history of rock test 3 with adam knight

Robert Moog -Moog

- 1964 (first commercial synthesizer) -much smaller and could be controlled by a keyboard

RCA Electronic Music Synthesizer

-1955 -a huge, cumbersome machine, and time-consuming to program

Instrumentation:

-Is that of typical soul bands -also the most common instrumentation in small group jazz.

The Perfection of Rock Rhythm:

-One of the Rolling Stones' most significant achievements was the perfection of rock rhythm -The breakthrough came in the late '60s, in songs like "Jumping Jack Flash" and "Honky Tonk Women". -It involved 2 interrelated developments: 1. Increased emphasis on the rock rhythmic layer 2. The virtual elimination of steady beat keeping. "Jumping Jack Flash" -the Rolling Stones (1968) -Emphasis on rock rhythm and the backbeat; de-emphasis steady beat keeping -Rich rhythmic texture, with effective balance between regular rhythms and rhythms that conflict with the beat (syncopation)

synthesizers

The first appeared in the fifties.

Hilly Kristal

owner of CBGB

"(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction"

- The Rolling Stones (1965) -their first U.K. hit in 1963; reached the top of the American charts in 1965. Every aspect of the song embodied the rebellious image the band wanted to project. -Low register riff w/ strong, syncopated accents -Riff acts as the introduction and the refrain -The verse starts w/ the title lyrics -usually found in the chorus, but then builds to a chorus exclaiming the same phrase -"Four on the floor" beat w/ snare & kick -Rock beat & syncopation "I Can't Get No Satisfaction" -The Rolling Stones -live 1966: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HoxRFOr_sQ0

Sly and the Family Stone:

-A fun, loose band w/ an exuberant new sound. -The brainchild of Sly Stone (born Sylvester Stewart, 1944) -a disc jockey turned producer and bandleader. -More than any other band of the era, Sly and the Family Stone preached integration. -They had a series of hits spanning a five-year period (1968-1972) -The music of James Brown is the direct antecedent of this song and this style: -A groove built up from multiple layers of riffs, played by rhythm and horns -Little or no harmonic movement (static harmony) -The vocal parts are intermittent, w/ long pauses between phrases. However, Sly and the Family Stone create a sound that is much denser and more active than that of James Brown. Musical qualities... -The main rhythms are based now on 16th notes. -More active texture -A spontaneous aspect to the sound, as if it grows out of a jam over the basic groove. -Music has a distinct looseness - looseness that implores listeners to "dance to the music" -Dance aspect -music can hypnotize us w/ its contagious rhythm -Often contains a strong political and social message; music is the buffer between the band and society, a restraint against violent activism. Powerful lyrics over a powerful beat become a trend, eventually leading us to rap/hip-hop; also seen in reggae, seventies funk, calypso... Sly and the Family Stone became popular after the assassination of MLK (1968) and after the backlash from the civil rights movement had built up steam. The music provided one way to escape the pain of prejudice. Drugs were another; Sly Stone used them in excess and torpedoed his career in the process.

Power Trios:

-Bare bones bands; just guitar, bass, and drums; set up to showcase the skills of their exceptionally able guitarists; guitarist now have the role of rhythm and lead guitarist. Rock as a soloist's music

Rock as Art:

-By 1970, art rock and numerous other art-oriented styles were part of a new sound world, all of which contributed to a new understanding of art in music, and in culture. -Definition of art: A product of a skilled and creative activity whose main purpose is to stimulate the mind, touch the heart, and delight the senses.

"Voodoo Child" (Slight Return) -The Jimi Hendrix Experience (1968)

-Dazzling new guitar sounds -Unprecedented virtuosity -Strong blues connection/dramatic transformation: in form, heterophony, and expressive vocabulary -Open texture of Power Trio lineup

Funk and Fun:

-Fun aspect in popular music from the beginning; minstrel shows, Ragtime, animal dances, the humor of hokum, Beatles... However, much of the black music of the 60s seemed restrained by comparison: Motown acts, Girl groups...

"Piece of My Heart"

-Janis Joplin (1968) -recorded w/ Big Brother and the Holding Company; the only song of hers to reach the singles charts during her lifetime; topped the charts for 8 weeks in 1968. -Blues-influenced rock band w/ psychedelic overtones -Passionate singing; unique voice; many shifts of mood; using an array of vocal devices.

Mainstream Rock in the Seventies:

1958 -the Record Industry Association of America (RIAA), the trade organization for the recording industry, trademarked "gold record", and quantified what it represented: sales of 500,000 singles or albums. • First gold record (single) -Perry Como, for "Catch a Falling Star" • First gold record (album) -film version of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma!

Deep Purple:

Also went through several incarnations before finding their groove and line up -The lineup during their most successful period (1970-73): Ian Gillan -vocalist, Ritchie Blackmore -guitar, John Lord -keyboardist, Roger Glover -bass, and Ian Paice -drummer. -The inclusion of a keyboard in a metal group was unusual; Ian Lord was an important creative voice w/in the group; he brought a lot of the classical influence. -Their music combined the classical and blue influences -Deep Purple is in the Guinness Book of World Records for being the loudest rock band.

New Wave:

Aside from punk, other bands, most notably the Talking Heads and Devo (U.S.) and Elvis Costello and the Attractions and the Clash (England) found a similar audience. -Both bands and audiences assumed an anti-mainstream position: w/ few exceptions, their music, whatever form it took was a reaction (rage, weirdness, cleverness, humor...) against prevailing tastes. -Musical similarities to punk -direct rhythms, and R.S. + vox + occasional keyboard/synth (instrumentation) -Differences from punk -the aim of the music; punk aims for the gut; new wave aims for the brain. -Bands like the Talking Heads or Elvis Costello demand attention to the words and the musical setting puts the lyrics in the forefront; the primary role of the music was to enhance the words.

New Wave Humor:

B-52's (Athens, Ga) brought the kitsch to rock Devo

death of psychedelic rock

Both the psychedelic scene and psychedelic rock lost their potency around 1970. The absence of a distinct musical identity made it difficult to sustain acid rock as a vital rock substyle. It neither evolved nor achieved a more-or-less permanent stasis and remains much a period piece, a sound of a particular time and place.

"Highway Star" -

Deep Purple (1972); one of the chord progressions in the "Highway Star" solo is a Bach progression. In "Highway Star," blues-based and Baroque-inspired musical ideas coexist happily; classical (baroque...) music is seldom as syncopated as rock music but the excitement comes primarily from the speed.

Radio's role:

In the early years of rock, radio had been an important part of the music's "outsider" image (DJ's like Alan Freed in the 50s, "underground" FM stations of the 60s)

The Sex Pistols:

Johnny Rotten (John Lyndon), guitarist Steve Jones, bassists Glen Matlock and Sid Vicious (John Ritchie 1957-79), and drummer Paul Cook Malcom McLaren (entrepreneur/radical...) found the Sex Pistols in his shop (SEX). After meeting the Steve Jones and Paul Cook (who were putting a band together), McLaren found them a rehearsal space, took over their management, and recruited a lead singer for them -John Lyndon, who became Johnny Rotten (allegedly because of his less than meticulous personal hygiene), had been hanging around the boutique too. McLaren had gotten to know him and felt he had the capacity for outrage that he wanted. McLaren created a monster. -None of the four had much musical skill at the time they formed the band. -Johnny Rotten stole the group's first sound system -McLaren booked them into small clubs, where they acquired more of a reputation for outrageous conduct than for musicianship -Word spread about the band through word of mouth, newspaper reviews, and subculture fanzines. (Punk, a fanzine started by 2 high school friends from suburban Connecticut, gave the new movement its name.) -The Sex Pistols found their musical direction after hearing the Ramones and learning the basics of their instruments. -*What they had from the beginning was the ability to shock, provoke, confront, and incite a riot. -With the musical energy of the Ramones, they were ready to overthrow the ruling class ("Anarchy in the U.K.", "God Save the Queen"). -Johnny Rotten opens "Anarchy for the U.K. w/ "I am an Anti-Christ, I am an Anarchist" and ends with drawn out "Destroy". -McLaren hated the liberal attitude of the 60s -he wanted to take aim at the ruling class and the "peace and love" generation. In his mind, punk was nihilistic; "no future" was the motto. Nihilism: total rejection of established laws and institutions; anarchy, terrorism, or other revolutionary activity; total and absolute destructiveness, esp. toward the world at large and including oneself.

