)
Alternative punk movement -1970s
Corporate flavor of rock - loss of 1960s energy Pretentious rock stars, artificial and consumption-driven products from studios Lost all capacity to reflect the actual social tensions and experiences of people in the public sphere Punk rock: back to basics, 1975-78 Two trends: raw and self-consciously experimental (upper class). Reframe rebellious energy of rock Critique authority/corporate, progressive social values
Generational changes
Counterculture movement -Anti-war, anti-racist economic policy awareness --Very quick to join the black panthers through the movement of the young lords Latin@s against marginality -Surpass West Side Story syndrome --Tended to take a stance against the racial bias --Cesar Chavez - bracero movement | RFK and Latin@ votes --Young Lords --Civil Rights Latin@ pride Counter-narrative to boogaloo -Back to "roots": Afro-Cuban rhythms from the barrio -Independence from U.S. mainstream culture Creative production with local political relevance: FANIA Records -Overlap: boogaloo and next generation -Any type of latin beat, boogaloo influenced, very generic synthetic beats that has nothing to do with the life musically speaking in the Barrio -Recovery of "Roots" --Afro-Cuban poly-rhythmic recovery: clave and tumbao ---Clave was a basis to elaborate a more complex rhythmic texture that became known as tumbao --Jazz band influence: harmonies, expressive possibilities in brass --English, African-American influences?
Posses
Creative energies and turf wars West - East Coast factions in business -Death Row Records - Bad Boy Records -Tupac Shakur vs. Notorious B.I.G. "Rap reflects positive and negative qualities of American culture" (S & W - p. 518) -Creative energy, diversity and technological acumen. -Obsession with guns, violence, material wealth and status symbols.
Re-claim urban space: local identities
Crews and posses: dance, art, music/media, rapping. Expressive culture and cliché in media Beat Street, Breakdance ...
"Nowhere To Stand"- Absolute Torch and Twang 1989 KD Lang
Critique of "family traditions" -"Values" that form character -Child abuse and women's position patriarchy --Bread-winning, moral and ethical rock, protection. Ani DiFranco -Gender normativity: inequality, roles, behavioral codes -Corporately independent - Righteous Babe Records (20 years old) --Declined major labels - retains low-brow, minimalist, homespun aesthetics "Not A Pretty Girl" (Not a Pretty Girl, 1995) -Difference not just a "speech," it is also emotionally loaded -Perceived gender behavior --How a woman is supposed to be saved by knight in shining armor --Self reliance and independence
Cuban Music in the U.S.
Crucial to development of Latin scene Very different music from where the wealthy people would go And very different from the music in Havana Cross-collaboration with American musicians Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong
cultural phenomenon: the Bronx
Destruction of Afro-American social structure: disenfranchisement, neighborhoods, family.
Xavier Cugat: need for visual element
Diluted music "Pretty girl" catches eye "Rumba At The Waldorf" Swing band that is organized around a rumba rhythm One main melody Swing approach of the instruments The only thing that makes it Latin is the rumba rhythm
Madonna's sound
Eclectic collaborations: song-writers, producers, videographers, arrangers, producers. Distinctive studio sound - synth-pop dance music -"Vogue" (1990): photography, choreography, music production Accused of turning back on feminism: "I am in charge, you know." -Connection between public persona and personal conviction of her attitudes --Madonna's "realness" --talks about issues like image, attractiveness, and challenging issues of gender and sexuality
What characterizes funk music? What are its sources?
Emphasis on the rhythmic drive, accented the first beat the one which is different from the others on two and four, the use of interlocking patterns between brass guitars and keyboards emphasis of the bass and the bass drum. Give more energy to Rhythm. Everything begins with James Brown and the use of the repeated vamp to accentuate the rhythm of a specific group in this way the use of the whole instrumentation of the band to buttress the beat to an emphasis of percussion
Cultural Transformation 1970s salsa
FANIA Records - 1970s Salsa Social resonance with barrio life The beginnings of salsa show a very raw language which change to more commercialized Withdraw from boogaloo culture From the portrayal of latin culture as exoticized version for bourgeois culture Willie Colon About "difference" - not interested in fitting in. Spanish language is important.
Motown and Political Activism?
