History of Rock and Roll Notes Chapters 10-11

Chapter 10 • I. Introduction i. Variants of hippie rock were mainstream in the 1970s; some critics of mainstream rock thought that musicians were creating music for popular appeal and not for artistic expression. ii. Punk and new wave musicians positioned themselves in opposition to mainstream rock and emphasized simplicity. • II. Mainstream Rock: 1975–1980 i. FM Radio Goes from Late 1960s Free Form to AOR a. The radio industry saw an increase in "album-oriented rock" (AOR) stations in the 1970s and a decrease in the independence of individual DJs; there was a move away from broadcasting extended tracks. b. The profitability of rock radio encouraged the participation of major corporations. ii. Show Me the Way: The Advent of the "Big Album" a. The record business became increasingly corporate in the 1970s as it became clear there was money to be made on rock music. b. "Big albums"—or albums selling a million or more copies—became an increasingly common phenomenon in the late 1970s. c. Big albums made the record business attractive to investors; the scope of concert tours and the size of venues for rock concerts also increased during this time. iii. Life's Been Good to Me So Far: More Big Albums a. The Eagles' Hotel California followed Peter Frampton's Frampton Comes Alive! as a successful "big album." b. Fleetwood Mac had several successful mainstream rock albums, including Rumours, which spent 31 weeks at number one on the Billboard charts. c. As the recording industry strove for large numbers of album sales, it also became more musically conservative. iv. It's Still Rock and Roll to Me a. The many distinct varieties of rock from the early 1970s began to blend together in the second half of the decade into a more uniform style. b. Some artists established in the 1960s gained in popularity in the 1970s; the Rolling Stones remained active, Paul McCartney formed a new band, and the Steve Miller group had even more success. c. Groups established in the early 1970s such as the Doobie Brothers and KISS also built on earlier success in the late 1970s. v. Rethinking Previous Approaches: New Arrivals in the Late 1970s a. Many bands formed in the late 1970s, such as Boston, blended features of earlier styles to create radio-friendly tracks. b. The band Foreigner blended rhythm and blues vocals, blues-rock guitar, and prominent keyboards influenced by progressive rock. c. Bands including Foreigner and Journey were formed by musicians who were active in other groups in the late 1960s and early 1970s. d. Van Halen blended elements of hard rock with blues-based vocals and futuristic guitar sounds. vi. Progressive Rock Revamped a. The bands Kansas and Styx revamped the progressive rock style in the late 1970s. b. The Canadian trio Rush produced several ambitious concept albums and remains commercially successful to the present day. c. British bands such as Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) also reworked the progressive rock style. d. Queen, led by Freddie Mercury and Brian May, was influenced by the late Beatles, glam, and progressive rock; Mercury's death of AIDS in 1991 raised awareness of the disease and of sexual stereotypes in rock. vii. Singers, Songwriters, and Bands a. By the mid-1970s, singer-songwriters commonly fronted bands; Bob Dylan toured with the Band and a group he called the Rolling Thunder Revue. b. Elton John continued to use elements of rock and roll; Paul Simon's music reflected his influences in jazz, gospel, and rhythm and blues. c. Billy Joel was another singer-songwriter who performed with a band; he had a series of successful albums from the late 1970s into the 1980s. d. Jackson Browne's music featured rock band accompaniment; singer-songwriter Bob Seger led a rock group called the Silver Bullet Band. e. Bruce Springsteen was backed by the E Street Band and also wrote autobiographical, confessional lyrics like many singer-songwriters. viii. Form or Formula? a. Several songs mentioned in this chapter use a compound AABA form, compressing the large-scale forms of progressive rock into more radio-friendly lengths. b. The instrumentation in both Foreigner's "Feels Like the First Time" and Boston's "More Than a Feeling" blend distorted guitar with progressive rock influences; this could be viewed as refining earlier musical practices or as homogenizing them. • III. The Roots of Punk in the United States, 1967–1975 i. Safety Pins and Leather a. By 1977, American listeners began to hear about a new, UK-based movement called punk, which initially failed to catch on in the United States due to its aggressive image. ii. Punk Roots: The Velvet Underground, the Stooges, and the MC5 a. Punk began as an underground style; the Velvet Underground, which was associated with artist Andy Warhol for a time in the 1960s, was among the most important early influences on the punk movement. b. Iggy Pop was known for his outrageous