10 Shades of American Music

1. 10 Shades of American Music Written by John Lechnir III Michael Hutsell MarcusHarbison

2. Original Dixieland Jazz Band’s “Livery Stable Blues” • Forming in 1917, the Original Dixieland Jazz Band started a trend in music based on old style “ragtime.” This new style of music came to be known as “jazz”, and has been in mainstream since then. • “Livery Stable Blues” is literally the first ever jazz song to be played on the radio, and is the pioneer of jazz music, which would become the music of the 20s. Jazz was everything from sad to happy, from funk to smooth. • Jazz defined the feel good era of the “Roarin’ Twenties”, and is still considered an important part of music today.

3. Louis Armstrong’s“What a Wonderful World” • Louis Armstrong came in with a bang during the 20s, and never stopped playing till his death. While the song itself is not as influential as others, he himself influenced countless Americans. • Using a unique voice and playing style, Louis was a one of a kind act. Starting out with jazz, he helped pioneer the music, making it popular all around. • Ranging from jazz to opera, Louis played whatever he felt like, and he was good at pretty much everything. Topping the best hits list several times, Louis Armstrong without was one of the longest and best musicians to ever exist, influencing all of America for decades. • Plus, we never stop hearing this song, now do we?

4. Frank Sinatra’s “New York, New York” • Easily one of the best singers of all time, Frank Sinatra didn’t need a specific song to influence an audience. All he had to do was start singing. • Frank Sinatra was a first in a lot of things. First off, he made his audience young teenage girls, a first for any artist. Furthermore, because of his powerful voice, Frank was one of the first to shy away from the big bands and put the attention on the solo artist. • Frank Sinatra’s music was mostly swing music, and he liked it that way. Almost all of his hundreds songs can be considered swing in someway. Because of his great success, Frank inspired generations to continue loving swing music and just him overall.

5. Elvis Presley’s “You Ain’tNothin’ But a Hound Dog” • While the song itself wasn’t competely influential on American culture, it became one of Elvis’s trademarks. Known as the King of Rock and Roll, Elvis changed the face of America for all time. • Fusing the style of white country and black rhythm and blues, this song illustrates the new age of rock coming into the generation. With hot new moves and scandalous music, the youth of America slowly started slipping away from the feel good music of past generations and into the rocking new rock n’ roll music still listened to today. • Simply singing the words “You Ain’tNothin’ But a Hound Dog” would make the audience melt to tears. After his death in 1977, Elvis still influences rock n’ roll today with simply his memory. The world still remembers Elvis as one of the greatest solo artists of all time, turning a new generation of Americans into Rock n’ roll fanatics.

6. The Beatles “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” • Bursting onto the scene in 1960, the Beatles took America by storm, becoming one of the most successful bands of all time. Using Memphis style music, (inspired by Elvis), The Beatles became the lead of the “British invasion”, in which Memphis style music became the major trend in America. Later, the Beatles would change their style of music to fit the anti-government style of the Vietnam War. • The song was highly controversial, for the lyrics and the abbreviation of the song “LSD” describe the well known drug LSD. Such lines as “tangerine trees and marmalade skies” easily could be taken as a reference to the drug. Such songs were plentiful in the Vietnam War, for America was literally high on drugs, trying to rid itself of the pain of the longest and most painful war we’ve ever had: the Vietnam War. This song defines the hippie movement, or the “counterculture movement”, for what it was: people trying to escape to a different reality anyway they could.

7. Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven” • Formed in 1968, Led Zeppelin took the world by storm by introducing their own style of heavy metal rock. • What is considered the pinnacle of their career is the famous “Stairway to Heaven.” This song was completed in 1971, and although it was never released as a single, it is the single most requested rock song of all time.The song itself influenced rock for all time, for the soft to hard lyrics combined with the heavy metal and guitar solos is mirrored in bands across the ages. • Rock and roll wasn’t the only thing influenced by the song. It was discovered in 1982 that if a specific part of the song was played backwards, a message from Satan would present itself. This caused an intense backlash against rock n’ roll for the entire decade, while the number Satanic worshippers rose dramatically. Oh here's to my sweet Satan.The one whose little path would make me sad, whose power is Satan.He will give those with him 666.There was a little tool shed where he made us suffer, sad Satan. – Most popular version of the lyrics to Stairway to Heaven played backwards

8. Rage Against the Machine’s “Killing in the Name” • Brought together in 1991, Rage Against the Machine stormed the scene their revolutionary music and ideas. They not only created controversial music, but they also took political stands as well. • Their first album, named after themselves, has a picture of a Buddhist monk burning himself alive in protest of Buddhist killings in Saigon. The picture was supposed to represent the revolutionary ideas of the band itself, and it worked when many viewers couldn’t wait to see what was next. • The song “Killing in the Name” may have only eight lyric lines, but the song itself has become the signature song of the band for it represents their anarchist style. • The band’s music has been heard in many movies, and the band itself still takes political stands, protests, and anti-government music as their forte. Many follow in their footsteps for they are inspired when they hear the same political stuff they hear all the time, but in in music form.

9. Beastie Boy’s “You Gotta Fight For Your Right to Party!” • First starting as a hardcore punk band, the Beastie Boys first breakthrough album was Licensed to III which reached big popularity when the listeners heard this song. While the band initially intended the song to be a parody about parties and the such, the irony was lost. • Most people believe the song reinforces the right to party, to ditch school, and to do whatever you want. This idea has spread to many youth in America and even some adults. Although it can never be proven, you can’t deny the facts. • First, the song was the Beastie Boys most famous song, despite what they say. Second, the song talks about all the fun things to do instead of school and homework. Tie the two together, and you have a generation filled with party-goers ditching school and other things. Undoubtedly, the song, even if not intentional, did influence much of America’s youth to fight for their right to party.

10. Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song” • One of Bob Marley’s more famous songs, “Redemption Song” is an iconic song performed near the end of his life. Considered to be his finest work by many, “Redemption Song” talks about freeing ourselves from mental slavery, saying only we can free our minds. • The song is considered to be a song defending not only African-American rights, but any kind of slavery. The song itself is a symbol of Bob Marley’s life and beliefs. A firm believer of the “Rastafari” movement, he became the leading image of the movement using his music. • Using a unique genre of music called “reggae”, Bob Marley helped spread Rastafari and Jamaican music to the world. Many were inspired by his works, which helped spread the “Rastafari” movement, which is spread across the world to this day.

11. Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” Nirvana released the song in their 1991 album “Nevermind”, and it instantly became a smash hit. The song is said to be the first ever song to introduce the subgenre of alternative rock called “grunge.” This new style became the new hard rock that continued in popularity until the late 1990’s. Today’s music is inspired greatly by grunge music, and naturally the forerunner of grunge music “Smells Like Teen Spirit”, for the electric guitar, contrasting song dynamics, and unique lyrics inspire hard rock to this day.

12. Works Cited • 500 Songs That Shaped Rock." Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum. 2007. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. 28 Aug 2009 • The RS 500 Greatest Albums of All Time." Rolling Stone Resources. 2003. Rolling Stone. Web.1 Sep 2009. • Wikipedia." Wikipedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 28 Aug 2009