BIRTH OF ROCK AND POP (I)

THE BIRTH OF ROCK AND POP

I. The birh of Pop - Rock Music

After World War II: big expansion of popular music due to the contact among different countries, the advances of mass media, the economic development and the acceptance and mix of black dance music by white population.

1.1. Precedents

Until the 50’s Decade, there was a parallel running of black and white music: - Race records: radio stations and discs for black consumers, focus on blues, jazz, gospel and boogie-woogie - White radio stations focus on country, swing orchestras and singers such as Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby…

During the 50’s, the name of “race music” was replaced by “rhythm and blues”, that describes dance music of black tradition featured by rhythm of blues, gospel vocal style, characteristics of swing… The Rockabilly joins black and country styles, without distorted voices and guitars. Bill Haley mixed both trends (black and white) and he modernized the country style with touches of rhythm and blues.

1.2. Rock and Roll

Birth with the song “Rock around the Clock”, by Bill Haley and The Comets, in the soundtrack of “The Blackboard Jungle”. Rock and Roll: a sociological phenomenon where young people looked for their own identity with specific signals. Most of the youth (13-19 years old) had a high acquisitive power, recording industries dealt with their necessities and their interest in rebellion and provocation with R&R. Characteristics: From blues the structure of 12 bars in 4/4 and chords, binary and repetitive rhythm; balance between voice and instruments, acoustic and electric guitars with the slide and riff techniques, and escape from a hard reality as topic.

"Rock around the clock", by Bill Haley and The Comets

"Blackboard Jungle" Trailer

"Footloose Final Dance" film

Article about Sister Rosetta, the forgotten inventor of Rock and Roll

Elvis Presley turned dark Rockabilly with his raspy and Southern voice; with the charm of a blues singer, a frenetic rhythm and a provocative sense of spectacle with his peculiar way of dancing ( he was called Elvis “The Pelvis”, TV only filmed him from his waist to up in order not to show his sexy hips movement. He wasn’t a composer but a mere performer with courage and a white image that mass media took to all the houses.

Chuck Berry was another very important performer and author of his songs. He established the authentic basis of Rock and Roll: easy and recognizable melodies, explosiveness on stage, lyrics with humor that tell the worries of the youth. Other very important Rock and Roll singers were Little Richard, Eddie Cochran, Jerry Lee Lewis, Buddy Holly…

"Jailhous Rock", by Elvis Presley

"Johnny B. Good", by Chuck Berry

"Tutti frutti", by Little Richard

"C´mon everybody", by Eddie Cochran

"Great balls of fire", by Lerry Lee Lewis

1.3. At the end of the 50's

The authentic R&R had a short life from 1954 to 1958 because of these unlucky events: - Little Richard left music to become preacher in 1957. - In 1958, Elvis Presley enrolled in the army and he didn’t return to R&R later, only as a performer of soft ballads. - In 1958, Jerry Lee Lewis was accused of corruption of minors. - In 1958, Chuck Berry was accused of not fulfilling the immigration laws. - In 1959, Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens (author of “La Bamba”) and Big Booper died in a small plane accident, and Eddie Cochran in a car accident.

After these events, recording industries looked for less controversial talents who arrived to a wider public with a cleaner and less dangerous music. The supported styles by these enterprises were: - High-School: music addressed to young people in the school age, very sweet, on the 1st love: Paul Anka, Neil Sedaka, Brenda Lee… - Doo Woop: they were the syllables performed by the vocalist of the choirs that accompanied the stars. The Platters (“Only you”). - Dance Music: Ike and Tina Turner - Surf: It appeared in the California Coast associated with this sport and its unworried way of life, focused on beaches, cars and girls. The characteristics sound of its guitars recall the waves of the sea. Beach Boys

PAUL ANKA

THE PLATTERS

IKE & TINA TURNER

BEACH BOYS: SURFIN USA, BARBARA ANN, GOOD VIBRATIONS

II THE 60'S DECADE

2.1. Background It was marked by serious political and social problems: - After World War II, there was a tension that was increased due to the missile crisis. - Anticommunism turned into an ideology; the senator McCarthy promoted the “Witch hunts” that included from politicians to film-makers. He persecuted communists in USA (1 - 2). - The black problem with the active Ku Klux Klan got worse. - Puritanism came back and women were pushed into the background of their role in the society (3). - From 1964, thousands of young boys were sent to die in Vietnam (4). - The hope in Martin Luther King and John Fitzgerald Kennedy was vanished because of their murderers (5).

