Cool 50s-60s TV: Careers, Music, and Cuteness!

1. 2. COOL The 1950s-Early 1960s: Television Launches Careers, Music Dies and Cuteness Abouds!

2. NIFTY RECAP: TEENAGERS • Enfranchisement of the teenager • Youth Rights Movements Boy Scouts | Flappers | Bobby Soxers • Teenage-specific magazines Teenage girls became the largest purchasing group of Women’s magazines

3. NIFTY RECAP: FRANK AND JUDY JUDY GARLAND • Designed by the movie studios as a model teenager • Mature voice meets youthful appearance FRANK SINATRA • Pop idol due to his shabby appearance and vocal style • Teenage girls worked themselves into a frenzy, fainted at his concerts

4. NIFTY RECAP: ROCK ‘N’ ROLL • Southern musicians were experimenting with speeding up blues and country standards by providing intricate back-beats and more elaborate guitar work • Recording equipment became more cost-effective leading to the rise of independent niche-oriented record labels

5. NIFTY RECAP: CHUCK BERRY • First major African American star to appeal to a “broad” (white) audience • Began by speeding up blues/country songs • Distorted guitar | flashy stage presence | funky backbeat • “Maybellene” secured him in the teenage market, and he subsequently began writing songs exclusively about the teenage experience • Heavy use of double-entendre

6. NIFTY RECAP: ROCKABILLY AND ELVIS • Rockabilly is rooted in country and bluegrass, but with a slap bass and an intricate drum part. • “Blue Suede Shoes,” written by Carl Perkins, was covered and released as one of Elvis’ first singles. • Elvis’ initial musical appeal was his take on the old standards, though TV audiences didn’t know what to do with him.

7. NIFTY RECAP: FRANKIE LYMON • 13-year-old Doo Wop sensation • Typified the cute, respectful young man, but embodied a talent well beyond his years • When he went solo, and puberty had taken its toll, he recorded exclusively in his falsetto register. • Caused a scandal when he spontaneously began dancing with a young white girl on one of his live TV appearances, resulting in the show’s immediate cancellation. • Further scandal came when it was discovered he had passed away of a heroine overdose at the age of 25.

8. NIFTY RECAP: THE FORMULA • A Teen Star must be cute. • If you’re a girl, sexiness is dangerous (until the 90’s when it becomes your greatest weapon). • Know your audience and sell to them accordingly. • Possess mature talent beyond your years, while still exaggerating your youthful personality. • Maintain an active media presence. • Embrace the mob mentality of fandom. They are your army. • Your growing pains are our entertainment. Capitalize on your need to produce more “grown up” or “edgy” material. • At some point, you WILL fight with your management publically and litigiously and/or suffer a public breakdown. • If you’re lucky...we’ll totally love you again.

9. FROM RADIO TO TV “In the period 1920-50 the radio and music industries developed a symbiotic relationship. Music on record became the basis of record selling. Radio was crucial for the emergence of new popular music genres.” - Simon Frith (278)

10. FROM RADIO TO TV • The television, though invented in the late 19th Century, was introduced to the United States at the 1939 World’s Fair. • However, with the outbreak of WWII, the television didn’t enter into production until the mid-1940’s. • By 1948, the first nationally-broadcast television programs were aired.

11. TV IN EVERY HOME • Before televisions, radios were large furniture pieces, and functioned as a way to unite people as well as bring unattainable performers into the home. • By the mid-1950’s, the television had replaced the radio as the primary source of news and entertainment.

12. EARLY TV PROGRAMMING “Since music served as a foundation for many radio shows, it makes sense that ‘nearly half’ of the televisions series aired during the 1950s fit the music-variety genre...A basic question faced TV producers: What do you show with the music?” - McIntosh (260)

13. TELEVISION AND RADIO • Television programming relies on immediate gratification and relies on methods of grabbing the audience’s attention in ways that private listening does not. • “Television programming is not sound-centered but picture-driven, organized around an aesthetic of immediacy (rather than reflection).” – Frith, 280

14. OWNERSHIP AND CENSORHIP • TV quickly became the center of domestic (family) entertainment. All family members were likely to be present at the same time, so programs had to appeal to both the youth sensibility and their parent watchdogs. • Alan Freed’s ABC show The Big Beat, was cancelled after Frankie Lymon spontaneously danced with a white audience member live on air

15. DICK CLARK “There were rules of dress and behavior that had to be adhered to for the kids to get on the show. The dress code required that boys wear a jacket and tie, or a sweater and tie. Nobody dressed that way in real life, but it made the show acceptable to adults who were frightened by the teen-age world and their music. Girls couldn’t wear slacks, tight sweaters, shorts or low-necked gowns – they had to wear the kind of dresses or sweaters and skirts they wore in school. No tight toreadors or upturned collars.” - Frith(283)

16. TELEVISION AND INFLUENCE • Appearing on TV was something that immediately changed the way music was produced • Record labels, initially having written off Rock ‘n’ Roll as a fad, began churning out Elvis copies in droves • Each new star was a safer, more saccharine bet for parents and management companies. They were younger, they were good looking, and they could be controlled easily.

