PRS Test #2
James Brown
"The Soul Man", "Soul Brother # 1", "Godfather of Soul"most important male soul artist of the 60s. Developed unique rhythm due to unusually big backup band (had full horn section) and his unusually less vocal and instrumentation from the non-horns. More emphasis on rhythm as oppose to harmony or melody - very African roots. Would be the blueprint for funk and rap. "Papas Got a Brand New Bag" - emphasis on rhythm, percussive sounds, teamwork among the instruments, very open sound
Aretha Franklin
"The queen of Soul" Grew up in the church (gospel) Jerry Wexler started her off in 1967 at Atlantic records, amazing voice. She sang fast soul which was predominantly male. While men sang about their sexual prowess she sang about gaining "Respect" a call to arms of sorts - song became anthem for growing women's movement. Her music was universal and subjective at the same time, ecstasy and empathy - you dance while she sings about tough love. "Respect" - women's point of view, southern soul backup vocals (call and response) add to impact of song, her voice is insane.
Rolling Stones
"World's greatest rock band" very heavily influenced by blues, starting writing original songs after seeing the success of Lennon/ McCartney. Their perception of rock was all about the attitude - sexually charged, down and dirty, swaggering, real. Very bluesman attitude, but the Stones formed their own identity around it. Two main qualities to their music rhythmic groove and the dark nasty sound. They were different from the rest of rock - edgy, dangerous, forbidden fruit to listen too - attracted younger generation tired of teen rock from The Beatles and Beach Boys. "In the work of the Stones, blues became part of the sound of rock."
Janis Joplin
"rock's original blues diva" Was the most prominent women in SF besides Grace Slick, came from Texas and music was her outlet. Very raw sound and very exuberant performing style reminiscent of male blues singers. Most of her songs were in fact not blues, but the spirit and emotion of blues was always present in her songs. While Slick was pretty and classy, Joplin was not - matched white and black men in their power and presence, paved the way for a larger role in rock for women. "Piece of My Heart" - blues influenced acid rock, passionate singing, rock that is real.
Leiber and Stoller
"we don't write songs, we write records" -were first to make the music producer important - a song was not just a melody which singers could perform "their way", but the entire sound world captured on disc. They crafted the entire song, lyrics music instrumentation. They produced songs for everyone big in the late 50s (Elvis, Coasters, Drifters) elevated record production to an art, meticulously making sure the recording was perfect. Among their first hits was "Hound Dog".
The Beatles
(62-70) DEFINING BAND OF ROCK REVOLUTION, they expanded their music to all genres (Indian and classical strings) 3 main reasons for their awesomeness - knowledge of different musical styles, melodic skill, and their sound imagination. Early 60s was very poppy, gushy teenage love songs then they smoked weed and did acid and started making insanely creative and experimentative songs(Representative of the overall evolution of rock in the 60s. In 1964 the rules were still being written, by 1969 the essence of rock had been worked out) Made a movie called A Hard Day's Night in 1964 depicting a typical Beatlemania day, even the movie was groundbreaking. This and the album marks the start of their maturing as a band. Transition from Rock and Roll to Rock in rhythm and sound, mix of tonal pop and modal chords, pop melody with very distinctive features and elements. "A Day in the Life" exemplifies the mature Beatles. They create sound worlds that highlight the contrast between mundane life and the elevated consciousness of an acid trip. sound imagination, persistence of tuneful melody, close coordination between words and music. They showed where rock could go.