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2.2. The first half of the 60’s in USA A. Soul was a means of expression of black population, with social critical topics, whose songs became hymns of its struggle and identity. In Spanish, it means “alma”, and it’s featured by broken voices with a lot of feeling. Influenced by jazz and blues, the voices are accompanied by brass wind instruments and saxophones. The musicians that belong to this style were gathered around two recording seals: a) Stax: Otis Reading ("Sittin on the dock of ghe bay"), Aretha Franklin (“Respect”), Perci Sledge b) Motown: Diana Ross and The Supremes, The Jackson 5, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder (“Superstition”), Martha and The Vandellas, The Temptations… The evolution of Soul and Motown sound crystallized in the Funk of the 70’s and in the Philadelphia Sound, precedent of the Disco music and all the Dance culture at the end of the 20th century.

"Baby love", by Diana Ross and The Sepremes

"Lets get it on", by Marvin Gaye

"I want you back", by The Jackson 5

"Superstition", by Stevie Wonder

B. Folk and Protest Song: the constant diffusion of light music and its abusive marketing provoked the reject of a group of intellectuals and musicians from New York. They looked for the roots of the real American music, compiling old songs. The protest song took part of this tradition and it denounced the imperfections of “The American Way of Life” and political scandalous. The main representatives are Joan Baez and Bob Dylan (Robert Zimmerman). Bob Dylan was the voice of thousands of North-American young people who desired to change an unfair society, dealing with all the present controversial issues: in “Masters of the War” attacked the army; in “Oxford Town” he criticized the police and in “North country blues” the politicians. He also advised that the times were changing (“The times are changing”) and the time gave him the reason. Musically, the apparent relapse shown in these extremely simple songs, the nudity of his acoustic guitar and his imperfect voice has left a valuable message forever: if you’ve got an important thing to say, you don’t need a great orchestra or voice, you simply say it. The protest song showed that popular music could go beyond love songs and rock conviction. It could reflect and indeed change the reality. It gave intelligence and maturity in music and influenced in groups such as The Beatles and The Rolling Stones who divulged political ideas and social reflections in their songs, changing the world of the pop.

"Blowing in the wind"

"Masters of war"

Live at the Newport Folk Festival

"Knockin´on heaven´s door

"Hurricane"

2.3. The first half of the decade in the United Kingdom The musical centre was Liverpool, in which port ships unloaded discs of Rhythm and Blues and Rock and Roll. There were versions of songs that belonged to both musical styles with features of the English musical tradition making room for a creativity that crystallized in three trends: A) Beats: It was the typical music from Liverpool, characterized by happy tempos with catchy chorus and by adding instruments such as the electric organ, the synthesizer and also classical timbres (bowed string instruments…). The most influential, innovator and inspired group was The Beatles. They changed the history of the popular music becoming in an authentic social phenomenon (the fans). In their songs we find characteristics of black and white music, classical music (string orchestral instruments), other musical traditions (Indian music), avant-garde movements (concrete music that uses noises). They were pioneers using instruments such as synthesizer, , the Indian sitar, voice filters. Also, they dared to cinema with a cartoon film, “Yellow submarine”. They displayed a contained conformism, fitting together criticism with fun. They paved the way to the real popular music making available their music and innovations to the whole public.

