Score:
Test: 1950s Music History
30
Name: ________________________ Teacher: ______________ Date: __________
Part 1: Short Answer. Answer the following questions. They must be in
complete sentences or points will be taken off.
(Points vary, 15 points total)
1. What is a “cover”? Name a pair of “cover” songs. (It does not have to
be something we listened to in class). (3 points)
2. Why did several music production companies have problems making
money despite the booming economy? (2 points)
3. What is “payola”? (2 points )
4. Please draw a diagram for the 12-bar blues. (4 points)
5. What is the importance of Brown vs Board of Education? (2 points)
6. What style of music did the 1950s refer to when they used the slang
“race music” and “hillbilly music”? (2 points)
Part 2: Multiple Choice.
Circle the correct answer for each question
(1 point each, 15 points total)
1. Which of the following songs does NOT follow the 12 bar blues?
a. “Maybelline” by Chuck Berry
b. “Choo Choo Ch’Boogie” by Louis Jordan
c. “Love and Marriage” by Frank Sinatra
d. “Rock Around the Clock” by Bill Haley
2. The song “Hound Dog” was originally written for whom?
a. Elvis Presley
b. Nat “King” Cole
c. Big Mama Thornton
d. Bing Crosby
3. Why was it easier for teenagers able to make money after WWII?
a. Winning the war created new jobs
b. Students were able to work and go to high school at the same
time
c. Children started receiving allowances
d. All of the above
4. What
a.
b.
c.
d.
coined the term “Rock ‘n Roll”?
Les Paul
Bill Haley
Ryan Seacrest
Alan Freed
5. Which of the following would be an example of a deviation of “top 40
radio programming”?
a. a radio station program that featured the top 100 songs in
America
b. a radio station program that talked about the best artists in the
industry
c. a radio station program that only played jazz
d. a radio station program that played children’s music
6. Which of the following does NOT have the same meaning as the rest?
a. Chord
b. The “B” in AABA form
c. Release
d. Bridge
7. Which of the following is true about Elvis Presley’s version of “hound
dog”?
a. The song was originally written for Presley
b. The lyrics were full of meaning, about a man acting like a
“hound dog”
c. It peaked at Number #1 in the R&B charts
d. It is the most popular version of the song
8. What
a.
b.
c.
d.
did Bill Haley, Chuck Berry, and Alan Freed have in common?
They worked together to write the song “Rock Around the Clock”.
They all had songs that followed the 12-bar blues.
They all started out as DJs.
They all promoted “fair” playing time for all artists, regardless of
style or race.
9. What
a.
b.
c.
d.
is a cadence?
The hook, or beginning of the song.
An instrumental solo
The end of a “musical sentence”
A type of chord
10. The song “Goodnight, Irene” by the Weavers is an example of what
musical form?
a. Strophic
b. AABA
c. 12 Bar Blues
d. AAB
11. The song “Love and Marriage” by Frank Sinatra is a simple example
of what musical form?
a. Strophic
b. AABA
c. 12 Bar Blues
d. AAB
12. The song “Maybelline” compares a car chase to a lover’s quarrel.
Which of the following literary terms accurately describes this
comparison?
a. Personification
b. Metaphor
c. Simile
d. Onomatopoeia
13. Hank Williams would have been characterized as what kind of artist?
a. Country
b. Pop Crooner
c. Rock ‘n Roll
d. R&B
14. Who was the main targeted audience in the post WWII era?
a. War Veterans
b. African-Americans
c. Teenagers
d. Parents
15. Elvis Presley, Bill Haley, and Nat “King” Cole are all artists of what
American decade?
a. The 1950s
b. The 1960s
c. The 1970s
d. The 1980s
Extra Credit (two points)
Name one composer from each of the four main musical periods.