The Liberation of Rock and Roll:

Other creative rock bands in the late 1960s/early 1970s -By the early '70s, the rock revolution was over; it took rock musicians about 15 years to really get it - that is, to completely assimilate the numerous musical influences and transform them into the now-dominant style and to become comfortable w/ the conventions of this new style. The Who and Led Zeppelin illustrate ways in which musicians could play with rock rhythm when they reached a comfort zone with its essential elements.

The Who:

Pete Townsend -guitar, Roger Daltrey -vox, John Entwhistle -bass (1944-2002), and Keith Moon -drums (1947-1978). -Townsend, Entwhistle, and Daltrey had been in a band called the High Numbers; in 1964 The Who came together w/ Keith Moon joined.

Noteworthy progressive rock groups of the early 70s:

• Emerson, Lake, and Palmer • Jethro Tull • King Crimson • Yes

Signature musical conventions of the Heavy Metal style:

• Extreme distortion • Blues/minor pentatonic and minor scales/modes (Aeolian, Phrygian) • Often unharmonized power chords • Extended, flamboyant solos • Very loud volume • Screamed-out, often incomprehensible lyrics • Pounding rhythms, often at a fast speed (tempo

Rock as Serious (humor and writing and musicianship): Frank Zappa:

(1940-1993) -Rock's great iconoclast and fiercest social critic; an equal opportunity satirist who took potshots at almost everyone in and out of rock, including himself; one of rock's most imaginative musicians -One of rock's cleverest and most knowledgeable minds and one of its greatest innovators -Influences by French/American avant-garde composer Edgard Varese; in addition to many other classical, blues, jazz, rock... musicians -Jarring musical contrasts were one of his innovations -Very sophisticated compositions; progressive; they demand great technical proficiency and stylistic flexibility. -First album, Freak Out -immediately established him as a unique voice; Third album, We're Only in It for the Money (1967) -best represents his early work • Electronic noises • Conventional instruments or no instruments at all • Extended instrumental sections -Zappa's lyrics can be devastating as well as devastatingly funny; ("Who needs the Peace Corps"...) -Zappa's strategy: musical and verbal collage with jarring verbal and musical juxtapositions; abrupt shifts between segments; self-deflating lyrics -Zappa's music demands a commitment from the listeners. Zappa went on to influence musicians like John Zorn and the band Phish

David Bowie / Ziggy Stardust :

(David Jones, 1947) -began his career in the 60s as a British folksinger. -Influenced by Iggy Pop, Marc Bolen, and the Velvet Underground -He began to reinvent his public persona -In 1972 he announced that he was gay -Later that year he put together an album and stage show, The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars; it featured Bowie, complete w/ orange hair, makeup, and futuristic costumes, as Ziggy, a rock star trying to save the world but doomed to fail.-Ziggy was Bowie's first and most outrageous persona. For the rest of his career he has continually reinvented himself in a variety of guises ("plastic soul" man, techno-pop avant-gardist) Ziggy Stardust- the first of several incarnations, Bowie stripped identity down to the most basic question of all: gender. Was Ziggy male of female, or somewhere in between? -Bowie was the rock-era counterpart to castrati, singers who were castrated as boys to keep their voices from changing; they sang male roles in female vocal range -17th and early 18th cent. Opera -Bowie creates a persona that demands attention but is shrouded in mystery. -He raises role-playing from simple novelty to art. "Ziggy Stardust": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8sdsW93ThQ Bowie was also one of the most influential musicians of the decade. The "lean, clean" sound of "Hang on to Yourself" was a model for punk and new wave musicians.

The Kinks:

- Ray and Dave Davies (brothers) formed the band in 1963 -Ray (b. 1944)-lead vocalist and main songwriter, Dave (b. 1947) -lead guitarist, Pete Quaife -bassist, Mick Avory (b. 1944) -drummer -Had two big hits early on -"You Really Got Me" and "All Day and All Night" -They laid down the formula borrowed from the blues that would become a hallmark of hard rock styles. -Their careers kind of fizzled out after their first few hits, though the Davies bros. have maintained the Kinks in some form since 1963.

Mini-moog

-1970 -portable w/ preset sounds -Rock musicians quickly embraced the mini-moog, gaining a much-expanded palette of sounds.

The Essence of Rock:

-Assimilating Deep Blues (lyrics, attitude, soloing, riffs, etc...) -Deep blues influence and evolution beyond blues style -The Maturation of Rock Rhythm • Largely a process of liberation • Increased syncopation and other rhythmic interplay • Focus not only on timekeeping

Larry Graham: (b. 1946)

-Bass player for Sly and the Family Stone and the leader of Graham Central Station. -Graham created new sounds from the bass by slapping strings with the side of his thumb or popping the string by pulling it away from the fretboard and suddenly releasing it. -Popping, slapping, and similar techniques made the bass sound even more percussive -Others followed him -most notably Bootsy Collins, a bassist for James Brown, then George Clinton's Parliament and Funkadelic; -This "percussionization" of the bass was part of a general trend toward more percussive sounds in the late 60s and early 70's. There were also the choked guitar sound (Hendrix, Shaft, wha-wha...) and new keyboard instruments like the clavinet heard on many Stevie Wonder recordings.

The Clash: (Evolution of punk)

-Came together in 1976 -Many of their early songs are loud, fast, and crude. -The group quickly evolved into a much more skilled and versatile band. -By 1979, the year they released London Calling, the highpoint of their recording career, the Clash were at home in a variety of styles. "Death or Glory" -the Clash (1979); comments on a central issue for the group: whether money will motivate a group to sell out; the music is good, high-energy, pure punk. -Lyric w/ brutal images -Rock song conventions and features: verse/chorus form and melodic hooks... -Strong contrasts from section to section: musing introduction, straight-ahead vox, active interlude http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwzMuuGOsVI -Each track on London Calling has a distinct character and musical setting (swing-evoking "Jimmy Jazz", reggae-inspired "Revolution Rock"...), however, throughout the album the Clash infuse their music w/ the power and passion of punk. -The lyrics matter and the music backs up the lyrics. -Later called "The Only Band That Matters" by their fans because of their unwillingness to compromise.

Dominant Trends in the music:

-Consolidation, expansion, and diversification through recombination; what worked commercially was of importance now; and the popular acts locked on to this.

"Strange Brew"

-Cream (1967) -shows the psychedelic side of their musical personality; an example of their studio style; what is the "strange brew"? Notice the huge blues influence. -Deep blues influence is most evident in solos, form, and texture -Bruce's syncopated bass lines w/ a freer rhythm -Guitar overdubbing in the studio -Power trio instrumentation augmented w/ a second, active guitar line

Steely Dan: A Studio Band

-For the first 3 years Steely Dan was a working band that toured regularly; after 1974 Steely Dan became a studio band, in order to better realize Donald Fagen and Walter Becker's distinctive musical vision. -On recordings, they began using the absolute best L.A. studio musicians, most of whom had extensive jazz experience (Jeff "Skunk" Baxter, Denny Dias, Larry Carlton...) -Their style is hard to categorize since each song is different from the next.

Jimi Hendrix: James Marshall Hendrix (1942-70).