Follows psychedelic trends (business is business) "Reflections" - The Supremes (1967) Psychedelic references - follows counterculture trends African-American Product that defies "black" labeling Alleged connections to activism Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" (1971) First example of a song and an artist being tied to civil rights activism M. L. K.'s "I Have a Dream" speech (1963) Berry Gordy decided to pass into a recording format MLK's I Have a Dream and forfeited all copyright claim to the recording itself Berry Gordy never made attempts to connect to the civil rights movement First african american enterprise to successfully plug into the mainstream by playing with the racial tensions that imbued preferences towards specific music Motown was an african american enterprise that changed the landscape of music culture and the music industry to years to come
Berry Gordy, Jr.
Ford Automobile Plant & $800 loan from family Every song that was produced and recorded in this house was a hit
Phil Spector
Founds Philles Records at 21. Starting out he was not interested in just putting out recording or singles by whomever he could sign he had a specific vision Looks for a specific 'sound' in records. Involved in every aspect of process. Preference for vocal groups (no single artists) Honed business plan: control of all elements Hand-picked artists (singers) Very few productions vs. shoddy producers hoping for a 'hit'. Specific arrangers, songwriters, and his own studio musicians. The "Wrecking Crew" this own band of session musicians for his records Every single is a hit.
Issues of difference in the 1990s
Gender, Sexuality, Race -Question normative ideas, values --White hetero-patriarchy -Traditional family and social values (sex, gender relations) --Questions this as the normative example of society Escapism from corporatization --Paul Simon Graceland, Ry Cooder Buenavista Social Club
Late 1970s to Late 1980s metal/rock
Heavy Metal -Punk to heavier sounds: angst and rebelliousness extended -British origins: psychedelic rock, blues rock (alla Cream) -U.S. corporate machine -> product changes British sound of 1960s ->1970s -Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple -Iron Maiden, Saxon (1980s) American 1980s -Pop influence: Quiet Riot, Mötley Crüe, Def Leppard...Poison, Cinderella, Bon Jovi -Could be distributed to a wider mainstream audience Late 1980s "underground" scene -Thrash metal, death metal, black metal, speed metal -Metallica, Megadeth, Anthrax, Slayer
"My Girl"- the Temptations (1965)
Highly detailed production and arrangement (more complex that the supremes) Bass/guitar hooks give song coherence Not as dense and over populated as phil spector's approach Cumulative layering Voice + drums + background vocals (gospel infused) Brass, strings, & solo as background to the soloist At chorus: brass + strings - solo + background (my girl, MY GIRL) Final upward harmonic change Increased layering - increased intensity Bass- first layer Stab by the trumpet All the weight up until the chorus there was an increased layering Intensifying the mix towards the culmination of the last part of the song Snapping and trumpet to replace the tambourine at the front of the song Added padding under the singer with the brass and strings
"The Fabulous Fifties"
In Cuba Entertainment industry was highly developed U.S. investments in tourism Nixon, Kennedy,(strong advocates for investment for the private sector) Nat "King" Cole, Tony Martin "America's playground" excess and abandon "Rumbera" years - exotic cinema Music industry: night clubs No opportunities for lower population Music as one of few possibilities for work Exposure to American markets through american artists
Civil Rights Movement (latin)
Intercultural solidarity First P.R. generation coming of age Consolidation of local identity Assertion of local position in mainland Dissonance with identity markers in island Experimentation Mongo Santamaría - "Watermelon Man" (early 1960s) Importance of English lyrics: reach audience, integration African-American influence: 12-bar pattern, blues improvisation (trumpet)
What historical dystopia characterizes West Coast hip-hop of the 1990s (and may be American hip-hop in general)?
It reflects that accumulating historical effects of inequity. Characterize a racialized system of social economic and political oppression and also characterized the lived experience of coping with the life of horrifying meaninglessness and hopelessness in urban black community
How/ why was music production central to the emergence of motown?
It was a carefully studio based product that was made to be sold, about finding good catchy song writing with great arrangers and great musicians to accompany Taught musicians and singers to perform this music Carefully picked roster to produce hits on every single act
What gives rise to groups like Public Enemy and their music?
