Early rock n roll the next generation Elvis Presley Rockabilly a vigorous form of country and western music informed by the rhythm of black R B electric blues This genre is exemplified by such artist as Carl Perkins and the young Elvis Presley o Sun Records vs RCA Victor Records Sun Records developed a member of a trio RCA Victor bought out Elvis contract in late 1955 they set about to turn the hillbilly cat into a mainstream performer without compromising the strength of his appeal to teenagers o Don t Be Cruel Based on the twelve bar blues Vocals include striking regional accent and hiccupping effect Incorporates a strong backbeat from western swing and uses electronic reverb to replicate slapback echoing sound Jordanaires oohs and ahhs in the background provide pop sweetening crash at the age of 17 o Recording career lasted eight months before he died in a plane o Helped create a distinctive Los Angeles rock n roll sound o La Bamba Folk roots and changes to Valens arrangement Adaptation of a Mexican folk song from the genre son jarocho Son joracho is a fiery up tempo genre that alternates vocal refrains with rapid improvisational passages accompanied by an ensemble of stringed instruments Ritchie Valens Valens recording is more simple and spare than traditional interpretations Valens s recording is notable for unique timbres including the fuzzy sound of the Gibson Super 400 hollow bodied guitar Early 1960s early soul Sam Cooke King of Soul 1 o Began career in gospel group the Soul Stirrers o Cool smooth vocal approach of crooners o Tension between gospel fan base and his secular song output He chose to sing secular music and the gospel community never completely accepted him again o Political movement Black power movement o Change is Gonna Come Social significance of the song His first hand experiences with racism Adapted as an anthem of civil rights movement Inspired by Bob Dylan Blowing in the Wind Today his most highly regarded song Proceeded to Martin Luther King JR Code Switching Change in performance styles between shows with white and black audience o You Send Me to be played in class Musical characteristics and basic form 1957 independent label keen records Sentimental Tin Pan Alley Style o AABA form o Subdued rhythm o Lush vocal background o Crooning with hint of gospel o Melismas Vocal style Ray Charles o Blind at age 7 o Influenced by gospel and preaching traditions o Skilled singer keyboard player songwriter o Master at making crossover hits o Covered a lot of country song o Controversy over vocalism moans use of preaching techniques for songs evoking sex o Major influence on soul o Georgia on My Mind Charles adaption of the song musical characteristics Embraced the Tin Pan Alley heritage of the song and presided over a sumptuous arrangement of it that included orchestral strings and accompanying 2 chorus Sang it as he was singing a personal blues Original words melody and phrasing were still conveyed Rough edged vocal timbre used constant syncopation and selectively added shakes moans and other improvised touches Jazz in his piano art between vocal phrases Both had crossover success Came from deep south Successful businessmen Influence of sacred Gospel Motown Records o Berry Gordy s Artistic and commercial vision for the company Hit Factory songwriting producing marketing organization Sought out the widest possible audience of mainstream Wanted to keep the creative and financial aspects under African American control o General musical characteristics of the label s recordings Avoided direct evocations of blues and earlier African American popular styles Little use of 12 bar blues A generalized blues and or gospel style Definite African American slant to the pop structured pop flavored songs that were characteristics of Motown Tight quality control on all levels of creation and production and concentration on a small number of records to yield a high proportion of hits o Importance in the history of popular music One of the most successful black owned business in history of music industry Tight financial and artist control o The Funk Brothers My Girl by the Temptations o General characteristics of the music and basic form of the song distinctive aspects of the song contributing to its popularity Moderate tempo love ballad Romantic song Initial bass and guitar hook Straightforward verse chorus form Repeating solo ass motive establishes the beat and the guitar enters with a memorable melodic figure 3 Subtle background vocals Layering of sound to evoke rising passion Instrumental interlude before 3rd verse dominated by strings Stax Records o Description of music recorded by the label Rock artist advocated for soul artist they covered Rock aesthetic of authencity Result Soul artist with two parallel audiences Concept of race still central to rock music Oddis Redding performed at Monterey Pop Festival o Connections to broader social realities of the mid 1960s Pivotal year for Civil Rights movement A change is gonna come Sam Cooke Assassination of Malcom X Passage of voting rights act March from Selma to Montgomery Alabama Black Power movement o Points of comparison with Motown Records musically and ideologically Motown mainstream sound of young America Stax down home southern R B audience Sound of black America James Brown Godfather of Soul o General musical style innovations to soul and musical legacy Left structure of 50s R B behind Static harmony Rhythm and timbre Limited vocal melody Offered music that focused almost exclusively on the play of rhythm and timbre in the instrumental parts as well as in the vocal James brown led black musicians for the political and social concerns of their generation It suggest the minimalist music of avant garde art music composers First hit Please Please Please 1956 The British Invasion Reasons for and impact on American society and popular music 4 The Beatles roll o American popular music becoming popular around the world o Popular music coming back to the United States o Genre becoming commercialized o Commercializing vs authencity o Time of consolidation formalization and re evaluation for rock n o First of many developments that may be seen as indicative of an accelerating receptivity in America to overt pop music influences from all over the world o The Beatles altered the character of pop music profoundly and bequeathed to popular culture a remarkably rick and complex inheritance o What contributed to their early success as
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