-Grew up in Seattle, Washington -Was very familiar w/ the blues and jazz due to his father's record collection -Went into the army but got discharged due to a back injury he got from a parachute jump. -Worked in the backup bands for artists like B.B. King, Little Richard, the Isley Bros, etc... -1966 -Hendrix formed his own band -Jimmy James and the Flames; they were heard in NYC by ex-Animals' bassist turned talent scout Chas Chandler who encouraged Hendrix to come to England -In England, Chandler introduced Hendrix to Noel Redding and Mitch Mitchell who began jamming w/ Hendrix; they began performing on the London club scene as "The Jimmy Hendrix Experience" -Their first hit "Hey Joe", released in the fall of '66 made him a star overnight -Early 1967 they released their first album, "Are You Experienced?" -1967 -Monterey Pop Festival; (set his guitar on fire w/ lighter fluid - a sacrifice); his first big U.S. performance was an amazingly huge success and helped him gain U.S. popularity as the word spread about his performance. -1968- Hendrix released another monumental recording -"Electric Ladyland". -One of the most flamboyant performers of '60s rock; he developed unconventional ways of playing the guitar (between legs, behind neck...);on stage his guitar was an erotic as well as a musical one; No rock musician before him had so graphically connected the guitar with male sexual potency. -Hendrix set the standard for solo improvisation in rock -deep blues influence, funk influence, dazzling array of new sounds (effects) -(wah-wah, delay, distortion, roto-vibe, whammy, feedback), stage/performance antics -His brilliant improvisations are the expressive focus of the performance; in a Hendrix solo, how the note each note sounded became just as important as its pitch and rhythmic placement. -His solos helped redefine the possibilities of improvisation w/in popular music. By 1967, Jimmy Hendrix was the foremost rock guitarist on the scene. And would go on to be one of the most influential rock guitarists of all time.

Role of Horns:

-Horns played mainly a backup role from the R&B of the 40s to the Soul of the 60s w/ the exception of the sax solo. In Jazz the horns were the main melody instruments; rhythm instruments primarily filled a supporting role.

"Tiny Dancer" -Elton John (1971)

-Illustrates the comprehensive expansion of rock style in the seventies; most evident in length, form, and resources. -Skillfully paced growth in momentum over the full statement of the song and effective addition of instruments -The supplementary instruments and voices (strings, choir, steel guitar...) give shape to the expanded form of the song; here the expansion is artfully managed.

Elvis Costello:

-In the U.K. the most distinctive voice of the new wave belonged to Elvis Costello (born Declan McManus, 1954). -Costello began w/ the great singer-songwriter's storytelling gift and a fertile musical imagination. -Punk and Reggae gave his music an edge -My Aim Is True -first album (after the success of this album he recruited the Attractions) -The Attractions would be his collaborators for the better part of a decade; they helped him realize songs that grew out of what Costello acknowledged were big motivator: revenge and guilt. -The anger in his songs was delivered in a more subtle way than in the Sex Pistols music "Radio, Radio" -Elvis Costello and the Attractions (1977) -single release, on second album -1979 -The setting is a complex realization of the basic punk/pop sound. -His band plays the equivalent of an orchestra (very textured) -Frightening lyrics that describe mind control through the media -Complex form -Punk-inspired rhythms and textures, w/ considerable variation from section to section http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qNU9qQGJ34k Both Costello and the Attractions and the Talking Heads explored dark and difficult themes (a demented killer, oppressive control through the media); words were in the forefront; backed up by creative musical settings that helped evoke the lyrics. Like punk, new wave often projected rage and frustration, but it did so w/ more finesse.

San Francisco and the Diversity of Rock

-Late 1960s -Rock became the dominant popular music and simultaneously went in several different directions musically and geographically. -San Francisco was not only home to acid rock bands, but also to the diverse styles of Santana (Latin Rock), Sly and the Family Stone (proto-funk), CCR (all-American rock), and much more.

punk roots

-Punk took shape in New York -bands performed in small clubs in Greenwich Village and Soho. -CBGB was among the most popular of these clubs -its graduates include: Patti Smith, Richard Hell (in the Neon Boys, then Television...), the Ramones, and the Talking Heads. -Ohio was another spawning ground w/ bands like Pere Ubu (Cleveland) and Devo (Dayton)

The Reverberations of Punk:

-Rock in the seventies had to wait until the last possible minute to be reminded of its ability to send a strong message (London Calling -the Clash -in the top 10 of Rolling Stone's Top 500 albums) -Punk and new wave restored the soul of rock and roll. -In Punk, the rock can be as brutally blunt in its musical message as in the lyrics. -There is a synergy among attitude, words, and music that gives both punk and new wave unprecedented impact; if the musical setting were too elaborate, it would deflect attention away from the underlying intent of the song. -Later bands influenced by punk/new wave: U2, Green Day, The Police...

"Oye Como Va"

-Santana (1971) -Originally by Latin jazz artist, Tito Puente; Here, Santana blends the sounds and rhythmic feel of Latin music into a rock song driven by Santana's guitar and Gregg Rolie's organ. -Clave-like rhythm in organ part (asymmetrical and syncopated); Afro-Cuban feel but not totally authentic. -Rock-based guitar and organ solos (bluesy) -Multinational instrumentation (rock-style -elec. gtr/bass/organ) (Afro-Cuban percussion...-congas...)

Rock = the new mainstream pop: Dissemination:

-Stadium concerts made rock a grander event -Cassette tapes made the music more portable and customizable than before. Expenses: -The financial stakes were higher: production (studio time...) and promotion expenses

The Talking Heads:

-Started out in art school; David Byrne and drummer Chris Frantz attended the Rhode Island School of Design together before moving to New York. -They formed the group in 1975 w/ Tina Weymouth (Frantz's girlfriend and later wife) on bass, and guitar/keyboardist Jerry Harrison (added 2 yrs later). -Although they played the same venues (CBGB) as the Ramones and other punk bands, the Talking Heads came from a different place conceptually. -Their first album, Talking Heads '77 offers great variety from song to song, as do subsequent albums. -Their music reflects both their seemingly insatiable curiosity regarding the world of music and their art-school traning. -Many of their early songs draw on the rock and R&B with which they were surrounded by growing up -but they take an artistic approach (Picasso/cubism...) in the process of creating songs -The Talking Heads combine elements of punk rock, avant-garde, pop, funk, world music, and art rock "Psycho Killer" -the Talking Heads (1977) -Prominent lyrics describe a person about to lose it -Byrne's haunting voice: untutored and uninhibited, and an ideal voice for the lyric -Modest instrumentation w/ evocative special effects -Spare texture, w/ considerable variety: does not overpower the vocal line http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5zFsy9VIdM -The sound of the Talking Heads was fueled more by imagination than craft.

The Diversity of Mainstream Rock:

-That all of these groups were popular is indicative of the steady growth of the audience for rock. Many of those college students who didn't trust anyone over 30 in 1965 were entering, or about to enter, their 30s by 1975. Behind them were those just entering their rock-listening years. -Despite the homogenizing effects of AOR, the audience for these acts seemed more diverse in its tastes (Elton John, Queen, the Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, Chicago, Steely Dan, Bruce Springsteen, Aerosmith...) -The acts here represent only one segment of the market for rock-era music during the 70s; black pop, disco, reggae, and funk also claimed a share of the market. -Emergence of a corporate mentality (unlike the early years of free-wheeling DJs and independent record companies) -would later provoke a hostile reaction (backlash) which would lead to styles like punk and new wave.