It was mainly an interest to redirect once again hip-hop to is socially focused agenda in covering and voicing out the actual effects of dystopia in African American communities
rock n' roll- early days (1950s)
Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller Writers and producers Wrote hound dog and charlie brown Elvis, The Coasters Crossover approach Crossover hits: synthesis of elements. The Coasters - "Charlie Brown" (1958) Country, R&B elements (rhythm, 12-bar blues). Pop elements: AABA form, 'humorous' saxophone melody. Songs as "playlets" of 1950s teenager life (narrative) (e.g., the class clown) Lyrics are "trained" to tell the story of charlie brown
Philles records <-> Phil's records
Label has a characteristic sound Dense yet clear: "wall of sound" Different instruments but all of them are doubled. Doubled the guitar, the bass, etc. Use of strings. Lots of reverb in voice with controlled mix balance Vocals always at the front of the mix Uses the vocal groups to create contrast with open vowels to enhance the sonority in the song The Ronettes - "Be My Baby" (1963)
reactions to corporatization, 1970s
Loss of critical and individualistic stance in music Production - commodity oriented (Motown) Superficiality and decadence (corporate rock, disco) Reframe anti-corporate values Punk rock (rebellious social critique)
Marketing/sales interests
Mainstreaming - Def Jam Records (Columbia) -Run DMC, "Walk This Way" (1986) --Collaboration with Aerosmith -The Beastie Boys, "Licensed to Ill" (1986) --"Although they received a great deal of criticism for ripping off black style, it is perhaps more accurate to suggest that their recordings represent a fusion of the youth-oriented rebelliousness of hard-core punk ... with the sensibilities and techniques of hip-hop." (S & W - p. 509) --Sensibility = sensing = feeling
George Clinton (Dr. Funkenstein)
Mixture of elements -The Stooges -Psychedelic rock -Jazz arrangements Groove to recapture the human spirit -Through the movement of the body -"Free Your Mind And Your Ass Will Follow" -Cro-Nasal Sapiens (no groove) vs. Thumpasorus People --Sir Nose D'VoidOf Funk vs. Star Child P-Funk - "Give Up The Funk" -Syncopated bass, interlocking patterns, long brass/keys arrangements Critique towards corporate listening in the music industry
Thrash/speed metal
Metal -> "Hard Rock" -Record sales decline -Marketing of nostalgia 2000 ff. --"The Grand Slam Glam Jam" Tour --Warrant, Poison, Great White, Quiet Riot, Vince Neil... Metallica reinfuses metal -New sound --Guitar and vocal textures (socially-conscious lyrics) --Thrash and speed metal scenes develop.
Hints of the end
Metal community vs. underground Appetite for Destruction (1987) -Shocks pop platform -Re-infuses industry's business model -Broke every single barrier Metallica, Master of Puppets (1986) -New dynamic and thick arrangements -Harrowing lyrics (no escapism): oppression by powers that be. --"Master of Puppets," "Disposable Heroes" reality of power --A, B + verse | A, B + verse | interlude | C | solo | A, B + verse | --Combines british heavy metal with punk --Faster and more aggressive
Cuban Music
Migration to the U.S. - New York "Latin craze" 1930s-50s- 50s was when it was consumed the most Rumba, son, mambo Afro Caribbean rhythms Latin tinge, syncopation and highly rhythmic activity Cuba has strong ties with the U.S. Politically, economically, culturally Prominent music AND entertainment industry
Experimentations in 1960s (boogaloo)
Music socially constructed Negotiated social tensions Musical heritage 1960s Era of experimentation for Latin culture Boogaloo sets stage for Latin(o) representation. Trademarks of boogaloo: Latin rhythms (watered down), African American sounds (soul, doo-wop, 12-bar pattern) English language
Boogaloo
Musical making during Latin big-band era (dance hall era) Two musical languages: parents and street peers Plena, son, son conjunto: pervading (the neighborhood) barrio Younger generation Puerto Ricans started to get in touch with R&B, jazz, blues, doo-wop and early rock and roll culture Dissonance with Jíbaro (someone from countryside) image Between new cultural reality and and the idea of roots For the young people there was nothing about their experience of new york or of political and cultural reality that matched this idea of roots Shared social space: new music Nuyorican and African American Need to appeal to African American audience Experiments by Puerto Rican bands Mixing elements from african american music, R&B, soul, blues, jazz with aspects from latin traditions Montuno Piano vamp (repeated riff): from Cuban son Intense clapping Doo-wop influence English lyrics to bridge markets New hybrid sound emerges called boogaloo
Salsa-1970s