Elvis
- "White man with the Negro feel" "king of rock and roll" "R&R's lightning rod" - grittier rockabilly - While he did summarize many musical genres into rock and defined the look and attitude of rock, he DID NOT WRITE any of his songs and didn't use the rock beat like the rest of the early R&R bands - Fast tempo with a modified TWO BEAT rhythm, soulful singing and unique sound, modified version of blues progression - RECORDED FOR SUN RECORDS for awhile
Little Richard
- INVENTED CLEAR LOCKED (a steady rhythm moving twice as fast as the beat with a strong backbeat perfectly in sync with the rest of the band) Known for crazy performances, was responsible for the new beat of R&R on a piano. "Tutti Frutti"
Chuck Berry
- ULTIMATE ARCHITECT of R&R, more than anyone else in the 50s he crafted the style that would soon STYLE LED TO R&R, appealed to the emerging teen spirit, his songs were the most frequently covered by early 60s rock bands - He took R&B up tempos, heavy backbeat, blues-based verse/chorus form and created an essential new genre - First to overdub, the man. Many many hits. He perfected the rock beat on guitar. "Johnny B. Goode" "Maybelline" Leonard chess was producer for Berry's hits. "Architect of RR"
"Sh'Boom"
- an early doo-wop SONG. It was written by James Keyes, Claude Feaster, Carl Feaster, Floyd F. McRae, and James Edwards, members of the R&B vocal group THE CHORDS and published in 1954. It was a U.S. TOP TEN HIT that year for both The Chords (who first recorded the song) and The Crew-Cuts.
Jump Blues
- an up-tempo blues usually played by small groups and featuring horns. -It was very popular in the 1940s, and the movement was a precursor to the arrival of rhythm and blues and rock and roll. -More recently, there was renewed interest in jump blues in the 1990s as part of the swing revival. - Artists: Louis Jordan and Big Joe Turner.
Significant New Developments in Rock
- fully integrated (black music inspired white music and vise versa) - performers started writing their own songs - the whole song including the instrumentation and arrangement became important (not only the vocals) - multi track recording enabled creating the song in different stages which allowed musicians to be able to experiment at every level of the song - brand new sounds - electronic bass and guitar, new loud amps that allowed bigger concerts - the whole band became important
Buddy Holly
- most creative mind in R&R's second generation, he loved early R&R and his band, the Crickets started making innovative R&R. No steady rhythm, lyrics spoke of the underdog a lot - "R&R's first everyman" While not dance music like the other R&R songs, his music would profoundly influence 60s rock. First hit was "That'll Be the Day". "Not Fade Away" teen lyrics with feeling, beyond dance music, rapid evolution of R&R. Norman Petty producer for Holly.
Chicago blues
- music indigenous to Chicago, Illinois. - A type of urban blues. - Urban blues evolved from classic blues as a result of the great depression. - Urban blues developed in the first half of the twentieth century as a result of the Great Migration, when Black workers moved from the South into the industrial cities of the North such as Chicago. At first it was in predominantly black neighborhoods.
Rock Beat
- new beat developed by chuck berry but became important when the whole band started playing it - no set rhythm more creative independence by each instrument - shared melody - most songs have a hook (opening riff by which the song can be immediately identified) - music came from all genres and styles—no holding back.
Folk Rock
-genre that included Bob Dylan and others - message and spirit of folk but in a rock flavor
boogie-woogie
A blues piano style characterized by repetitive bass figures, usually in a shuffle rhythm
T-Bone Walker
A critically acclaimed American BLUES GUITARIST, singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, who was one of the most influential pioneers and INNOVATOR OF JUMP AND ELECTRIC BLUES
Ritchie Valens
A rock and roll pioneer and aFOREFATHER OF CHICAGO ROCK MOVEMENT, Valens' recording career lasted only eight months. During this time, however, he scored several hits, most notably "La Bamba", which was originally a Mexican folk song that Valens transformed with a rock rhythm and beat that became a hit in 1958,[1][2] making Valens a pioneer of the Spanish-speaking rock and roll movement.
8-to-the-bar
A studio album released by Pete Johnson and Albert Ammons in 1941. It was recorded in two sessions, May 7 and June 17, 1941.[3] It was reissued by RCA Victor in 1952 as a 10-inch LP record as LPT-9.[4] In the United Kingdom this LP was released by the Gramophone Company as HMV DLP 101
Race Records
A term that came into use in the early 1920s to describe recordings by African American artists intended for sale primarily in the African American community
Rockabilly
According to Carl Perkins, "a COUNTRY TAKE on R&B, performed mainly by white Southerners, that combined elements of country music with R&R", most popular in mid 50s in Memphis. put some speed into some slow blues licks. Bill Haleys "Rock around the Clock" - first big hit associated with R&R
Muddy Waters
An American blues musician who is considered the <<<"father of modern Chicago blues".>>> He was a major inspiration for the British blues explosion in the 1960s
Supremes
An American female singing group and the premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s. Originally founded as the Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, the Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown's acts and are, to date, America's most successful vocal group.
