Leisure Suits & Farrah Hair

Rock Breaks into “SubGenres”The 1970’s

"End of the 60s” – Different ViewsCertain events have been viewed as heralding the

“end of the 60s”• disbanding of the Beatles

• Woodstock followed by Altamont

• massacre at Kent State

• deaths of Hendrix, Joplin, Morrison

• great deal of civil unrest, violence

“End of the 60s?”Other views suggest that the end of the “sixties” actually

occurred in the early 70s:

• The “hippie” culture lasted into the early 70s.

• The political upheaval of the early 70s

• The defeat of George McGovern in the 72 election

• The downfall of Nixon in the Watergate scandal in 1973-74.

70s vs 60s: social and cultural change• Reaction against the “heavy” issues of the 60s

• Disillusionment with the radical politics of the 60s

• Youth turning away from “world peace” & other utopian ideas

• Emphasis on personal choice – away from universality & toward individuality

• Shifting focus from social issues to self-realization, self-fulfillment, "finding yourself"

The world of marketing responded with the idea of "multiple options“ -- millions of new brands, dozens of

cable stations, mega-grocery & department stores

• Rock Music, having had a strong commercial connection from its very inception, has always had a very close relationship marketing trends.

• Rock Music also had been experiencing a gradual change of musical emphasis, toward much more complexity and technical virtuosity

The Fragmentation of the Market• a move toward musical sophistication:

– jazz rock– “progressive” art rock– some metal– glam/glitter rock

• a concurrent move "back to the basics:– country rock– hard rock

• Popularity of very personal, folk-influenced “singer-songwriter” music

• Soul and funk, which once again moved toward a specifically black audience

Radio Turns to “Formatting“

Examples: • album oriented rock• rhythm and blues• easy listening pop• country rock• big-band jazz

• oldies• progressive jazz• progressive rock (art

rock)• Disco• Top 40• punk rock• Classical

Formatting: programming certain styles of music for a specific audience.

Trends in rock – early 70s

3) Retail "categorization"reggae, punk, disco, soul, heavy metal, etc

4) "Major" labels managed to swallow up most of the indies: CBS, Warner Communications, Polygram, RCA, MCA, Capitol-EMI.

Many majors also merged with large corporations, many unrelated to the arts whatsoever

“Art” or “Progressive” Rock“Rock meets Classical music”

characterized by the use of:

• orchestration or orchestral sounds

• Use of electronics, synthesizers

• complicated arrangements & large musical structures

• Thick, multi-layered production

• The use of complex rhythms, multiple vocals

• Elaborate live shows

The Moody Blues: Question, Question of Balance

1966: recorded “Days of Future Passed” with the London Festival Orchestra, and ended up being one of the major “art rock” or “progressive rock” bands of the late 60s and 70s. The Moodies still tour,

accompanied by a symphony orchestra.

Pink Floyd: Money, Dark Side of the Moon• Originally a “psychedelic”

British invasion band led by Syd Barrett, (replaced by David Gilmour)

• Famous for their highly-acclaimed “concept” albums, including – Dark Side of the Moon– “The Wall” (also an

elaborate stage show)

• Their reunion was a highlight of the “Live 8” concerts

Richard WrightDavid Gilmour

Nick MasonRoger Waters

Yes: Roundabout• All virtuoso performers

• Yes was a premier “progressive” rock group

• Complex arrangements & musical structures

• Lyrics leaned toward eastern-inspired spiritual topics, symbolic imagery

• Among the most commercially successful of the progressive rock groups

Queen: Bohemian Rhapsody

• Queen falls into two “subgenre” categories: “glam” rock and progressive rock

• “Bohemian Rhapsody” is a classic that has all the hallmarks of progressive rock – orchestration, vocals, musical structure, etc

• Queen’s lead vocalist Freddie Mercury died of AIDS in 1991.

Emerson Lake and Palmer: Karn Evil 9

Keith Emerson, Carl Palmer, & Greg Lake

• Keith Emerson’ s keyboard pyrotechnics, Greg Lake’s song writing and vocals, and Carl Palmer’s energetic and virtuosic drumming gave ELP their signature sound

Jethro Tull: Hymn 43

Blues meets British folk-rock & Renaissance music in the recordings of Jethro Tull

An important part of Tull’s sound was the songwriting, vocals and flute virtuosity of Ian Anderson

Jazz Rock

• Use of jazz-influenced instrumentation: – Horns– Rhythm section– “World” percussion

• Harmonies, musical structures and scales used in jazz

• Improvisation in the jazz idiom rather than in the rock or blues idiom

• Sophisticated, virtuosic

We can think of jazz rock in several basic categories:

• Coming from the influence of big-band

• Coming from the influence of small-combo jazz

• Jazz-Rock with a Latin influence

• Jazz-Rock with a “world music” influence

Blood, Sweat and Tears: You’ve Made Me So Very Happy

Chicago:25 or 6 to 4

Mahavishnu Orchestra:The Noonward Race

Weather Report: Birdland

• The cover to the LP “Heavy Weather”

Steely Dan: Reelin' In the Years• A “studio band” that

often featured cream of the crop musicians

• Primary song writers: – Donald Fagen– Walter Becker

Funk• Came out of soul music

• Emphasis on rhythm section: bass and drums

• Syncopated bass line interlocks with horn section to form “polyrhythms”

• R&B backbeat (4/4, emphasis on 2 and 4) replaced by 2/4, with each beat further subdivided into 4

• Emphasis on repeating rhythmic “groove” rather than complicated formal structures

• “Chanted” or call and response vocals

James Brown:Say It Loud, I'm Black & I'm Proud

• The “Godfather of Soul” was also an important and influential pioneer of the “funk” style.