New sound: Afro-Cuban rhythms: clave = tumbao Jazz band: brass sections, richer harmonic movement Boogaloo: montuno - piano and vocal parts Improvised commentary - call and response Music depicts real urban life "Macho" toughness as survival (failed) mechanism. Different reality from night club life
Making of Nuyoricaness
New york Puerto Ricans Relocalization of music With the migration of sounds from Cuba into the U.S. The way in which Puerto Rican musicians took these and negotiated them with other sound influences that were important to them East Harlem Barrio Island culture in NY Barrio life: Latin, African-American elements Afro caribbean music was highly syncopated, sometimes have 3 different rhythmic patterns happening at the same time Dancing to it has a highly coordinated approach Need for a down beat Articulation of identity Discrimination, economic inequity, crime Negotiation of social tensions Need to fit in
Salsa as Social Representation
Of cultural difference among latin american youth Hector Lavoe and Willie Colon - "Calle Luna, Calle Sol" Chorus: Mete la mano en el bolsillo Put you hand in your pocket, saca y abre tu cuchillo y ten cuida'o. take out your knife and watch out. Pónganme oido, en este barrio Pay attention, many tough guys a muchos guapos lo' han mata'o. have been killed in this hood.Calle Luna, Calle Sol. Street of the night, street of the sun. Verse: Oiga señor si usted quiere su vida Listen, sir, if you value your lifeevitar es mejor o la tienes perdida. It is better to avoid, otherwise you're lost.Mire señora agarre bien su cartera, Listen, lady, hold tight to you purse, no conoce este barrio, aquí asaltan a anybody can be robed in this hood. cualquiera.En los barrios de guapos no se vive tranquilo, In the hood of tough guys you can't be peaceful,mide bien tus palabras o no vales ni un kilo. Watch your words, or you're not worth a dime. Integrated and highly rhythmic more complex type of rhythmic drive Harsh reality that is in new york
Madonna
Over 50 million records Paved way for Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Lady Gaga, Miley Cyrus ... Bipolar Reactions: media, critics, society "I keep trying to like her, but she keeps pissing me off!" - Merrill Markoe Hate-me-but-don't-ignore-me career strategy Cultural reactionary: feminist or anti-feminism? "Like A Virgin" - MTV Awards 1984
What characterizes punk rock music?
Over all simplicity either by using simple pop structures example of Talking Heads or otherwise short songs a basic guitar riff repetitive and solos fast tempos is where examples of elements that Define the making of punk music during the 1970s
What part of a producer's work was key to the production of hits? How do Phil Spector and Quincy Jones illustrate that?
Phil Spector and Quincy Jones had a common set style for their music. Arrangement the main activity that was a showmanship of a producers creative input. Phil Spector and Quincy Jones have very creative though different approaches to this process
Motown sound elements
Pop structures Gospel-like background vocals (though no soul or gospel feel) Origin from gospel Instrumental layering - sophisticated use of horns and strings Treble mix - boost high range frequencies - distinctive for in AM radio Puts the singer at the center of the mix Utilizing a medium that people used (tiny speaker in radios) The supremes "where did our love go" The repetition of the same melody with different lyrics New layer appearing with each repetition Not thick and has high frequencies
the motown sound
Pop-structured, pop-flavored music - depending on trends "Do You Love Me" - The Contours (1962) In tune with twist, rock n' roll market Instruments doubled, heavy reverb (echo) Vocal harmonies, vocal solo is centerpiece (r&b influence) No 12 bar structure, but no clean croonish sound Hard pop-dance tune. This song shows how this type of approach was a way of getting music by a certain musician to be plugged into the trends on the market at that point
What interests and concerns are reflected by the corporate promotion of groups like Run DMC and The Beastie Boys?
Primarily is an interest to mainstream and market widely, hip hop and make it more palatable to a mainstream white audience. in terms of concerns is a concern for the rather socially-conscious pinch of rap and hip hop in this decade and an interest therefore to make it a little bit more washed down if you wish
Alternative movements
Progressive country, salsa, punk (new rock sounds) Don't fit squarely in industry's frame NOT Top 40, album-oriented music, Nashville sound, Motown Alternative: response to conservatism in American life Political and cultural Social values, consumerism, complacency and conformity. Urban follow up - points to generational social dissatisfaction. Young professional, artists and intellectuals, college students, working class
Nuyorican vs. Puerto Rican?