The Who
An English rock band formed in 1964. They became known for energetic live performances, which often included instrument destruction. The Who has sold about 100 million records, and have charted 27 top forty singles in the US and UK. They were a major contributor to the British invasion.`
Led Zeppelin
An English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968. With their heavy, guitar-driven blues rock sound, Led Zeppelin is regularly cited as one of the progenitors of heavy metal and hard rock even though the band's individualistic style drew from many sources and transcends any single music genre. Led Zeppelin didn't release songs from their albums as singles in the UK, as tey preferred to establish the concept of album-oriented rock.
Concept album
An album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical. Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing to a single overall theme or unified story. This is in contrast to the practice of an artist or group releasing an album consisting of a number of unconnected (lyrically or otherwise) songs performed by the artist.
Jimi Hendrix
Black guitarist that came from a very blues background. Greatly increased the range, volume, and variety of sounds of electric blues into rock. Pioneered the use of the instrument as an electric sound source, using feedback and distortion as part of the sound. Died of drug-alcohol interaction in 1970. His music is extremely influential, can be seen in hard rock in the 70s and 80s.
Doo-wop (gospel roots)
DOO WOP -> GIRL GROUP MOTOWN A pop-oriented R&B GENRE that typically featured remakes of popular standards or pop-style originals sung by black vocal groups. Doo-wop DIED OUT IN 1960S with the rise of the girl groups in Motown.
Motown
Created by Berry Gordy Jr. in 60s The organizational structure was a pyramid- He was at top, then the songwriters and producers, the house musicians, then the acts themselves. Goal - black pop that would gain the widest appeal.
Coasters
DOO WOP GROIP from the west coast, worked with L&S and became famous with them producing their songs, black sound, themes were universal so teens of all races related to their songs, sound was slick but not sweet - darkly humorous and not sentimental. "Young Blood" wry tone of lyrics, distinctive shuffle rhythm, showcased all their voices, producer's impact. -By early 1960s, R&R matures through their music, audience, use of electric bass and liberation of bass line, and collective conception of the Rock Rhythm.
Studio Recording
Electrical recording was common by the early 1930s, and mastering lathes were now electrically powered, but master recordings still had to be cut direct-to-disc. In line with the prevailing musical trends, studios in this period were primarily designed for the live recording of symphony orchestras and other large instrumental ensembles. Engineers soon found that large, reverberant spaces like concert halls created a vibrant acoustic signature that greatly enhanced the sound of the recording, and in this period large, acoustically "live" halls were favored, rather than the acoustically "dead" booths and studio rooms that became common after the 1960s.
"Guitar Gods"
Eric Clapton, Jimmie Hendrix, Jeff Beck, Jimmie Page. The bands they played in were bare bone bands - guitar, bass, and drums - all to highlight the lead guitarist. Introduced new element into rock: virtuosic soloing. Solid Body Electric Guitar: Les Paul experimented with it to reduce feedback, amplification of 60s made instrument more powerful and sound modifiers (wah-wah pedal) made it more versatile) Clapton and Hendrix - heavily influenced by guitar bluesman and made the electric guitar the solo instrument of rock.
Beach Boys
INFLUENCED BY CHUCK BERRY, SURF ROCK most important and innovative of surf bands, early stuff took from Chuck Berry, glorified surfer lifestyle. "I get around" instrumentation was unique, performance style(high lead singing in a harmony) their music, while sounding all "fun in the sun" was highly sophisticated and produced.