"Twist and shout"

"A day in the life"

"Come together"

Report about other songs by them

B. The British Rhythm and Blues: Artists such as Eric Clapton, The Yardbirds, Jimmy Page and The Rolling Stones retook the blues in its pure state. The Rolling Stones make a music characterized by a turbid and dense sound, by an instrumental tension, by the broken voice of Mick Jagger, by their gift to compose songs with courage and by a provocative attitude. They began with very rhythmic and aggressive versions until 1965, when they composed their own songs. Then, they published “Satisfaction”, a success that made them worldwide famous. With it, they started the Rock era (not Rock and Roll) with a new style: distorted guitars that sound as a brass section, a soul rhythm and a riff that is the essential structure of the whole song. Also, it’s got critical, ironic and scathing lyrics.

"Sunshine of your love", by Cream

"Angie", by The Rolling Stones

"Sympathy for the devil", by the Rolling Stones

C. Mod Movement: It was formed by unemployed young people and laborers that lived in the outskirts of industrial cities. This style describes the despair of their routine in a violent and critical tone. It’s characterized by a very energetic rhythm, by a vocal ugliness made with intention and by using the amplification. The most important representatives are The Kinks (“You really got me”), who made the most scathing and sharp criticism of their age, and The Who. This last group has a primitive and devastating rock attitude with the saturation of their guitars, their shouted voices and the over-amplification. They created the Opera-Rock with “Quadrophenia” and “Tommy” that were taken to the cinema, and they composed one of the best songs of all the times, “My Generation”.

"My Generation", by The Who

"You really got me", by the Kinks

2.4. The second half of the 60’s Because of the social agitation of that moment, music displayed a lot of diversity: A. Folk-Rock: It was born in 1965, when Bob Dylan electrified his music in order to adapt it to the new times. It was the ideal vehicle to spread the undergraduate hippy aspirations that defended the happiness of living and the new hopes. The most successful representatives are The Mama’s and The Papa’s, and The Byrds.

"California Dreamin' ", by the Mamas & the Papas

"Turn! Turn! Turn"!, by The Byrds

B. Psychedelic music or Acid Rock: They used the experimentation to transform the traditional sound introducing cultural referents in the popular music such as Dalí, Miró, Baudelaire, Rimbaud, Brecht or the music by Kurt Weill. The most important representatives were The Jefferson Airplane, Janis Joplin and The Doors. The music of this last group is featured by a slow tempo, reiterative ostinatos (riffs), long improvisations by the organ that produce a hypnotic effect and a dark and oppressive atmosphere due to the whispered Jim Morrison’s voice, the vocalist and leader.

"Light my fire", by The Doors

"Break on Through", by The Doors

"Piece of my heart", by Janis Joplin

C. Experimental Rock: Jimi Hendrix completely changed the sound and the technique of the guitar paving the way to hard rock and jazz rock. He exploited all the guitar effects: distortion, wha-wha, feed-back, vibrato…)

D. Underground: It included multimedia spectacles within the avant-garde, with Andy Warhol as leader. The most important representative was The Velvet Underground, with a very simple music, recited lyrics, dirty guitars and constant repetitions. Lou Read was its vocalist.

E. Southern Rock: It appeared as a reaction to all the previous styles and it returned to the roots of the American rock. The Creedence Clearwater Revival.

"Wild thing", by Jimi Hendrix

"Sweet Jane", by The Velvet Underground

"Proud Mary", by The CCR

"Fortunate son", by The CCR

"Walk on the wild side", by Lou Reed

2.5. The second half of the 60’s in the United Kingdom A. Symphonic rock: It widened the rock limits using the orchestra not only as a mere accompaniment but also as an instrument more on an equal footing with rock instruments. Procol Harum with “A whiter shade of pale” inspired on the Aria of the Suite nº 3 by Bach, and The Moody Blues with “Days of future passes”, inspired on the Symphony of the New World by Dvorak.