Puerto Rican representation in U.S. social landscape Resonance with life in island? Immigrant experience of urban American marginality. Ruben Blades - "Pedro Navaja" Irony and sarcasm about minority life in U.S. Pan-Latin identity and salsa - U.S. and abroad
the single and songwriting
R&B and Country: singer/songwriter artist (wrote their own songs) Elvis Presley and the 'artist persona' Songs written for him. Good musicians make songs sound good. Had his own hand picked musicians for his songs Singer / band / songwriter: dismembered process in the 60s The "Hit" becomes the 'text' of rock n' roll. 45 r.p.m. becomes its historical document
Quincy Jones and Pop music
Record executive at Mercury Records (1961) Lousy demos plentiful - good songs one-in-a-hundred. Leslie Gore - "It's My Party" (1963) Refrain - verse form Catchy, easy lyrics - teen-girl meltdown Refrain: creative texture and color Harmonic buildup: "...Cry if I want to" voice at front of mix with subtle reverb Sparse bass, soft guitar, triangle, trumpet short entry, clapping, subtle chorus, drums "You would cry too..." - chorus and clapping drop out: piano, bass, guitar, drums, triangle, voice Trumpets finish and round up the section (sonic closure). VARIETY, BALANCE AND CLARITY
Commercializing rap
Rap ballads (L.L. Cool J), humorous party songs, music for white teenage audiences. MC Hammer Vanilla Ice Establishing corporate structure (1988) -MTV's rap show Yo! MTV Raps -The Source magazine
Prince
Recording, Film and MTV: making of stardom -Madonna, Desperately Seeking Susan, Dick Tracy, A League of Their Own -Prince: Purple Rain, Batman Freedom of language, physical behavior: PMRC (Parents Music Resource Center) -'American values' censorship Composer, producer, arranger, performer, studio engineer -Motown, rock, funk/soul, synth-dance music -Batdance (1989) - musical eclecticism Over 80 million albums -Hyper-worker: one record per year Dirty Mind (1980) - breakthrough album -Synth-pop, soul, polished rock guitar playing Warner Brothers battle over master recordings and name (1990s) -Batch of unreleased recordings after death
Boogaloo Craze
Richie Ray (1960s) Piano as part of texture (boogaloo trademark) Joe Cuba "Bang Bang" (1966) Sets momentum for boogaloo craze Repeated piano part Words "bang bang" Simplified version of what was considered to be Latin music Pete Rodriguez Quick demo for radio (1966) "I Like It Like That" Most successful tune during boogaloo years Repeated piano part, intense clapping, repeated lyrics
Sly Stone- Sly & The Family Stone
San francisco Bridge between psychedelic rock and soul "Dance To The Music" -Repeated groove -Whole band a rhythm section -Brass accentuate the rhythmic beat -Harmony stays the same Liberate the body
Talking heads
Self-consciously experimental Educated, anti normative crowd: intellectuals, college students, middle class Minimalism as influence despite being better produced Simple songs with pop, easy hooks. David Byrne: criticized for his rehearsed "nerdy" awkwardness
Artist development: marketing of tension
Self-remaking and challenging of boundaries Body as ambiguous site of selfhood Projection of social issues: race, gender, sexuality Prince -Sexual exuberance, ambiguity (aggressive virility or delicate demeanor?) Madonna: sex/gender taboos, religious dogma, objectified femininity
Excess
Sex, drugs, and rock -> Image, Music, and Fast Life Image and Music: Theatrical performance Hair types and make-up Stage visuals The "Marshall Wall"- wall of speakers Clothing / accessories Instruments Nitro - "Freight Train" All-theatrical image: hair, stage, guitar...solos.
Producers and songwriters
Solidified itself as a songwriting model like tin pan alley was All about finding the best Brill Building - NYC Write for all big acts - standardizes what the public hears. Reproduction of Tin-Pan Alley model Standardizing production of a final product. No scattered business model like Tin-Pan Alley (vaudeville, sheet music, radio...) Now record producers centralize what the public hears (and how).
DJ as music creative force
Spinning and mixing: mixing break sections of songs (sound collage) Punch-in: listening, scratching, media virtuosity -The ability to find a moment in the song right away putting the needle in the right spot
1980s-super star decade
Star-making and media - 1910s - 1980s 1950s - television, radio, film, print media Sets standard 1980s - "Mega Star" - crafted publicity campaigns Highly produced music - highly skilled musicianship - Expensive studio projects. Fanhood: private-public life possibility
Punk culture
Style, fashions, attitude Anti-middle-class and consumerism No sex, no drugs, not consuming. "Straight Edge", skinhead, working class pride Skinhead movement that was very different in its values and nothing to do with later connotations that the term took from more cultural supremacist attitudes Chaos to culture Attitude of rebellion against normative imposition of what was considered to be preppy middle class ideal that one should aspire to "I don't give a f@#*" attitude "I don't like sex and drugs, water bugs, games and fun, politics, Jesus freaks...summer and spring. All I care about is me." (The Ramones)
Making hits
Talent and design Visionary ears: Good songs, good musicians, good mixes and... arrangement, arrangement, arrangement. Quincy Jones Big band jazz leader 1950s Experience arranging for bands and orchestras: brass, woodwinds, strings. Careful attention to combinations, variety, and simplicity. Hooks: creative instrumental mixes, diverse and colorful, not dense, never boring.