Rock Revolution
Important for a number of reasons: - happened over only a couple of years - most of the music came from outside of the US - many of the songs and bands are still popular even today - music clearly matured throughout the 60s - Everyone liked rock music unlike the fragmented musical audience today - the music reflected social revolution of the 60s
Soul
In the 60s, soul was the term for popular black music, but more specifically "the emotionally charged black music of the 60s that draws deeply on gospel and the blues." Also, was reminiscent of the emerging black pride in the 60s. Different from white music in three respects: black had strong gospel tradition, growing division between R&R and R&B (R&B needed a horn section where R&R didn't), artistic control of a couple soul music producers. Big in Memphis and Muscle Shoals. Very emotional and heavy on the horns and bass rather than the guitar. Lasted less than a decade, started declining at the assassination of MLK.
Eric Clapton
Lead guitarist for Cream. Cream was known as the first of Power Trios: Lead Guitar, Bass, and Drums. Clapton was the first major rock performer to play extended improvised solos, didn't even have a rhythm guitar in their performances. Their recordings, since he couldn't just solo on the radio, were psychedelic rock with a blues connection. Made the guitar an extension of him. Their songs repeated the riff throughout the song(new), Cream helped loosen up rock rhythm, brought the essence of blues guitar style into rock.
Jazz Rock
Miles Davis was one of the best jazz musicians into the 60s pretty universally respected. However, when he realized that rock was the future he decided in 1968 to go electric to create the "the best damn rock band in the world" move was controversial (similar to what happened when Dylan went electric) his music was unlike anything around it. Took rock elements and freed them with jazz. "shh" - fusion (term for jazz rock) between James brown rock and improvisation from jazz, very open form, while containing elements of both certainly not rock or jazz. New Jazz differed from 50s jazz in a number of ways - bigger and electric instrumentation, 8 or 16 beat rhythms (from rock), collective conception (rock) with everyone soloing instead of just one person(jazz), long sequential multisectional forms were the norm.
acid rock
Music of the counterculture, named for the music's ability to enhance or evoke a drug experience. No connection musically between any of the acid rock bands, it was LSD—just like the acid trips varied, the music varied. Very short lived, lost steam around 1970, due to most of the bands rooted musically in other genres, like blues, rock, and folk.
Jerry Lee Lewis
NICKNAME "The Killer" is an American rock and roll and country musicsinger-songwriter and pianist. An early PIONEER OF R&R music, Lewis's career faltered after he married his young cousin, and he afterwards made a career extension to country and western music. He is known by the nickname 'The Killer'. famous single "Greats BALLS OF FIRE"
Folk Revival
Phenomenon in the United States that began during the 1940s and PEAKED IN POPULARITY mid-1960s. Its roots went earlier, and performers had enjoyed a limited general popularity in the 1930s and 1940s. The revival brought forward musical styles that had, in earlier times, contributed to the development of country & western, jazz, and rock and roll music.
Rock & Roll
R&B --> Rock & Roll POST WWII, people had MORE $ to spend, this trickled down to TEENAGERS who started to be appealed by rebellious themes - Rock and Roll epitomized this sediment. Was born out of R&B, and started becoming a distinct genre around !!!1955!!!. "All of it - the music, the lyrics, the look - horrified teens' parents; that was part of the appeal."
Bill Haley
ROCKABILIY a A COUNTRY WESTERN who incorporated blues into his songs and wrote and played songs with teen appeal, "Rock around the Clock" - first big hit associated with R&R, top of the charts, was a new type of sound a happier blues infused country song, more closer to rockabilly than to later R&R. Light hearted lyrics and music, quintessential sound of rockabilly.
Sun Records (Sam Phillips)
Sam Phillips recording studio in Memphis, home of rockabilly - he was a pioneer in early R&R,LOOKED FOR WHITE PEOPLE WITH NEGRO FEEL ELVIS!(Elvis was perfect) - did many white covers of black music. - Little commercial success but huge musical influence for later bands, combined R&B with Latin rhythms and instruments, provided the R&R beat(most important contribution) that would be widely used. "Bo Diddley" used maracas, exclusive emphasis on rhythm. Also called <<<"the originator".>>>
Louis Jordan
Singer in the 1940s. Hit song was "Choo Choo Ch'Boogie." Made his first big hit as a saxophonist in Chick Webb's fine swing band. He was a rhythm-and-blues & jump blues artist.