Legendary San Francisco concert venues and promoters:

-The Fillmore (West) -promoter -Bill Graham -The Avalon Ballroom -promoter -Chet Helms

"You Really Got Me"

-The Kinks (1964) The idea of building a song over a short, repetitive guitar riff came directly from electric blues. The Kinks expand on the idea by: -Harmonizing the riff w/ power chords -Adding distortion -Speeding up the tempo -Substituting a rock beat for a slow shuffle -Repeating the riff a successively higher pitches throughout the song (modulations)

"Blitzkrieg Bop"

-The Ramones (1975) -their first single -released in 11/75 in the U.S. and 7/76 in England; this song introduced the sound for which the Ramones would become famous and which would outline the key elements of pure punk. "Blitzkrieg" ("lightning war") was a term that the German military used during WW2 to identify a quick strike. It has a clear association to the Nazis. Nazi images were a big part of the punk scene in the U.K. (fashion...). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYh1lRR1m6Y • Garage-band instrumentation • Saturated rock rhythm: everyone hammering out the rock rhythmic layer • Pop song form (AABA) and riff-based melody • Catchy lyrics w/ no real narrative

Deep Blues and Rock:

-The blues revival that paralleled the folk revival of the late 50's and early 60's exposed young rock musicians to the power and emotional depth of deep blues. -British musicians who immersed themselves in the blues took from it several of its most distinct features: • The attitude and posturing of the bluesmen • Lyrics that told their stories in plain, direct language, often with a nasty edge • Rough declamatory vocal style • Heavy guitar riffs and string-bending blues-scale guitar solos • Strong beat • Thick, riff-laden texture *The 1960s blues-influenced rock was identified as hard rock, a subgenre of rock music.

Saturated Rock Rhythm:

-The eight beat rhythm first established rock from R&B (Chuck Berry's gtr, Little Richard's piano playing...) -later each band member would honor this rhythm in his part -Through the 60s and 70s rock musicians became comfortable w/ rock rhythm, the basic rock beat became a springboard for rhythmic play (The Who, Led Zeppelin...)

Classical Music: Music as Art

-The most established art music is what we now call classical music; that is the re-creation of the best music of earlier generations; this idea took hold in the middle of the nineteenth century; after the death of Beethoven in 1827 and with the revival of the music of Bach around the same time. -An elite music • In inherent quality and purpose; simply to be appreciated and enjoyed as an aesthetic experience. • Because of its support system (The Church, Esterhazy family, Andrew Carnegie...) -The prestige of classical music began to grow in the first part of the twentieth century; conservatories were founded to train classical musicians; many important twentieth-century composers held teaching positions at universities; all major universities w/ serious arts programs offered degrees in classical performance and composition. -Classical music was legitimate and those who didn't appreciate it were deemed unsophisticated. Aligning popular music with classical music (before rock): -An early example of what would become a recurrent trend in popular music: an attempt to legitimize itself through an association w/ classical music. 2 ways: 1. Transforming classical works into popular music (Irving Berlin's "That Mesmerizing Mendelssohn Tune" (1909) 2. Composing music using classical music (form, etc...) as a model -Treemonisha (Scott Joplin), Rhapsody in Blue (Gershwin)... An association w/ classical music made musical social climbing possible.

Black Sabbath:

-The third incarnation of a blues band from Birmingham, England. Vocalist Ozzy Osbourne (b. 1948), guitarist Tommy Iommi (b. 1948), bassist Terry "Geezer" Butler (b. 1949), and drummer Bill Ward (b. 1948) first came together as Polka Truck, then changed their name to Earth. -By 1969 they had become Black Sabbath; their first album appeared a year later. -Through relentless touring, they developed an international audience. -As a result, their second album, Paranoid (1971), sold over 4 million copies. -They remained the top metal act for the first half of the decade. -Ozzy left in 1979 to front his own group The first band whose music consistently laid out the most widely used conventions of the heavy metal world. The name Black Sabbath evokes the occult, as it was supposed to. -Their shows would feature crosses being burned or other images of devil worship -The lyrics of their songs sound like they come straight from a gothic horror film. Black Sabbath -1970: "Paranoid" (1:55-4:40) -music video

Fagen and Becker were very interested in jazz but the Steely Dan wasn't a jazz band.

-They infused their music w/ jazz values such as: • Melodic and harmonic complexity • Rhythmic play • Virtuosity • Imagination -Steely Dan mixed a rocklike accessibility w/ provocative lyrics, jazz influence, and perfectionist approach to recording. -Becker and Fagen parted ways in 1981 -got back together in 1993 and began recording and touring again.

Rock, Art, and Technology: The Tools of Electronic Music:

-With magnetic tape, it was possible to collect sounds on tape, and then splice them together -Pierre Schaeffer -sound collages -musique concrete -1948 -Steve Riech -tape loops -phasing patterns -"Come Out" -1966 -The Beatles -Sgt. Pepper -1967 -crowd noises, alarm clocks... Rock composers took advantage of multitrack recording to mix real world sounds with musical elements, rather than simply splice the sounds together in a predetermined sequence. -The first fully electronic instruments appeared just after WW1. • Theremin -the performer controlled sound by moving his or her hands • Ondes Martenot -performers could control sound through a keyboard. • Electric Organ -Hammond B-3 -most popular and enduring of the pre WW2 electronic instruments

patti smith

-rock critic/writer turned poet-performer -the first major figure in the punk movement to emerge from the New York club subculture -She was a poet laureate - and as a performer, her words were primary -Nothing groundbreaking in her sound; her work had the power and purity of punk -the garage-band spirit, and power in the outrage -not outrageous though when compared to bands like the Sex Pistols -Partly because of her presence, punk and new wave music were much more receptive to strong women than conventional rock.

1976

-the RIAA added a new category, the platinum record, to honor sales of 1 million units of a single or album. • First platinum single -Johnnie Taylor's "Disco Lady" • First platinum album -The Eagles "Their Greatest Hits, 1971-1975" The Eagles' landmark album epitomizes the transformation of rock and the business that supported it in the space of a decade.

"God Save the Queen"

-the Sex Pistols (1977) The incendiary lyrics, Rotten's vocal style, the absence of a melody, simple power chords, the heavily distorted sounds, and the relentless, fast-paced beat -conveys the same basic message: they are mutually reinforcing.

"Won't Get Fooled Again"

-the Who (1971) -Innovative use of ARP synthesizer as rhythm instrument ¬-Expansive song form w/ strong contrasts among synthesizer alone, vocal sections, and instrumental sections -Timekeeping in synth part liberates the band rhythmically

Clapton's .........

...................solo work demonstrates how he brought the essence of blues guitar style into rock.

In the 60s, 2 important tape-based consumer formats emerged:

1. Four or eight-track tapes: These players appear in cars and Lear Jets in 1965. 2. Audio cassette: more enduring playback device; a number of manufacturers, most notably Philips, Sony, and Grundig, worked to develop cassettes and cassette players and to come up w/ a common standard for them. By the 70s, this new technology had caught on: cassette sales grew much faster than LPs (vinyl); by 1982, they would exceed them. -By the mid 70s, boom boxes had appeared as a low priced/portable alternative to the home stereo. -The first Walkman came from Sony in 1979; other companies quickly followed suit. Cassette players also made it possible for consumers to assemble their own playlists, using blank tapes. People could now customize their music and take it w/ them wherever they went.

-3 constants in A Studio Band music:

1. Impeccable production 2. Stream-of-consciousness lyrics that offer slices of life in L.A. (hip and provocative) 3. Sophisticated, distinctive musical settings.