performances, while the MC5 cultivated an aggressive sound; the confrontational styles of the Velvets, Iggy Pop, and the MC5 were also influential on New York punk rock. iii. The Beginnings of the New York Scene a. The New York Dolls connected the New York scene of the late 1960s with the growing punk movement of the mid-1970s; the Dolls coupled makeup and costumes with a tough and reckless image. b. Poet PatÝ Smith and guitarist Lenny Kaye formed the PatÝ Smith Group and began releasing records. c. The band Television had a regular spot performing at a bar in lower Manhattan called CBGB, which became the home of the New York punk scene. iv. The Ramones and Blondie a. The Ramones also performed at CBGB; they had a stripped-down, high-energy style, but made little commercial impact in the United States. b. Blondie was influenced by 1960s girl groups and went on to become one of the most commercially successful CBGB bands. c. New York was the national center of punk, though other cities had punk scenes; in the late 1970s, punk became a national subculture, united by a DIY ("Do It Yourself") aesthetic in fashion and music. • IV. The Rise of Punk in the United Kingdom, 1974–1977 i. No Hope: Malcolm McLaren, British Punk, and the Sex Pistols a. The rise of punk in the United Kingdom reflects the circumstances resulting from an economic recession; Malcolm McLaren helped this socioeconomic frustration find a voice in the punk movement. b. McLaren managed the Sex Pistols, which developed a reputation for bad behavior, but had seven singles in the UK Top 40. ii. The Clash, the Buzzcocks, the Jam, and Siouxsie and the Banshees a. The popularity of the Sex Pistols encouraged other British punk bands; the Clash often took a political stance in their music and had a variety of musical influences. b. The Buzzcocks had a pop-influenced approach, while the Jam drew on the styles of the Mod subculture and the 1960s sounds of bands like the Kinks and the Who. c. Siouxsie and the Banshees was fronted by singer Siouxsie Sioux; several British punk bands, including X-Ray Spex and the Slits, included women. d. Except for the Clash, British punk bands did not enjoy American success until they were recategorized as "new wave." iii. Punk Poetics—Organization or Anarchy? a. Despite the rebellious atÝtudes projected by punk music, its structures are often conventional; the Sex Pistol's "Anarchy in the UK" is in a modified simple verse form. • V. The Rise of New Wave, 1977–1980 i. The Next Big Thing a. A tour of the United States by the Sex Pistols, Elvis Costello's appearance on Saturday Night Live, and increasing coverage in music magazines helped bring punk into the American mainstream; the music business tamed punk's bad reputation by remaking it as "new wave." ii. CBGB Goes New Wave a. Blondie's song "Heart of Glass" was the first of several hit singles for the group in both the United States and the United Kingdom; Blondie's style did not resemble American stereotypes of punk. b. The Talking Heads debuted at CBGB in 1975 and became one of new wave's leading bands. iii. New Wave in the American Mainstream a. The Cars were among the first new wave bands to be played on FM rock radio; their music was characterized by references to earlier rock styles. b. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers adapted the folk-rock style of Bob Dylan or the Byrds, but they were considered to be and marketed as a new wave group in the late 1970s. c. Devo used costumes and space-age sounds to adopt the image of futuristic beings from 1950s science fiction films; the B-52s achieved their greatest success in the 1980s with music that contained references to the pre-psychedelic era. d. The Knack also drew on earlier rock music, recalling the Beatles with their atÝre and album art. iv. British New Wavers in America a. Few British punk rockers became popular in the United States, but some British new wave artists did enjoy American success; Elvis Costello is an example. b. The Police were another British new wave group who had commercially successful releases in both the United States and the United Kingdom. v. Pangs of Rock History? a. New wave bands had a clear fascination with both the sounds and visual images of earlier musical styles. b. New wave musicians moved away from and critiqued the principles of mainstream rock through ironic references to earlier music. vi. Mainstream versus New Wave a. A comparison between Gary Wright's "Dream Weaver" and Gary Numan's "Cars" shows similarities and differences between the mainstream rock and new wave approaches; Wright's approach can be considered mainstream and Numan's new wave. b. A similar comparison can be made between the music of Heart and Blondie; Heart's "Straight On" demonstrates a mainstream rock approach, while Blondie's "Heart of Glass" is an example of new wave. c. When mainstream rock and new wave came together in the 1980s, the era of hippie rock