17. TV AND INFLUENCE “...the popular music industry realized at once that television was a potentially fundamental component of the star-making machinery whatever the music involved... [Late] 1950s pop music shos like American Bandstand (US) and Oh Boy! (UK) helped articulate a new sort of youth music culture. That said, the subsequent emergence of rock as popular music’s dominant form occurred despite and even as a critique of television culture, which became identified with the blandest sort of easy listening balladeers and the most crassly commercial examples of teen idols.” - Frith (279)

18. ELVIS AND THE MOVIES

19. ELVIS AND ICONOGRAPHY "As the lad himself might say, cut my legs off and call me Shorty! Elvis Presley can act.” - Howard Thompson’s New York Times review of King Creole

20. ELVIS GETS DRAFTED

21. THE BIG BOPPER • Born J.P. Richardson in 1930 • Was a popular radio DJ from Beaumont, TX • Began by writing songs for other popular artists George Jones and Johnny Preston that featured comical caricatures and narrative storylines • Novelty Records

22. THE BIG BOPPER – CHANTILLY LACE

23. RITCHIE VALENS • The first Latino rock/pop star, and had the first all-Spanish language single to top American Pop Charts with La Bamba. • Born Richard Valenzuela, his named was changed to Ritchie Valens as a way to “broaden” his appeal... • Thanks to the popularity of Chuck Berry and Elvis, and with the increasing availability of musical instruments, teenagers were now starting to teach themselves how to play the guitar.

24. RITCHIE VALENS – LA BAMBA • Mexican folk courtship song, originally from Veracruz • The song is a Son Jarocho style which uses mostly fast guitar and harp strumming, with interludes of horns. • Originally meant to be performed as part of a wedding dance. • Song is about how you need a little humor in order to dance the “Bamba,” and features Spanish play on words, boasting and mockery

25. MARIACHI VARGAS DE TECALITLAN

26. RITCHIE VALENS – LA BAMBA

27. MARIACHI MEETS ROCK ‘N’ ROLL • Valens slowed down the original track, as opposed to speeding up as was the case with the blues and country-based artists. • Infused Latin percussion with the “traditional” rock set-up of guitar, bass and drums. • 2 – 3 clave rhythm • Though Valens was proud of his Mexican heritage, he didn’t grow up speaking Spanish! • He learned the song phonetically, with the help of his parents.

28. VALENS’ MUSICAL STYLE We Belong Together • Higher, nasal, floating voice. • Reverb! • Not a wide range in pitch. • Not bombastic in any way. Donna (demo) Oh Donna (final cut) • What’s different?

29. BUDDY HOLLY • Born in Lubbock, TX • Follows closely in the lineage of rockabilly country boys Carl Perkins and Elvis • Began playing in bluegrass bans in local clubs, and started to experiment with Rockabilly with his own band, The Crickets

30. BUDDY HOLLY’S MUSICAL SOUND • Among the first musicians to pick up the Fender Stratocaster guitar, which had been around for only a few years. • The “Strat” came equipped with multiple pickups (small amplifiers) that allowed the player to switch back and forth between sound types • Quick strumming of all strings, rather than the intricate picking of Chuck Berry. • Watch • Peggy Sue was also among the first to utilize experimental recording techniques to manipulate the sound of a single instrument. • Listen to the drum part. • Listen to Jerry Allison explain how it was done.

31. BUDDY HOLLY – PEGGY SUE If you knew Peggy SueThen you'd know why I feel blue without PeggyMy Peggy SueOh well, I love you gal, yes, I love you Peggy Sue Peggy Sue, Peggy SueOh how my heart yearns for youOh Peggy, my Peggy SueOh well, I love you gal, yes, I love you Peggy Sue Peggy Sue, Peggy SuePretty, pretty, pretty, pretty Peggy SueOh Peggy, my Peggy SueOh well, I love you gal and I need you Peggy Sue I love you Peggy SueWith a love so rare and trueOh Peggy, my Peggy SueWell I love you gal, I want you Peggy Sue Peggy Sue, Peggy SuePretty, pretty, pretty, pretty Peggy SueOh Peggy, my Peggy SueOh well, I love you gal yes I need you Peggy Sue I love you Peggy SueWith a love so rare and trueOh Peggy, my Peggy SueOh well I love you gal, and I want you Peggy SueOh well, I love you gal and I want you Peggy Sue

32. HOLLY’S VOCAL INFLECTION • Takes the rockabilly style of added hiccups, but exaggerates it. • He begins to not only add them as punctuation to the poetic lines, he adds them to the middle of words. • The word “You” becomes “You-AH-Hoo” • In “Peggy Sue,” a song that is really about nothing, Holly hiccups, pines, whines, shifts from falsetto to lower resonant pitches as a feat of vocal acrobatics similar to cowboy yodeling.