Sly and the Family Stone:Thank You Falettin Me Be Mice Elf

Sly Stone

Parliament Funkadelic

• The ultimate funk band, also known for their high-energy, wild and theatrical performances.

Stevie Wonder: Superstition

• In the 1970s Stevie Wonder experimented with a number of musical styles, one of which was the funk style, as exemplified in songs like “Superstition.”

Glitter and “Glam Rock”

• Strong theatrical element to stage performances: costumes, makeup, props

• Stage act sometimes includes the role of a fictional character (Alice Cooper, Ziggy Stardust)

• Bands often took on an androgynous or gender-bending persona

Kiss:Rock & Roll All Nite

• Gene Simmons (bass), Peter Criss (drums), Paul Stanley and Ace Frehley (guitar)

• All wore heavy make-up; the real faces of the band were unknown for several years

• very theatrical live show: lights, flames, explosions

Alice Cooper: School's Out

• Real name Vincent Furnier

• Cites Jim Morrison as one of his main influences

• Stage show included creepy, dark or gruesome topics stage make-up, “Alice Cooper” character

David Bowie: Space Oddity• One of the most

influential glam rockers in terms of musical impact

• First hit “Space Oddity” based on the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey

• Adopted the stage persona “Ziggy Stardust”, although in later recordings he would change characters

• Character and persona featured ambiguous gender identifications

Country Rock• Country-blues influences

• Simple structures, song/ballad structures

• Guitar emphasis, but w/o the distortion or extreme volume of heavy metal

• The use of country-identified instruments such as pedal steel, mandolin, fiddle

The Band: Cripple Creek• Celebrated for their

“American” sound, the Band was ironically mostly Canadians

• Robbie Robertson (guitar)• Rick Danko (bass)• Richard Manuel (piano)• Garth Hudson (organ)• Levon Helm (drums)

• They were Bob Dylan’s touring band

• Last performance was the subject of director Martin Scorsese’s very famous rock documentary “The Last Waltz”

Creedence Clearwater Revival (CCR)Proud Mary

• John Fogerty, vocals/guitar• Tom Fogerty, guitar• Stu Cook, bass• Doug Clifford, drums

• A San Francisco band, but their sound was much more in the style of country rock than SF psychedelia

• John Fogerty’s songwriting and powerful, gritty voice were an important part of their sound

“Southern” Rock• Some of the “country rock” bands were very specifically

marketed as “southern rock.”– Lynyrd Skynyrd– Marshall Tucker– Charlie Daniels– The Allman Brothers.

Basically blues-based rock in which the country roots were more heavily emphasized

The trend toward “categorization” led to a certain kind of marketing for these “southern” bands, celebrating certain stereotypes Beer drinkers Pickup trucks with gun racks Confederate flags

The Allman Brothers: Jessica

• Duane Allman, guitar• Dickey Betts, guitar• Greg Allman, vocals • Jaimoe Johnson, drums • Butch Trucks, drums• Barry Oakley, bass

• Combination of southern R&B and the tradition of long improvised solos fostered by the San Francisco psychedelic bands

• One of their characteristic sounds was the dual-lead-guitar sound of Duane Allman and Dickey Betts

Allman Brothers, continued

• Duane Allman was killed in a motorcycle wreck in 1971; Barry Oakley was killed in the same situation (and in a very close location) a year later

Barry, Duane

• Despite these tragedies the band continued its success, with bassist Lamar Williams and keyboardist Chuck Leavell

1970s Singer-Songwriters

• Came out of the folk revival and the popularity of artists such as Bob Dylan

• Focus was on one particular composer's creative or artistic lyrics and musical vision

• In performance, there was often a sense of intimate communication created by a strong focus on the singer and the song itself (as opposed to the virtuosity of the backup band)

• Individual styles ran the gamut of rock, blues and folk

Elton John: Rocket Man• Songwriter who teamed

with lyricist Bernie Taupin• Strong individual piano

style• EJ is more in the Tin Pan

Alley – Brill Building tradition than in the Dylan tradition

• He eventually developed a harder-rock style than some of the other singer-songwriters, foreshadowing a trend of the later 70s.

Carole King

• A very successful Brill Building songwriter, writing hits for other artists (often with songwriting partner Jerry Goffin)

• In the early 70s she changed the focus to performing her own songs, to great success

James Taylor:Fire & Rain

• One of the first artists signed to the Beatles’ Apple label (eventually changed)

• First hit LP “Sweet Baby James” followed by a string of very successful LPs

• James Taylor was for a time married to Carly Simon, another very successful singer-songwriter of the 1970s

James then

James now

Jackson Browne:Running On Empty

• Southern California singer songwriter, early 70s

• Intensely personal, expressive songs

• Strong influence on many other songwriters, including Bruce Springsteen

Joni Mitchell: Big Yellow Taxi• Early records were very

much in the style of the 60s folk revival

• Personal, introspective songs; experimented with diverse sounds and styles

• Eventually jazz became a very strong element of her style

Van Morrison: Moondance• Irish singer-songwriter,

• Originally with the group Them (“Gloria”)

• Style: a combination of R&B, jazz, folk

• strong, blues-style vocals

Neil Young• Performed with Buffalo

Springfield, Crosby Stills Nash and Young

• Political lyrics: comments on current events, such as his song “Ohio,” written after the Kent State shootings

• Like Dylan, Young’s idiosyncratic voice was very much a part of his style

• April 2006: Young released a new, very political CD with some outspoken criticism of Pres. Bush

Neil then

Neil now