essentially came to an end. Chapter 11 The Nineteen Eighties • i. The decade began with the election of Ronald Reagan, and was marked by conservatism. • ii. Reagan advocated for supply-side economics and a Cold War strategy that embraced building up the American military; the Cold War ended in 1989. • iii. The AIDS epidemic emerged in the 1980s. • iv. The American economy grew, particularly the high-tech sector. • v. The explosion of space shuttle Challenger in 1986 was one of NASA's greatest disasters. • vi. Cable television experienced dramatic growth, providing competition for FM radio; talk radio emerged on AM stations. • vii. Television shows such as Dallas and Family Ties reflected America's fascination with money and power. • viii. The Cosby Show reflected shifts taking place in the black community, while The Simpsons satirized many aspects of American life. • ix. The film The Big Chill depicted the anxieties some hippies felt over issues of identity and authenticity as they got older. • x. Other films from the 1980s explored greed on Wall Street and the social issues faced by young adults. • xi. Rock music benefited from the wealth and technology of the time, but it still often took a critical stance. • I. Introduction ◦ i. Punk and disco, which had challenged the rock status quo in the 1970s, fell out of favor in the 1980s, although their musical legacies continued. ◦ ii. Music television and the emergence of heavy metal and rap changed rock music during the 1980s. • II. MTV Is on the Air ◦ i. The Roots of MTV in Promotional Video ▪ a. Rock musicians had used short films and videos to promote their music for decades; in the 1980s, the expansion of cable television made a station devoted to these videos feasible. ▪ b. When MTV was developed, its creators debated whether the channel should show nothing but promotional videos provided by record companies, or feature more artistic, less commercial videos. ◦ ii. On the Air, but Who's Watching? ▪ a. One of the challenges MTV faced early on was having enough content to fill the day, as record companies were reluctant to invest in promotional videos before cable television was widely available; MTV's initial audience was primarily white teenagers in the Midwest, which drove programming choices. ▪ b. The success of Michael Jackson's video for "Billie Jean" helped to break color lines on MTV and increased the network's popularity; record companies came to view videos as crucial promotional tools, and increasing emphasis on visual elements became a source of controversy. • III. Dance Music of the 1980s ◦ i. Music Video's New Elite: Michael Jackson and Madonna ▪ a. Michael Jackson left the Jackson 5 in 1975 and became a successful solo artist; his music was typically driven by a strong beat derived from black pop and disco. ▪ b. Jackson's video performances showcased his skill as a dancer, and he produced ambitious videos such as that for "Thriller." ▪ c. Jackson continued Berry Gordy's crossover strategy of blending rhythm and blues with pop to appeal to both white and black audiences. ▪ d. Madonna, once a professional dancer, also emphasized the visual aspects of her performances; she had a number of hits beginning with two singles from her 1984 debut album, Madonna. ▪ e. Madonna's music was often driven by a dance beat; later, she expanded her stylistic range. ▪ f. Madonna's music and videos explore issues of sexual conduct, racial issues, women's roles, and spirituality, which earned her both supporters and detractors. ◦ ii. Dirty Minded? Prince and Janet Jackson ▪ a. Prince asserted racial difference on MTV and sexuality in pop music before Michael Jackson or Madonna did; he was a prolific and successful artist as well as a songwriter and producer for other acts. ▪ b. Prince's album 1999 made him a pop star; the title track reveals influences in doowop, black pop groups of the 1960s and '70s, and funk. ▪ c. Prince released the feature film Purple Rain in 1984; he followed this with many more hit singles and albums and was one of the most influential artists of the 1980s. ▪ d. Janet Jackson was a television actress as well as a successful musical artist; dance and visual elements also played an important role in her videos. ◦ ▪ iii. Brit Pop Hits MTV: Duran Duran and Culture Club a. A shortage of videos in the early years of MTV led to a number of British acts receiving considerable airplay; Duran Duran was one of the most successful of these groups. ▪ ◦ b. The pop-oriented group Culture Club, featuring androgynous singer Boy George, also exploited the visual side of their act and received heavy airplay. iv. Thinking Person's MTV: Eurythmics and Tears for Fears ▪ a. Eurythmics had a synthesizer-pop sound; the video for "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) is noteworthy for its surreal imagery that departed from the depictions of performance typical of many music videos at the time. ▪ b. Tears for Fears also based