British Invasion
The wave of British bands that came to America during the 60's. Includes The Beatles, Rolling Stones, The Kinks, The Animals. Later Cream, Led Zeppelin, and the Who. While previously America was source of popular music, now Europe (UK) started being main source of pop music. Fueled the rise of rock in the US, first time Americans were listening to nonAmerican music without holding anything against them due to their nationality - representative of the OPEN MINDNESS OF 60s.
Paul Anka
a Canadian singer, songwriter, and actor. Anka became famous in the late 1950s, '60s, and '70s . He wrote such well-known music as the theme for The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson and one of Tom Jones's biggest hits, "She's a Lady", as well as the English lyrics for Frank Sinatra's signature song, "My Way."
Counterculture
The youth of the 60s grew up with money and looked at the "establishment" as conservative, bigoted, materialistic, etc. They formed communes, which acted, dressed, and spoke differently. Concentrated on 4 issues: minority rights, sexual freedom, drug use, and war. San Francisco was the home of the hippies (corner of Haight and Ashbury st at Golden Gate Park, rock music was everywhere, especially acid rock, flower power and Summer of Love 1967
Kingston Trio
an American folk and pop music group that helped launch the folk revival of the late 1950s to late 1960s.
a cappella
Vocal music without instrumental accompaniment
Cream
a 1960s British rock super group power trio. Their sound was characterized by a hybrid of blues-rock, hard rock and psychedelic rock
teen pop idols
a celebrity who is widely idolized by teenagers; he or she is often young but not necessarily teenaged.[1][2][3] Often teen idols are actors or musicians but some sports figures also have an appeal to teenagers. Some teen idols began their careers as child actors. The idol's popularity may be limited to teens, or may extend to all age groups. Many teen idols are targeted for adults for nostalgia purposes.
Live Performance
a live performance (typically of music, although comedians, politicians, etc. may also appear live) before an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, a choir, or a musical band.
Doo-wop (gospel roots)
a style of vocal-based rhythm and blues music developed in African American communities in the 1940s, achieving mainstream popularity in the 1950s and early 1960s.
Country-Influenced Rock (Country Rock)
a subgenre of country music, formed from the fusion of rock with country. The term is generally used to refer to the wave of rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s, beginning with Bob Dylan and The Byrds; reaching its greatest popularity in the 1970s with artists like Emmylou Harris and the Eagles.
Electric blues
a type of blues music distinguished by the amplification of the guitar, bass guitar, drums, and often the harmonica. Pioneered in the 1930s, it emerged as a genre in 1940s
Alan Freed
an American disc jockey. He became internationally known for promoting the mix of blues, country and rhythm and blues music on the radio in the United States and Europe under the name of rock and roll.
Connie Francis
an American pop singer of Italian heritage and the top-charting female vocalist of the 1950s and 1960s. Although her chart success waned in the second half of the 1960s, Francis remained a top concert draw. Despite several severe interruptions in her career, she is still active as a recording and performing artist.
Sly and the Family Stone
an American rock, funk, and soul band from San Francisco. Active from 1967 to 1983, the band was pivotal in the development of soul, funk, and psychedelic music. Headed by singer, songwriter, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist Sly Stone, and containing several of his family members and friends, the band was the first major American rock band to have an "integrated, multi-gender" lineup.
Temptations
an American vocal group known for their success with Motown Records during the 1960s and 1970s. Known for their choreography, distinct harmonies, and flashy wardrobe, the group has been said to be as influential to R&B and soul as The Beatles are to pop and rock.
Four Tops
an American vocal quartet, whose repertoire has included doo-wop, jazz, soul music, R&B, disco, adult contemporary, and show tunes. Remained together for over four decades, having gone from 1953 until 1997 without a single change in personnel.
Producer
an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording (i.e. "production") of an artist's music. A producer has many roles that may include, but are not limited to, gathering ideas for the project, selecting songs and/or musicians, coaching the artist and musicians in the studio, controlling the recording sessions, and supervising the entire process through mixing and mastering. Producers also often take on a wider entrepreneurial role, with responsibility for the budget, schedules, and negotiations.