Which cultural streams shaped the emergence of boogaloo?
The African American music stream and the Latin American music stream.
What is the main creative force behind hip-hop?
The DJ
What social, economic, political cultural factors shaped puerto rican culture in the 1960s?
The massive migration of individuals from Puerto Rico due to the American Agro Business taking over the islands land. The need to fit in culturally in NYC, blending and connecting with African American music and also Cuban sound circulating at that time. The need to produce a music easy music that could be sellable to white audiences craving for a latin "flair"
How is Metallica's Master of Puppets relevant to the development of heavy metal music?
This was a music that brought attention to themes about oppression through harrowing lyrics it also created complex song structures using dynamic and very thick guitar arrangements on which took metal away from the pop MTV platform
What is boogaloo? What characterizes it musically?
Three main elements: the use of english lyrics, the intense clapping influenced from doo wop, the influence of Latin American rhythms first by watering down and emphasizing the down beat on otherwise simple percussion arrangements and the use of montuno piano vamp repeated over and over again
What sound elements characterize motown? What makes it a music intended for radio?
Type of recorded product that was focused on the treble high range frequency in the studio mix, it was ideal for the type of tiny speaker that came with transistor radios, the examples show the layering of the mix is meant to sustain that treble focus as part of the recording process
producers and the recording business
Unifying creative force Duties: booking manager, contractor of musicians and writers, engineer assistant. Looks at sound as a finished product. And an album as a sole and complete entity All about finding great songs and talented musicians. Songwriter/arranger/producer Powerful combination Synthesis: styles, forms, instrumentations, effects. Single artistic vision. (what we hear in a completed album)
How does the body relate to the polymorphous profile of 1980s artists, and what social tensions does this relationship create?
artists we're in the business of creating images that were in constant remake and therefore the body was the very object through which they were we making themselves as part of doing that challenging different borders. in terms of racial borders gender and sexuality lines of permissiveness were also in constant flux and is the reason why there were social tensions in relation to what the public eye considered to be socially liberating and gender crossing boundaries in the deployment of an artist image the body was at the center of that social tension
How and why is punk rock a form of social critique in the 1970s?
first a reaction against corporate Rock which was perceived to have lost its energy from the 1960s more broadly it was a reaction against the American way of life has a way of conservatism and an outcome of capitalist corporate division
What are the trends in 1970s punk music and what makes them politically similar?
one was mostly raw from the working class and other one was more polished or produced coming from middle-class musicians both feature critique of corporate capitalism that disengaged The aspects of human growth and Improvement as something that also characterized progress in Democratic Society
What's the place for experiencing music in the 1980s and how does the music reflect that?
primarily the dance club in the music was featuring a specific type of sound specifically made for dancing overall the use of a synthesizer or synthesized sounds with an ongoing drum machine always created the synth pop dance feel that people could dance to
What led to the split of the metal community in the 1980s?
the pop-fication of the music
What characterized the "pop-fication" of metal music in the 1980s? How was this related to MTV?
theatrical aspect to Glam everything has to do with this theatrical appearance in addition to the music that was not only directed towards themes in terms of their sexuality Gender Roles and what not but also in terms of the music becoming riffy, repetitive and a little bit catchy on the hooks mostly towards a mainstream platform for listeners
What differentiates artists in the 1980s from previous decades?
they became very savvy in creating highly produced music with very skilled musicianship, complex live and video choreographies because they were highly polished performers and also became very skilled in manipulating media for the promotion in for the creating a specific story to connect with the public eye
How did the emergence of the producer as a creative force shape the recording (and music) industry?
they were the unifying creative force Duties: booking manager, contractor of musicians and writers, engineer assistant. Looks at sound as a finished product. And an album as a sole and complete entity All about finding great songs and talented musicians. Consolidating every single aspect of the creative process on one person the vision of producers ultimately shaped the product that listeners going to hear
What rhythmic element did Puerto Rican musicians brought and expanded from boogaloo to salsa?
this was the montuno section, simply a repeated piano vamp, in salsa music the vamp is still there however there is more elaboration in the lyrics as the chorus and the singer pretty much coming at each other in a call and response fashion to elaborate through improvisation by the solo singer.