their stylistic approach on British synthesizer-pop; their second album, Songs from the Big Chair, was an international hit in part due to promotion on MTV. ◦ v. Girls Just Wanna Have Fun: Olivia Newton-John, The Go-Go's, Cyndi Lauper, and the Bangles ▪ a. Singer Olivia Newton-John transformed her image in the 1980s into a more aggressive and sensual one; The Go-Gos became the first successful all-female new wave group, and lead singer Belinda Carlisle also had hits as a solo artist. ▪ b. Cyndi Lauper's album She's So Unusual featured the hit "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" as well as songs that showed other sides of her musical personality. ▪ c. The Bangles gained popularity with the album Different Light (1986). • IV. The New Traditionalists ◦ ▪ ◦ ▪ ◦ i. No Irony, Just a Healthy Love for Earlier Styles a. New wave bands had used elements of pre-hippie rock in an ironic fashion; in the 1980s, a number of bands and artists revisited older styles in earnest. ii. I Won't Back Down: Tom Petty, with and without the Heartbreakers a. Tom Petty's 1960s-inspired style became more closely aligned with the new traditionalism approach in the 1980s; Petty was also part of the supergroup the Traveling Wilburys with George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison, and Jeff Lynne. iii. New Jersey Nostalgia: Bruce Springsteen and the E-Street Band ▪ a. Springsteen was a New Jersey-based singer-songwriter who drew earnestly on earlier rock styles; his greatest success began with his fifth album, The River (1980). ▪ b. Springsteen's image was based on the idea that he was the voice of the average working-class guy, and he wrote socially conscious lyrics in songs such as "Born in the U.S.A." ◦ ▪ iv. Americana on Both Sides of the Pond: John Mellencamp and Dire Straits a. John Mellencamp enjoyed commercial success beginning with his third album, American Fool (1982); he was from Indiana and crafted a small-town, midwestern image on stage and in his music. ▪ ◦ b. English band Dire Straits released the song "Sultans of Swing," about jazz virtuosos; Dire Straits had a simpler, more transparent approach to production. v. Keepers of the Wave: The Police and U2 ▪ a. The Police created sophisticated musical arrangements and poetic lyrics. ▪ b. U2 built on the approach of the Police, with innovative song arrangements and artistic lyrics; U2 has remained an important band to the present day. ◦ vi. Old School Newcomers: AC/DC and Huey Lewis and the News ▪ a. AC/DC and Huey Lewis and the News were not aligned with new wave or new traditionalism, but both recalled the music of earlier eras; AC/DC was influenced by British blues rock and enjoyed success in the United States beginning in 1979. ▪ b. Huey Lewis and the News intentionally created music that sounded somewhat oldfashioned, creating a wholesome feel that contrasted with the edgier music of the 1980s. ◦ vii. Blue-eyed Soul, '80s Style: Hall and Oates, George Michael, and Michael Bolton ▪ a. The duo of Daryl Hall and John Oates had connections with the rhythm and blues scene of the 1960s and '70s, particularly in Philadelphia, where Hall grew up. ▪ b. The British duo Wham! (George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley) was successful in both the United States and the United Kingdom, as was Michael when he became a solo artist; George Michael and Michael Bolton both drew on the singing styles of 1960s black pop. • V. Adapting to Newer Styles: Older Musicians in the 1980s ◦ ▪ ◦ ▪ ◦ ▪ ◦ ▪ i. The Dinosaurs Adapt a. Progressive rock bands remained active, making their sound more accessible and radio-friendly. ii. From Genesis to Corporation a. Phil Collins took over as lead vocalist of Genesis after the departure of Peter Gabriel, and the band shifted to a poppier sound; both Phil Collins and Peter Gabriel had success as solo artists. iii. Going for the One: Yes and Asia a. The band Yes had several personnel changes in the late 1970s and early 1980s, but also two popular albums and a hit single; the bands Asia and G.T.R. were founded by former members of Yes and Genesis, while Keith Emerson and Greg Lake reunited for a new album. iv. I Will Survive: Rock Bands Continue to Thrive a. Many bands and artists from the 1960s and 1970s continued their careers in the 1980s without changing their stylistic approach. ▪ b. The emergence of MTV caused some artists to create ambitious projects connecting music and image. c. The new traditionalists returned to earlier rock styles in an effort to return rock to its core values; rap, heavy metal, and alternative came out of underground scenes in the 1980s. Class Notes Rock no stranger to tv Two models Promo vids, record co. $$ - record company records music video for a song – gives to MTV free of charge. Videos were commercials for the physical music. Experimental: Music + film Reading music video Music – lyrics – images Performance clip – abstract clip – narrative clip