Chapter 23: Music in America: Jazz and Beyond

Chapter 23:Music in America: Jazz and Beyond Rock: The First Fifty Years

“Standards” Rock’n’roll Rock Early rock’n’roll Hillbilly music Country music Rhythm and blues Electric guitar Rockabilly “Covers” Doo-wop Girl groups Motown Soul Funk Key Terms

British invasion Folk rock Singer-songwriter Acid rock Heavy metal Art rock MTV Punk rock Indie rock Grunge rock Hip-hop Rap Gangsta rap Post-rock Key Terms

Rock:The First Fifty Years • Popular songs lasted a long time • From Foster to Gershwin to Sinatra • “Standards” served crooners & progressive jazz improvisers alike • Such songs faced rivalry after the war • Brash, loud music with a driving beat • New style was named rock’n’roll in mid-1950s • In the 1960s, it became just rock • Rock has endured and evolved • America’s most distinctive contribution to music of the last 50 years

Early Rock’n’Roll (1) • Rhythm & blues emerged in 1940s • A black urban update of earlier blues • Dance music with emphatic, driving rhythms • Added electric guitar to small jazz combo • Country music was a bit older • White rural style based on southern folk songs • Used acoustic guitar, fiddle, & voice • Together they created rockabilly • An early rock’n’roll style • Carl Perkins, Bill Haley

Early Rock’n’Roll (2) • Black artists first forged rock’n’roll • Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Fats Domino • 1st rock’n’roll superstar was Elvis Presley • Television made him an overnight sensation • Vocal style could be lyrical or full-throated • Influenced by blues, pop, & rockabilly singers • Many hits were “covers” of songs by black artists – “Hound Dog,” for example • Other artists followed him up the charts • Buddy Holly, Jerry Lee Lewis

The 1960s:Rock Comes of Age • Fusion of black & white styles continued • But in various forms • Many new styles emerged in the 1960s • Each won over a different group of fans • Some were clearly white or black in origin & target audience • Some were geared to young teens, others to young adults • Some appealed to a broad audience

Motown, Soul, and Funk (1) • African American styles began to assert independence from white rock • Grew out of several late 1950s sources • Ray Charles’ gospel-infused rhythm & blues • Urban doo-wop groups such as the Drifters • “Girl groups” such as the Shirelles • Berry Gordy, Jr. formed Motown in 1959 • Infectious, lyrical music with broad appeal • Polished dance steps & appearance • Smokey Robinson, Supremes, Temptations

Motown, Soul, and Funk (2) • Soul offered a more visceral alternative • Fused southern gospel & Ray Charles’ R&B • The powerful Aretha Franklin – “Respect” • James Brown – “the hardest working man in show business” • Soul evolved into funk in the late 1960s • A spare, hip sound with fuzztone bass ostinatos & syncopated guitar scratching • Sly and the Family Stone, George Clinton • (A decade later, DJs sampled funk to back up the 1st rappers)

The British Invasion (1) • Beatles landed in New York Feb. 7, 1964 • Beatlemania changed the face of rock’n’roll • Other British rockers soon followed • Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, Animals • Many were deeply influenced by the blues • Rolling Stones differed from the Beatles • Longer hair & leather jackets • Hard-rocking, blues-oriented style • “Satisfaction,” “Honky Tonk Woman”

The British Invasion (2) • Beatles blossomed in all directions • Rock’n’roll covers – “Roll Over, Beethoven” • Pop/rock – “She Loves You,” “Help!” • Lyrical ballads – “Yesterday,” “Blackbird” • Hymnlike anthems – “Hey Jude,” “Let It Be” • Psychedelic rock – “Strawberry Fields,” “A Day in the Life” • 1930s pop songs – “When I’m Sixty-Four” • Avant-garde – “Revolution 9” • Raw, blues-drenched rock – “Revolution,” “Helter Skelter”