-There were 4 dominant issues for the counter culture movement:

1. Minority rights (Civil Rights/racial discrimination) (Civil Rights Act of 1964 -outlawed racial segregation; Voting Rights Act of 1965; Black Power -1966) 2. Sexual Freedom (the Pill) 3. Drug use (Marijuana -old, LSD-new) 4. War (Vietnam -1965 -U.S. starting sending regular troops)

Bridging Soul and Funk:

1940's Jump Bands - Rhythm and Blues - Rock and Roll - mid-60's Soul - 1970's Funk -Sly and the Family Stone played a key role in the transition from soul to funk • Incorporating the 16th note rhythms over a rock beat (would become far more common in the music of the 70s in funk/disco/wide range of black music) • Increased rhythm and texture over melody and harmony • Stressed more percussive sounds, not only in rhythm instruments but also in the vocal style. The band's influence was also apparent in the art/funk jazz-fusion of Herbie Hancock and the film music of Curtis Mayfield; and indirectly in styles like disco and the post-disco pop of the 80's.

Hippies:

A small but prominent minority of young people chose to reject mainstream society completely. -They abandoned conventional lifestyles; some chose to live in communes. -They followed Timothy Leary's (LSD researcher and proponent) advice to "turn on, tune in, and drop out". -They dressed differently, thought differently, and lived differently. -Hippies collectively formed the heart of the counterculture. -Their Mecca was San Francisco -a center for radical thought in the 60s; USC Berkeley; where the free speech movement began; where the Black Panthers began. -Haight and Ashbury -an intersection near Golden Gate Park -the largest of the city's public parks -"Make Love Not War" -the hippie's mantra -Psychedelic drugs provided the fast route to higher consciousness -1967 -"summer of love" -an estimated 75,000 young people flocked to the city. -Rock Music was the soundtrack for the counterculture

Influence of the Blues on Rock:

Alexis Korner and the London Blues and Barrelhouse Club: Alexis Korner nurtured a generation of British musicians who had grown up listening to the blues. Korner's club was a regular stop for American bluesmen (Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, Howlin' Wolf...) touring England and a mecca for British blues fans. It was also a place where British blues musicians could network and gain valuable performance experience. Korner's club alums included Jimmy Page, Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton, John Mayall, etc.... Korner's house band was called Korner's Blues Incorporated. -Clapton and others went on to transform their blues experience into a completely new music

Pink Floyd:

Among the most familiar examples to mix real-world and synthesized sounds with more conventional rock was Pink Floyd's 1973 album Dark Side of the Moon. -In 1973 Pink Floyd was David Gilmour (gtr, b. 1946), Nick Mason (perc. B. 1944), Richard Wright (keys, b. 1943), and Roger Waters (b. 1943) -Roger Waters wrote all of the lyrics and co-wrote most of the songs. -Real world sounds and synthesizer sounds (electrical technology) were not only absolutely integral to the intent of the album but also essential to its impact and success. -Water's lyrics paint a bleak portrait of modern life; the tracks describe the stress of living in the modern world -stress that can be overwhelming that it drives people to insanity. -Music is presented in an easily understood language (bluesy rock and sensitive rock ballads); w/ the exception of "Money" which is in 7/4. Sounds on the album: -Concrete sounds -cash register ("Money"), spoken asides -Electronically generated musical ideas and effects -"running" pattern on track 2; the "heartbeat" that opens the album These sounds are one dimension of a coordinated plan to support Water's lyrics w/ significant-sounding music. -The band keeps the music interesting w/ rich reverb, saxophone and extended instrumental sections. -Dark Side of the Moon remained on the U.S. Top 200 charts for 741 weeks -over 14 years. No album has ever charted for a longer period of time. -Dark Side of the Moon was the first of Pink Floyd's several top-selling albums, almost all of which continued to explore difficult issues. The most acclaimed was the 1979 album The Wall.

Janis Joplin and the Blues:

Born in Port Arthur, Texas (1943-1970) -Rock's original blues diva Joplin grew up a social outcast in a Texas oil town; music was her escape; a huge fan a blues and soul -She migrated to San Francisco during the mid-60s -She began playing w/ a local blues band called Big Brother and the Holding Company; they made a big impact at the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival (thanks mainly to Joplin's dynamic stage performance) -They signed to Columbia Records and cut one album (Cheap Thrills); it was highly praised for the quality of Joplin's vocals; the band was criticized for its sloppy playing. -Joplin separated from the band and became an important solo act -She recorded a wide range of material but brought blues feeling and style into everything she recorded, blues or not. -Few white singers, male or female, could match Joplin's intensity. Her style: -What distinguished Joplin from other singers was the rawness of her sound and the sheer exuberance of her performing style. -She sang with more passion and freedom than any white women before her. -Her style owes more to Southern soul singers like Otis Redding than to any women. -Her unique style included stutters, reiterations, rapid-fire streams of words, melismas, interpolations, and the like.

Hard Rock in the Mid-Sixties:

British Invasion... Mid 60's blues-influenced British bands had a tougher sound than the Beatles; more prominent and more distorted guitar, a stronger beat, rougher vocals, and a more aggressive attitude. -The Kinks, The Animals, the Rolling Stones, the Yardbirds, etc...

Creedence Clearwater Revival:

CCR was a Bay Area band because its members grew up there. They were John Fogerty -lead guitar, Tom Fogerty (1941-1990) -rhythm guitar, Stu Cook -bass, and Doug Clifford -drums. Known as the Blue Velvets in junior high, they changed their name to Creedence Clearwater Revival in 1967; released their first album a year later. -They were immediately successful; for 3 years they were the hottest singles act in the country. The Appeal: -Down-to-earth quality lyrics -Independent spirit -They perfectly fuse country and blues influences; mix major and minor pentatonic -A seamless mix of black and white roots music -American subject matter ("Born on the Bayou", "Proud Mary"-about a steamboat on the Mississippi).

Jazzing up the Rock Mainstream:

Chicago and Steely Dan 5 acts among the Top 20 artists in the 70s were (Elton John, Paul McCartney and Wings, Stevie Wonder, Chicago, and Neil Diamond) -an example of diversity

Hendrix vs. Clapton:

Clapton's playing is more focused than flamboyant

An American Rock Sound:

Country music and, in some cases, folk music helped shape music from all over North America. The country and folk influence gave this music a distinctly American sound, although it took widely different forms

Eric Clapton and Cream:

Eric Clapton (b. 1945) -In 1963 he joined the blues-influenced rock and roll band, The Yardbirds -he was w/ the Yardbirds from 63-65; the only big hit they had in the U.S. was "For Your Love" (not even written by the Yardbirds, but by pop songwriter Graham Gouldman) -Clapton moved on because he didn't like the pop direction. -In 1965 he joined John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers, -recorded the highly regarded Bluesbreakers album. This album best showcased his blues playing to date. -In 1966 Clapton formed the power trio, Cream, with bassist Jack Bruce (b. 1943) and drummer Ginger Baker (b. 1939 -Peter Baker); Cream was the first of the power trios. Because of AM radio's 3-minute target song length, their studio material gravitated toward blues-influenced psychedelic rock. It is important to mention how loose and syncopated the bass and drums play behind the guitarist. -By this time, Clapton had developed into rock's premier guitar virtuoso; the "Clapton is God" slogan became popular around '65/'66 -until Jimmy Hendrix came to London. -He was the first major rock performer to play extended improvised solos, especially in live performances

Heavy Metal in the Seventies:

For much of its history, heavy metal has existed with its audience in a largely self-contained world. -Main outlets = concerts & recordings; Metal has received relatively little airplay w/ few exceptions (Zeppelin, Van Halen, Metallica...). -Metal has been home to some of rock's greatest geniuses (Eddie Van Halen, Yngwie Malmsteen, Randy Rhoads...) -The words "heavy metal" probably first appeared in Steppenwolf's 1968 song, "Born to Be Wild" ("heavy metal thunder") -Extremely loyal fans -Music is main focus; much of the music is non-vocal; words serve a largely explanatory role (secondary to the music).