B. Progressive Rock: It gathered the idea of the symphonic rock developing the experimentation until the extreme. It integrated the rock with ambitious staging of lights, projections, smoke effects… searching the art total play. It proposed a music to think that uses means of classical music, long songs with virtuoso improvisations, unusual effects with the guitar and synthesizers and so on. The most important representatives were Pink Floyd (The Dark Side of the Moon) and King Crimson.

C. Hard Rock: Between heavy metal and progressive rock, it was featured by a thundering drums, an insistent rhythmic bass, saturated guitars, rough voices and baroque picking in the solos by the guitar. Led Zeppelin (“Stairway to heaven”) and Deep Purple (“Smoke in the water”)

"A white shade of pale", by Procol Harum

"Nights in white satin", by The Moody Blues

"Another brick in the wall", by Pink Floyd

"Stairway to heaven", by Led Zeppelin

"Smoke in the water", by Deep Purple

III SPAIN

Although Rock and Roll and the American influence were exported to the whole planet, the new popular music appeared gradually and with insecurity in Spain due to our social and historical circumstances. 3.1. 50’s Decade The entrance of new cultural and social currents in Spain was very difficult because of the Civil War and Franco’s Dictatorship. The radio stations broadcasted only Spanish songs (Concha Piquer, Lola Flores…), dance orchestras, Latin music (Los Panchos) and boleros. The American influence was introduced by the cinema, by the Marshal Plan and by the military bases in Rota, Zaragoza, Morón and Torrejón at the end of the 50’s. From these places, their radio stations broadcasted rock and roll. This influence was caught by El Dúo Dinámico, closer to Paul Anka style than the pure Rock and Roll, beginning the phenomenon of fans.

El Dúo Dinámico

3.2. 60’s Decade There was a big expansion due to these events: - There was an incipient economical development that promoted the emigration from the country to the city, configuring a new urban society. - A wide middle class was consolidated that consumed more leisure or spare time buying more discs, pickups (small discs players), televisions… - The dictatorship motivated some opening mechanism such as the “Press Law” (1966). - New cultures and ways of life coming in our country thanks to the tourism. - The first radio programs focused on young music appeared (Cadena Ser: El Gran Musical) and the first musical magazines about rock were born (“Fonorama”).

The first golden age of Spanish Pop: Lots of pop groups appeared between 1964 and 1968, for example Los Brincos (with Juan Pardo and Antonio Morales, nicknamed as “Junior” and their success “Con un sorbito de champán”); Los Bravos, whose success “Black is Black” was at the top of the music charts in USA, United Kingdom, Australia, indeed overcoming The Beatles and The Rolling Stones ; Los Diablos, Los Canarios (with Teddy Bautista), Fórmula V, Los Mustangs, Los Sirex and so on. Miguel Ríos had an international repercussion thanks to his version of “Ode to Joy”. At the end of the 60’s, the new trends such as folk-rock, soul or psychedelic music didn’t find acceptance in Spain, starting the decline of the groups. The “Nova Cançó” was the only style able to deal with committed issues with singers such as Joan Manuel Serrat, Lluis Llach, Mª del Mar Bonet. The protest song followed this road with Paco Ibáñez and Raimon.In 1968, after the success of “la la la” by Massiel in Eurovision, some soloists came back with a new impetus: Marisol, Raphael, Karina and the “ye yé” girls such as Concha Velasco and Rocío Dúrcal.

"Mejor", by Los Brincos

"Black is black", by Los Bravos

"Submarino amarill2", by Los Mustang

"Eva María", by Fórmula V

"Himno a la alegría", by Miguel Ríos

"Medierráneo", by Joan Manuel Serrat

"Al vent", by Raimon

"La la la", by Massiel

SOME CURIOSITIES TO FINISH

"WOODSTOCK", the pioneer of macro festivals of music

THE BEATLES in Spain for the first time

TOP TEN The best Rock guitar players (most of them studied in this unit)

WEB OF WOODSTOCK

WEB OF WOODSTOCK