33. FEB. 3, 1959: THE DAY THE MUSIC DIED • Holly just severed ties with the original members of the Crickets, moved to NYC • He was booked to tour with fellow-stars Ritchie Valens, the Big Bopper and Dion and the Belmonts • They were touring the Midwest in the middle of winter, and were struck by severe weather • Holly decided to charter a plane to go ahead to the next stop to try to do laundry for the group. • The plane could only take 3 passengers, and since the Big Bopper had come down with a severe cold, he was given a

34. MUSICAL IMPACT • The death of 3 promising stars barely a couple of years into their respective careers shocked the music industry and general public. • 2 of the 3 musicians barely in their 20s • In the short term, the accident was viewed as the end of Rock ‘n’ Roll entirely, and for a brief moment, it was. • With Elvis away in the Army, Holly and Valens were considered the next in line to continue the style.

35. MUSIC INDUSTRY DEFINES POP • It was a matter of many things happening at the same time, but the symbolic death of Rock and Roll was seen as the catalyst for a boom in “paint-by-numbers” popular music. • Many imitators would follow suit, but none would really catch on.

36. RICKY NELSON

37. RICKY NELSON • Former child actor turned teen idol • Began career on his father’s radio program, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, which was among the few sitcoms to make the transfer from radio to TV • The show featured the real life family of Ozzie, Harriet, and sons Eric “Ricky” and David, and eventually their real life girlfriends and wives • The show aired on ABC from 1952 - 1966

38. RICKY NELSON • When he wasn’t busy filming, Nelson was picking up the guitar and is said to have been enamored by Carl Perkins’ sound in Blue Suede Shoes • Ozzie made a few calls, and got Ricky a recording contract with Verve Records in 1957, on which he recorded the Fats Domino Rock hit, I’m Walkin’

39. RICKY ON TV • Ricky’s success was almost guaranteed thanks to his father • He had opportunity that no other up-and-comer had, and as a result, was a hit overnight. • Ozzie began including regular musical performances by Ricky on their show, starting with “I’m Walkin’”

40. I’M WALKIN’ • Staged ‘live’ performance • Awkward gestures/dancing • Teens swaying in controlled support for their peer • Pretty face (Elvis look-alike) • Mommy and Daddy beaming with pride

41. MUSICAL STYLE • Like many of his fellow teen boys stars, Nelson sang about stupid, simple things • Unrequited puppy love • He’s been around (boys will be boys) • She’s been around (how dare she) • She’s not old enough

42. OZZIE’S TIGHT GRIP • Many of his professional decisions were made by his father • Ricky was never allowed to perform on shows like American Bandstand or The Ed Sullivan Show to promote his records. • Ricky felt confined by his status as a clean teen idol • Ozzie had very clear plans for his son, none of which involved anything that might be perceived as “edgy”

43. Walt Disney’s “Mickey Mouse Club” debuted in 1957 • The show was structured as a Musical Variety Show aimed at very young children • It featured comedy skits, short-form sitcoms, and elaborate musical numbers • There was a major breakaway star early in the show’s run: AnetteFunicello (who was 15 at the time of the show’s debut) • Her first time singing on the show made her a STAR: “How Will I Know My Love”

44. ANNETTE GOES SOLO Tall Paul • Funicello was not very comfortable pursuing a singing career • Her singing wasn’t all that hot (and she knew it) • She relied on personality, campiness and residual Disney Cuteness in her TV and movie appearances ...more on that next week...

45. BRENDA LEE • Child singer who was presented in an even more exaggeratedly youthful way that Garland ever was. • “Little Miss Dynamite” • While she debuted at 12 years old, she was so small in stature that her management thought it’d be a good idea to say that she was actually 9 years old...and they dressed her as a baby doll...

46. BRENDA LEE: CONTENT AND CONTEXT Bigelow 6-200 • This song was released when she was 11, and the photo to the right was taken when she was 13 years old • What does her vocal style sound like? • What is she singing about? • What about her stage presence? • What is the audience for such a thing?

47. CHILD STARS AND PROJECTION Robynn Stillwell argues that it is “somehow okay for child stars to be singing sexually charged songs...” by virtue of her blankness. She, in no way, is demonstrating any knowledge of the content through her stiff body language and blank face, “the better to fill you up with projections, my dear,” though that “emptiness is itself a projection onto a real child.” What does that even M E A N ?

48. BRENDA LEE GETS OLDER Sweet Nothin’s • She’s now 15, and releases a song about talking to her boyfriend in secret • While on the surface it’s a pretty innocent song, the vocal delivery implies something that she might not have intended • There’s a sort of “knowing” to her big, sexy voice

49. BRENDA LEE STYLE CHANGE I’m Sorry • As she aged, it was decided that she should stop singing suggesting Rockabilly music and focus more on pathetic teenager pop • This song was released in 1960, when lee was 16 years old • Pouty and tragic....what happened to her voice?! LOL the puppies!!!

50. BRENDA LEE’S IMAGE “We never knew how to dress her. She looks 9, is 14, and sings like 30...if we dress her to fit the way she sings, people say we’re pushing her. If we dress her according to her age, people say we’re trying to make her look like a child.” - Lee’s manager, Dub Albritten