Chicago:

Formed as Big Thing in 1967; quickly renamed Chicago Transit Authority, then simply Chicago. -Their most distinct feature is a tight and agile horn section that typically played complicated lines behind vocals. -Chicago was the most commercially successful of several late 60s and 70s bands blending rock, jazz, R&B, and pop. Chicago occasionally had quirky lyrics and blended it all in a provocative and popular sound. -Chicago fused rock, jazz, R&B, and pop in a commercially successful way. -1969 -first album -"Chicago Transit Authority" -went gold, then platinum (success came quickly) -so did subsequent albums. Chicago never gained critical respect from the rock press

Queen: Another example of the expansion of mainstream rock

Freddie Mercury (born Farrokh Bulsara -1946-1991), John Deacon -bass, Brian May -guitar, Roger Taylor -drums The band came together in 1971 and released their first album two years later (1973). -First hit "Killer Queen" -broke through the following year on their 4th album, A Night at the Opera -Like Elton John Queen presented dynamic and visually exciting stage shows in large arenas -Like John, Queen had a wide stylistic range w/ distinct contrasts from hit to hit: ("We are the Champions," "Another One Bites the Dust, "Fat-Bottomed Girls"...); In "Bohemian Rhapsody," they packed remarkably varied material into a single track yielding jarring contrasts from section to section; it's also a long track. -It is to be noted that Queen's music often contains artful sense of humor Queen "Bohemian Rhapsody": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIp5QC8Reso Elton John and Queen were among the most flamboyant mainstream rock acts of the seventies. Underneath the flash, however, was considerable skill and imagination.

Jefferson Airplane:

Guitarist Paul Kantner (b. 1941) and Vocalist Marty Balin formed Jefferson Airplane in 1965. The next year, Grace Slick (born Grace Wing -1939) replaced Signe Anderson as the lead vocalist. Other members - Lead guitarist -Jorma Kaukonen, bassist- Jack Casady, and drummer- Spencer Dryden. -Grace Slick became the face and dominant voice of the group (her good looks, extroverted/uninhibited stage personality were key elements to the group's success). Jefferson Airplane brought national attention to psychedelic rock and to San Francisco as its home base. -Surrealistic Pillow (1967) was the band's first album. "White Rabbit" -Jefferson Airplane (1967) -refers to the white rabbit in Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland; obvious drug references; lyrics like "feed your head". -Slow steady crescendo ending w/ a call to action -"feed your head!" -The mode and rhythm evokes Spanish music; listening to Miles Davis' "Sketches of Spain" on acid inspired Slick.

Santana and Latin Rock:

In Santana's Latin rock, both the rock and the Latin elements are easily heard: Latin percussion vs. electric guitar and bass - a rhythmic conception that draws on rock and Afro-Cuban music but is neither one nor the other. There were styles that drew on rock and non-rock (Latin...), but Latin rock is the first important style to mix rock with an exotic style in balanced proportions. -The musician responsible for this style was Carlos Santana Carlos Santana: (b. 1947) -Born and raised in Mexico; his father was a mariachi musician; moved to San Francisco in 1962; made his first impression as a blues-inspired rock guitarist. -His first commercial recording came from a live 1969 performance w/ blues guitarist Mike Bloomfield. -Later that same year (1969), he acknowledged his Hispanic heritage by forming Santana. -Most Latin musicians at the time came from Spanish-speaking Caribbean countries, or had roots there; nevertheless, Santana (having Mexican roots) connected w/ Afro-Cuban music and took a lead role in integrating it into rock.

The Grateful Dead:

Jerry Garcia (1942-1995), Bob Weir (b. 1947), "Pigpen" McKernan (Ronald McKernan, 1945-73), Phil Lesh (b. 1940), Bill Kruetzman and later, Mickey Hart (b. 1943) in Sept. 1967. -Lyricist Robert Hunter (b. 1941) didn't perform w/ the band but collaborated w/ Garcia, Lesh, and Weir on most of their memorable -The band came together from remnants of a Palo Alto jug band; later calling themselves the Warlocks (1964); then settling on the Grateful Dead (1965). -The Dead made their reputation through long concerts -up to 5 hours, which featured extended solos, especially by Jerry Garcia. -They were the quintessential San Francisco hippie band: -They lived communally for years -Ingested copious quantities of trendy drugs -Played all the time, often for free, especially in their early years -The Dead had an extremely loyal cult following but didn't have a hit single until 1987. -"Deadheads" would travel from concert to concert to hear the band, in part because each concert was likely to be different THE MUSIC: -An American-ness to their music; roots, old-time, country, blues, and folk influences -evident in their vocal harmonies and chord progressions; also of jazz, bluegrass, reggae, psychedelic, and gospel -Their lyrics often evoke America's past; often telling a story -Music was more exploratory and diverse than many bands -Full of subtleties and surprises, not as much a straightforward rock sound like CCR -Sprawling, largely improvisational performances

The Ramones:

Joey Ramone -vox -(Jeffery Hyman, 1952-2001) Johnny Ramone -gtr -(John Cummings, 1951-2004) Dee Dee Ramone -bass -(Doug Colvin, 1952-2002) Tommy Ramone -drums -(Tommy Erdelyi, b. 1952) -original drummer -Formed in 1974 -They were brothers only on stage -they did all go to High School together in Queens, NYC. -The poster boys of punk w/ their trademark look -torn jeans, T-shirts, leather jackets, and long dark hair -Electrifying half hour sets consisted of a nonstop string of high-voltage songs -They put punk on the map, first in New York, then in the rest of the U.S. and in England where they inspired groups like the Sex Pistols and the Clash. - The Ramones started out as a garage band (singer backed by gtr, bass, and drums) playing 3 chord songs built from simple riffs. They jacked up the tempo to breakneck speeds -typically over 170 bpm. -Rhythms: not rhythmically subtle, all aspects of rock rhythm are in the forefront during instrumental sections and clearly audible underneath the vox; little syncopation and very basic

What distinguishes art-oriented rock?

Most outstanding is a sense of importance: the music is supposed to be significant. How is this conveyed? • Tackling deep, difficult, or controversial subjects: The Doors, the Velvet Underground, Pink Floyd • Elaborate artifice: Bowie/Ziggy; the Who/Tommy -Superb musicianship: Zappa and Yes above all, but also the Who, Bowie, and Pink Floyd -Sophisticated satire: Zappa most obviously; the Who less directly • Emulating, seeking inspiration from, or co-opting classical concepts, genres, and methods: the Who, Zappa, Yes, Pink Floyd • Thinking big: concept albums by Zappa, the Who, Pink Floyd; long songs by the Doors, the Velvet Underground, and Yes • Innovative sounds: Zappa, the Who, Pink Floyd

Rock Opera: The Who

No 60s group merged rock's essence w/ rock and art more effectively than the Who. Townsend, the most intellectually adventurous member of the band, had been interested in expanding the Who's musical horizons. Starting w/: • The Who Sell Out (1967) -a concept album built around the idea of a radio broadcast, interspersed between a diverse group of songs are simulated commercials and public service announcements. The album cover features each band member grotesquely promoting a fake product. • Tommy (1969) - A "rock opera" about a deaf, mute, and blind child who becomes a messiah via pinball wizardry. Tommy isn't really a rock opera at all; for lack of staging, scenery, acting, or recitative; it doesn't have much of a plot either; what there is, is difficult to follow. -Topics include: murder, trauma, bullying, child molestation, sex, drugs, illusion, -Unique because: the Who didn't abandon their rock roots, or at least overlay them w/ classical music trappings; no strings/synths or other classical music features are apparent (Beatles -Eleanor Rigby...). ¬-The pacing of the work also sets Tommy apart from standard rock fare; the tracks are only as long as they need to be (no allegiance to the 3-minute song); "Underture", the longest track is about 10 minutes -They could perform Tommy live w/out having to hire an orchestra; basic rock instrumentation. • Quadrophenia -a subsequent operatic effort, which did not enjoy similar success.