American Counteroffensives (1) • At first, British invasion swept many American groups off the charts • Only Beach Boys did well at Beatles’ peak • “I Get Around,” “Good Vibrations” • Other styles emerged to compete • Folk rock – led by Bob Dylan • Poetic, often socially conscious lyrics • “Blowin’ in the Wind,” “Like a Rolling Stone” • Carved out a place for singer-songwriters such as Paul Simon, Joan Baez, Joni Mitchell, Bruce Springsteen, Tori Amos, Alanis Morissette

American Counteroffensives (2) • Acid rock – from late 60s counterculture • Hallucinatory lyrics & long, jazzlike electric guitar improvisations • Grateful Dead the first great “jam band” • Guitarist Jimi Hendrix offered new fusion • Linked acid rock’s improvisation with urban blues guitar – “Purple Haze,” “Voodoo Chile” • New virtuoso guitar style influenced many • The Who (Tommy), Cream (“Sunshine of Your Love”), Led Zeppelin (“Whole Lotta Love”) • These groups formed the roots of heavy metal

After the 1960s • Many styles evolved from late 60s trends • Art-rock – Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon • Singer-songwriter rock – Joni Mitchell et al. • Heavy metal – Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath • Funk – George Clinton, Herbie Hancock • 1970s consolidated 60s business trends • High-tech mass marketing • Aggressive promotion of superstars • Play-listed, market-researched, repetitive radio • Powerful new 1981 outlet for rock – MTV

Trends since 1980:Punk, Rap, and Post-Rock • Rock has survived to the present day • Sometimes because of commercialization • Sometimes in spite of it • Many trends have emerged since 1980 • We will look at three of them • Punk rock – first appeared mid-1970s • Rap – first appeared late 1970s • Post-rock – appeared around 1990

Punk (1) • Youthful disaffection of the late 1960s hardened in the 1970s • Punk’s nihilistic alienation expressed this mood perfectly • Influential groups in New York & Britain • Patti Smith (“Gloria”), Ramones (“Blitzkrieg Bop”), Sex Pistols (“Anarchy in the UK”) • A reaction against commercial flashiness • An anti-aesthetic – all expression was possible, or none; expertise was not required

Punk (2) • Gave rise to a populist movement in rock • Encouraged countless garage bands • New small, independent labels paved the way for indie rock • Some punks used a new singing style • An alienated, flat vocal delivery • Not like the raw, impassioned singing of earlier rock • Looks forward to Kurt Cobain & grunge rock (“Lithium,” “Smells Like Teen Spirit”)

Rap (1) • For 25 years the primary black rhetorical & musical mode • Began on the streets of New York • Transmitted around the globe with stunning postmodern quickness • A significant, viable style on its own terms • Also a strong undercurrent influencing pop & rock traditions around the world • Started as pointed expression of urban black concerns, but was marketed successfully to affluent white suburban teens

Rap (2) • By 1980 rap embraced varied approaches • Hip-hop dance numbers – Sugarhill Gang (“Rapper’s Delight”) • Social commentary – Grandmaster Flash (“The Message”) • By 1990 it had extended its range • Love lyrics or tongue-twisting word games • Black empowerment messages – Public Enemy (“Don’t Believe the Hype”) • Women’s dignity & strength – Queen Latifah (“Latifah’s Had it Up 2 Here”)

Rap (3) • Early 1990s public debate overlooked rap’s range of expression • Focused on gangsta rap & its often violent, misogynist lyrics • By 2000 rap had its 1st white superstar • Eminem (“”)

Post-Rock (1) • Early groups came out of indie rock • Slint (“Good Morning Captain”) • Experimental style using rock instruments • Related to minimalism & avant-garde jazz • Hypnotically repeated gestures (especially bass ostinatos) • Juxtaposition of contrasting sound plateaus • Slow transitions & buildups • Free improvisation • Emphasis on instruments rather than voice

Post-Rock (2) • But is it rock? • Godspeed You Black Emperor! (“Storm”) • Favors acoustic over electric instruments & avoids rock’s foremost trait – a strong beat • Are categories really that fixed? • Jazz accommodated fusion & classical music accepted minimalism • Rock will accommodate post-rock, and it is already being transformed in the process • Radiohead expanded its song-oriented style to include traits of post-rock (“Pyramid Song”)

Chapter 23: Music in America: Jazz and Beyond