Power Trio
band consists of just three instruments - guitar, bass, drums. The point of the band was to highlight the lead guitarist (Clapton and Hendrix)
Grateful Dead
cid Rock band, started out as a drug band, embraced much more than drug culture. had a large cult following.
Bob Dylan
early stuff was very Woody Guthrieish, as the decade wore on his lyrics and music got more surreal and added rock instruments to his music. Bringing It All Back Home - one side acoustic, one side rock. Folk people thought he was a traitor, but this was the start of rock side. His music was meaningful and challeneged listeners to become engaged, one can be sophisticated without being "sophisticated" - new mode of artiness in pop music. confrontational tone, serious musical statement without classical sound, fused blues country and rock, rock attitude
Shirelles
female quartet, first successful girl group. They appealed to teens and crossed racial lines, "Will You love me Tomorrow" vulnerable lyrics, dressed up classily, simple rock rhythm, teen themed song, black vocal style, poplike strings. The different components of their songs send different messages, part of their appeal.
Jefferson Airplane
first band to spotlight acid rock in San Francisco, Grace Slick their leade singer was a woman, "White Rabbit" - song about Alice and wonderland and scene where the caterpillar is smoking opium - lyrics and way they are sung (slow, trippy) are most important aspect of song, Spanish flavor, big crescendo message to do acid. "Slick took her audience into a fantasy world"
Surf-rock
first of post 1959 rock styles to add significantly to rock's sound world, and introduced array of new guitar sounds, created the idea of regional rock.
Ray Charles
invent lyric from "American Pie" by Don Mclean. Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and JP "the Big Bopper" Richardson die in a plane crash on Feb. 3, 1959. Was one of series of events (Elvis being drafted into the army, Little Richard became a preacher, Chuck Berry arrested, Jerry Lee Lewis marries 13 year old cousin without divorcing wife, payola scandal - DJs took bribes to play certain songs, licensing rights became an issue) that led to belief that R&R was done as a fad by the early 60s.
"the day the music died"
lyric from "American Pie" by Don Mclean. Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and JP "the Big Bopper" Richardson die in a plane crash on Feb. 3, 1959. Was one of series of events (Elvis being drafted into the army, Little Richard became a preacher, Chuck Berry arrested, Jerry Lee Lewis marries 13 year old cousin without divorcing wife, payola scandal - DJs took bribes to play certain songs, licensing rights became an issue) that led to belief that R&R was done as a fad by the early 60s.
Motown sound
melodic saturation (all the instrumentation in the song contributed to the melody), good but unobtrusive beat (strong backbeat with an understatement of everything else), broad sound spectrum(very full sound vocals and instrumentation, appealed to many people), predictable form. These 4 aspects provided easy entry into a Motown song. Motown emphasized the romance aspect of love, as oppose to rock which was evolving a more cynical and lustful view of love. Also, for the first time a black style was on equal footing as white music.
"Dark Ages"
music sucked from 1957-1964
girl groups
new genre of Rock, "WRITTEN AND PERFORMED NY WOMEN, lyrics were from women's perspective on the fragility of love" this emergence of women's influence over the music reflects the maturing and changing of racial, gender, and social attitudes of the 1960s. ` - BIG THAT WOMEN NOW HAVE INFLUENCE IN MUSIC 1960S
Chiffons
one of the top girl groups of the early 1960s. With their trademark tight harmonies, high-stepping confidence and the hit machine of Goffin and King writing songs such as "One Fine Day," the Chiffons made music that helped define the girl group sound of the era.
Cover
rock era concept, remakes of existing songs with an understanding that the recording you're covering is the song, not only a version of the song. Many doo-wop songs were covers, but white covers of black songs was big. Black groups and their songs were exploited, usually never saw the money they earned and white covers sold better in the pop market than black originals. This changed in the 60s, where white people opened themselves up to black music.
folk-rock
the genre that included Bob Dylan and others - message and spirit of folk but in a rock flavor.
Kinks
were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, North London, by brothers Ray and Dave Davies in 1964. Categorized in the United States as a British Invasion band, The Kinks are recognized as one of the most important and influential rock acts of the era. Their music was influenced by a wide range of genres, including rhythm and blues, British music hall, folk and country