Led Zeppelin:

Often cited as a seminal heavy metal band, Zeppelin ultimately defies categorization -Many influences, strongest being that of the blues -Mystical/occult/mythical influence of Plant/Page -Amazing musicianship of -Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, John Paul Jones, & John Bonham (1948-1980). -Their tours sold out/broke attendance records and all of their recordings went platinum. -Their music is a rare combination of almost unrestrained power and subtle artistry, of raw emotion and superbly calculated craft. -First album -Led Zeppelin (1969), last album -Physical Graffiti (1975).

Portable Tapes: Cassettes and Eight-Track

One of the fruits of the Allied victory in WW2 was the acquisition of a magnetic tape recorder that German scientists had developed. It served as a prototype for the reel-to-reel tape recorders developed by Ampex and others. -RCA developed the first tape cartridge in 1958.

Glam Rock: Rock as Spectacle

Rock's first spectacle -Elvis, and later, Hendrix and the Who smashing guitars... In the first part of the rock era, the most spectacular form of theatrical rock was glam (or glitter) rock. It emerged in the early seventies, mainly in the work of David Bowie and T Rex, a group fronted by Marc Bolan. Rock, as it took shape in the mid-sixties, prided itself on being real. This realism provoked a reaction -*If you don't write about your feelings and being real -you make something up to write about Rock as artifice (trickery) -rock behind the mask- found its fullest expression in glam rock, and especially in the music of David Bowie.

The Doors: Rock, Sex, and Death:

The Doors visited (in their words) "the other side": nightmarish conflations of sex and death. -Morrison's shock-provoking/cryptic lyrics and his intense, often melodramatic vocal style convinced his audience that he spoke knowingly about the confluence of death, decadence, and sex. -Morrison was also known for having an unpredictable stage persona. -The band's music was the perfect soundtrack for Morrison's dark lyrics. A combination of acid rock, jazz, and blues, the music often created a hypnotic effect causing the listener to focus on Morrison's lyrics.

The Eagles and the Rise of Country Rock:

The Eagles became one of the most successful rock groups of the seventies. Their "Greatest Hits" album is the best selling album of all time. -1972 his "Take it Easy" helped put them on the map: Eagles "Take It Easy" (live 1974): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XByaqHhBFqE -The Eagles were a 1970's reincarnation of country rock that started with Rockabilly, which led to the Everly Bros., Roy Orbison, and roots bands like CCR, and the Grateful Dead. -The Eagles had wonderful harmonies and were all great songwriters. -The Eagles were somewhat of a "super group," with many members having subsequent successful solo careers in the 1970 and 1980s (Don Henley, Glen Fry, Joe Walsh).

The Expansion of Mainstream Rock: Elton John as an example

The Expansion of Mainstream Rock: Elton John as an example Elton John (born Reginald Dwight, 1947) In his first albums, he established himself as a thoughtful singer-songwriter of exceptional talent. However, in the early seventies, John transformed his music into true AOR material by inundating himself in Top 40 songs and adopting an outrageous stage persona. -Musically, two of the qualities that enabled him to reign supreme on both the singles and albums charts: 1. His range 2. His craft -He retained the ability to tell a story in song while infusing his music w/ pop elements -Because of his considerable skill as a songwriter, he was able to fold external elements into his own conception, rather than simply bite an existing sound. -Elton John's music had a wide range -Longtime collaborator, lyricist Bernie Taupin -John went on to have amazing commercial success; endured battles with drugs, depression, and divorce. -In the early 90s he cleaned up; won a Grammy in 1994 a song from The Lion King; also did a remake of Giuseppe Verdi's famous opera Aida. -John collaborated w/ many over the years (J. Lennon in 1974, Eminem at the Grammy's...) -Elton John remains an active performer and is the second highest selling recording artist of all time, w/ sales of over 60 million units.

ramones legacy

The Ramones were one of the most prolific punk bands, playing over 2,000 performances during their 20+ years and recording 14 studio albums. They were punk's premier ambassadors, fueling the punk revolution in Britain w/ their appearance in 1976.

The Rolling Stones:

The Rolling Stones began by covering blues and rock-and-roll songs (like many British bands). Within a year, Jagger and Richards, inspired by the success of Lennon and McCartney, started writing original songs for the band. Mick Jagger (b. 1943) and Keith Richards (b. 1943) spent a lot of time at Korner's club. There, they met Brian Jones (1942-69) and Charlie Watts (b. 1941). Watts and Jagger were both in Korner's Blues Incorporated after 1961. The band was complete upon adding Bill Wyman (b. 1936 -William Perks) on bass. -Keyboardist Ian Stewart (1938-1985) was also a member of the band at that time but stopped performing w/ them when their careers took off. Stewart did do some studio work w/ the Stones.

major influences on punk

The Velvet Underground -embraced the NYC subculture sensibility and nurtured it in their music; dark songs ("Heroine"...) foreshadowed punk's "no future" mentality; also the sound of their music was often abrasive and minimalist. They idolized artists, working mainly w/ Andy Warhol. -The New York Dolls -led by David Johnson, were America's answer to British Glam (David Bowie, Marc Bolan...) -they were into groups like MC5 and Iggy Pop and the Stooges -they wore makeup, crossed dressed outlandishly and took bold risks in performance

Devo:

The founding members were students at Kent State; Devo was the vehicle created mainly by Mark Mothersbaugh and Jerry Casale to convey their response to the senseless shootings at Kent State in 1970. -After the incident, the two friends started to develop a theory of "De-evolution"; they maintained that at the end of the 20th century, man was devolving, not evolving; this lead to a short film entitled The Truth About De-Evolution; the film caught the eye of David Bowie and Iggy Pop; that lead to Devo getting connected w/ legendary producer Brian Eno, who produced their first album. -Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! -first album -1977 -Synthesizers were a key element to Devo's weird sound "Whip It" -Devo (1977) -music video -Instrumental and vocal effects -Weird/humorous costumes -Absurdist lyrics -Synth sounds http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIEVqFB4WUo Devo had success on disc and on video which sustained their career into the 80s. Their commitment to weirdness may have cost them popular success but preserved their special place in the history of punk.

Blues Guitar and Rock:

The guitar had been a solo instrument from the earliest days of rock and roll, however, their (Chuck Berry, Scotty Moore...) solos were mainly riff-based. None were vocally inspired. Electric bluesmen like Freddie King, Buddy Guy, and Guitar Slim were playing the guitar in a style that paralleled their raw, earthy singing, sometimes adding severe distortion in the process. Their style served as a direct inspiration for a new generation of rock guitarists, most notably Eric Clapton and Jimi Hendrix -both would help transform the electric guitar into the transcendental solo instrument of rock.

Acid Rock:

The music most associated w/ the Bay Area during the late 60s because of Haight-Ashbury, "flower power", LSD, and other trappings of the hippie scene. A rock subgenre defined not by a musical feature but simply by the music's ability to evoke or enhance the drug experience. Acid Rock included bands like the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, and Quicksilver Messenger Service. -As tripping on acid became more widespread, words, images, and music were used to capture the psychedelic experience. -Psychedelic art emerges (1939 International Harvester school bus painted in a rainbow of colors) -Psychedelic music: even more integral to the psychedelic experience because it was used not only to evoke but also the enhance tripping on acid; Music could contribute to the experience, depict the experience ("A Day in the Life"), and be a product of it. -There was no specific musical feature, or set of features, that identified acid rock. -The connection could be in the music, in the words, or both.

Diversity, a Rock-Era Innovation:

The music scene of San Francisco highlights an important dimension of the rock revolution: its extraordinary musical diversification; this is only a small fraction of the music produced at this time (late 60s/early 70's) and place. -It happened suddenly (late 60's -around the same time rock musicians reached a common understanding about the essential features of this new music). -Rock reached maturity during the latter part of the 60's -This diversification signals a fundamental shift in cultural attitudes and values. There was an openness of rock musicians to music and ideas that flew in the face of old notions of good and bad, and high and low class. -Rock helped set in motion a thorough re-evaluation of culture and class by widening the domain of art and redefining it to some extent on its own terms. -Rock-era music was one of the most visible and audible sings of this huge cultural shift and that kind of diversity in intent, words, and music.

The Jazz Renaissance of the Seventies:

The rise of bands like Chicago and Steely Dan highlights the jazz renaissance of the late 60s. -Many rock bands were influenced by jazz and many jazz artists incorporated rock into their sound. -Miles Davis abruptly shifted musical direction in the 70s -toward rock/funk... -Jazz fusion arises- quite simply, the fusion of jazz and rock. -Weather Report (Joe Zawinul, Wayne Shorter, Jaco Pastorius...) -Return to Forever (Chick Corea, Al Dimeola, ...) -Mahavishnu Orchestra (John McLaughlin...) -Herbie Hancock -Headhunters (funk...) Collectively, these bands made jazz and jazz-influenced pop and rock more popular than it had been since the heyday of the swing era.

-A Timeless Music:

The years around 1970 were defining for the history of rock: it is during this time that rock emerged as a fully developed style. -Increasing influence of blues style until its completely absorbed in rock (1970) -A "rock and roll" song released in the 80's, 90's, or 2000's is likely to have much the same basic sound as "It's Only Rock 'n Roll (But I Like It)." -This music is classic rock -it epitomizes the style

Rock as Art Music:

This issue: Is non-classical music inferior to classical? -Rock co-opted and challenged the prevailing view of musical art, often simultaneously. -The Who's, Tommy -identified as a rock opera -Frank Zappa listing several important 20th century composers (early and mid-century avant-garde) as well as familiar and obscure jazz, blues, pop, and rock musicians. Zappa blows away boundaries between musical traditions as well as the class boundaries that accompany them. One of Rock's self-imposed challenges was to create new ways to make a statement Newest trends in the late sixties and early seventies: -The music of the Doors and the Velvet Underground -Glam Rock (art rock as spectacle) -has roots in the lavish operas of the Baroque era -Classical/rock fusions by progressive rock groups such as Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Pink Floyd, and Yes

The Counterculture:

Young people growing up in the 1960s experienced neither the hardships of the Great Depression nor the traumas of WW2 and the Korean War. A good number of families were comfortable financially. Teens had money to spend and the time to spend it. -A large number of college-age youth rejected the values of "the establishment". -They saw the "establishment" as excessively conservative, bigoted, materialistic, resistant to social change, obsessed w/ communism and locked into a potentially deadly arms race, and clueless about sexuality. -Fueled by new technologies and drugs-both old and new- they incited the most far-reaching social revolution since the 1920s.

Neither "You Really Got Me" nor "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" is.....

a blues song. Still, they embrace essential aspects of blues style and sensibility, i.e., rough vocal quality, heavy reliance on repeated riffs, and dense, dark texture resulting from the interplay of instruments in mid-low registers; also in gesture and movement we see in live performances.

punk

an extreme form of a wave of new music that emerged in the mid-seventies, first in New York, then in other parts of the U.S. and in England. -Flourished in small clubs like CBGB, w/ audiences in the hundreds (contrary to the large arenas and stadium shows of the 70's rock scene) -It was a reactionary movement -a counterrevolution against what its supporters saw as the growing commercialism of mainstream rock. However, in its reconception of these values, it established an important and influential new direction in rock, which continues to the present. -In a way it tried to recapture the revolutionary fervor and the simplicity of early rock -Punk style was designed to stand out, outrage, and affront those on the outside. Hand in hand w/ the noise of punk went the hostile attitude and -even more obvious from a distance -the look: spiked hair in a rainbow of colors, tattoos and body piercings, torn clothes ornamented or even held together with safety pins.

CBGB

located in Bowery section of New York. opened in 1973 hosted festival of the top 40 New York rock bands

Progressive rock

musicians sought to elevate the status of rock by embracing a classical music esthetic and adapting it to rock. Often, this meant applying concepts and features associated w/ classical music, and especially classical instrumental music, into their work. • Irregular meters and atonality (King Crimson, Yes...) • Occasionally classical composition ideas were directly borrowed as well (Keith Emerson's remake of Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition) • Often a long, unwinding development of musical ideas Art rock/progressive rock became the mainly instrumental analogue to concept albums and rock operas, which were typically more vocally oriented. -It is to be noted that instrumental music was considered inferior to vocal music from the early 17th century through the end of the 18th century -opera was the most prestigious musical genre. That changed in the early 19th century, in response to the symphonies and sonatas of Beethoven -critics began to regard instrumental music as equal to or even superior to vocal music. -Like classical instrumental music, rock began as music for social dancing. As rock matured, musicians like Zappa, Keith Emerson, Ritchie Blackmore, and Robert Fripp (King Crimson) sought to elevate the level of discourse in rock by emulating certain aspects of classical instrumental music (complexity, virtuosity, rhythmic freedom, and the grand gesture). This took rock out of the garage and into the concert hall...or arena.

malcolm mclaren

one of Kristal's customers, involved in fashion, costume design... -McLaren saw himself as a political provocateur -ended up managing and designing the outfits of the New York Dolls. He later managed the Sex Pistols. McLaren viewed rock music as a vehicle for his politics. -His boutique in London -opened in 1971 -Let it Rock, later named 430 Kings Road Too Fast To Live Too Young To Die (1972) -later named Sex (1975) -selling fetish wear and punk-inspired items.

--The message of the Sex Pistols

resonated throughout the U.K. Their songs captured the frustration and rage felt by working and middle class youths. -McLaren made a lot of money off of the Sex Pistols and they became rock stars. -They later sued him and won some money back. -They had a quick rise and fall -the band broke up in 1/78 -They were enormously influential; no other group in rock had more impact w/ such a brief career. -They embodied the sense of punk in every aspect

Mid-late 1960's =

rock rhythm starts to mature -Adding other rhythmic layers, often conflicting w/ the timekeeping layers -Adding faster rhythms -Varying the timekeeping, even to the point of completely omitting it for long stretches -Focusing particularly on the rock rhythm layer

AOR (album-oriented rock)

was a significant development in the 1970s: • In this format, disc jockeys could no longer choose the songs they played. Instead, program directors selected a limited number of songs designed to attract a broad audience while offending as few as possible. • Free form radio all but disappears; as a result, distortion was out, tunefulness was in. • Acts like Barry Manilow, the Carpenters, Stevie Wonder, Chicago, the Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, Paul McCartney and Wings and Elton John got lots of airplay and topped the charts. • Many independent labels did not stay intact and ended up merging with major labels.

Other 70's rock trends:

• Cross-marketing; record companies used tours to help promote record sales • Stadium or large arena concerts; this often yielded performances w/ little spontaneity • Performances were often more about the show than sound. By the early 70s spectacle had become part of the business: lights, fog, costumes, makeup, pyrotechnics, and the like. Big productions were almost a necessity. • Glam goes mainstream (Kiss, Alice Cooper, Queen, Elton John...) • Jazz influence (Chicago, Steely Dan...) • Songs often were longer and unfolded more slowly

what punk is about

• Punk is about purity: the songs are short; they say what they have to say quickly and move on; in these brief time spans, the dangerous aspects of rock and roll come across as more intense (loudness, sounds, rhythms...) • Punk is loud -full on loud, from the beginning to the end -no dynamics • Punk is noise -heavy distortion and feeding back of guitars and basses • Punk singing is more about the expression than the vocal quality -lack of vocal skill or sophistication is a virtual requirement! • Punk is fast -tempos typically exceed the pace of normally energetic movement (hard to dance to)