America’s Musical Landscape
6th edition
Part 4
Vernacular Musics Since Rock
and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved
Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock
and Roll

With the coming of rock and roll, American
popular music diversified as never before

Pop and country-western struggled to hold their
own against the powerful new music

In time, various styles found audiences and vied
for popularity with rock and among themselves

Disco, new wave, gospel, rap, jazz, regional and ethnic
musics
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
2
Vernacular Art

The beat generation of the 1950s

A term invented by Jack Kerouac


Originally involving his talented friends who provided some
of the twentieth century’s most inspired poetry and prose
 Allen Ginsberg, William Burroughs, Jack Kerouac,
friends and colleagues stood for nonconformity…
 Which was a concept in vogue in Europe
At the same time, performers gave vent to the same
spirit motivating the literary beats

James Dean, Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
3
Vernacular Art: Visual Arts

Visual arts found new means of expression and established new
artistic ideals

Pop artist Andy Warhol (1928-1987)

Puzzled and intrigued his contemporaries
 Achieved new color harmonies with silk-screen prints
 His “serial” paintings, multiple repetitions of an image,
feature common objects of popular American culture
 Movie stars, advertising logos, political figures, more

Identified with some vernacular musicians of his day
 1965: Punk rock group Velvet Underground
accompanied the showing of one of Warhol’s artworks
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
4
Vernacular Music

During the twentieth century, popular or vernacular music
became a significant cultural concept and an important
business

Recent decades have produced an unprecedented variety of
popular music

Grunge, hip-hop, alternative rock, women in rock, new country,
teenybop, Latin pop, rave

All of these styles have not replaced but rather joined rhythm
and blues, classic rock, light pop, and the other music of our
popular culture
© 2010 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
5
Vernacular Music: The 1990s and
Early Twenty-first Century

1990s: One of pop’s most experimental periods



Technological advances brought down recording costs
Computerized inventories allowed stores to carry more
stock
Early Twenty-first century

Downloading of music has changed the nature of the pop
marketplace

Challenging major labels to find new ways to make money in
what may soon be the post-CD era
© 2010 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
6
Vernacular Music Today

We are in the midst of a prodigiously
productive period

Richer than any earlier time

Richer than any other contemporary culture in the
variety, quantity, and quality of our vernacular
music
© 2010 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
7
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
The Generation Gap

Independence and rebellion among American
youth

Gap in communication
between adolescents
and their parents

Shift in popular music; interest moving from
instrumental music to song
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
8
Rhythm and Blues

Shared elements of Black Gospel Music including handclapping, call and response, melodic improvisation

1949 – “Billboard” magazine referred to black popular music
as “rhythm and blues”

Key Figures:
 Joe Turner “Boss of the Blues” (1911-1985)
 Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thornton (1926-1984)

Doo-Wop
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
9
Country Music Meets R & B

Shared Characteristics:





Rooted in the South
Danceable
Used guitar
Frank lyrics
Sung in dialects different from mainstream white
urban population
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
10
Birth of Rock and Roll


Convinced that white listeners would reject
the raucous sound, rhythm-and-blues was
not generally programmed on mainsteam
radio
Alan Freed: Disc jockey in Cleveland, Ohio
who realized that white teens preferred
R&B to mainstream popular music

credited with coining the term “rock and roll”
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
11
Bill Haley (1925-1981)

Bill Haley and His Comets (1925-1981)


Combined white western swing with black rhythm
and blues
Rock Around the Clock was the first international
rock and roll hit
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
12
Elvis Presley (1935-1977)



Rockabilly – Hybrid of rock
and hillbilly
Achieved an unprecedented
degree of popularity
“Heartbreak Hotel” (1956)
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
13
Early Characteristics of
Rock and Roll

Accompanying
instruments included
amplified guitars,
saxophone, trumpet

Quadruple meter

Danceable tempo
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
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Chuck Berry (b. 1926)



One of the most talented of the early
black stars of rock and roll
Fused rhythm-and-blues with countrywestern elements
Songwriter, guitarist, singer and
dynamic performer


Known for his “duckwalk” across the stage
Strongly influenced the Beatles and the
Rolling Stones
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
15
End of the First Era

Elvis was drafted into the army

Little Richard left R & R for some time

Buddy Holly died in a plane crash

Chuck Berry was arrested

Jerry Lee Lewis was the focus of a scandal

Payola investigations (1959-60) revealed evidence of bribing
disc jockeys
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
16
Listening Example 52
School Days
by Chuck Berry
The lyrics to this catchy
song describe a day in
the life of a 1950s high
school student.
Listening guide page 231
Meter: Quadruple. Notice how uneven subdivisions of the strongly
accented beats result in a “shuffle” effect
Timbre: Male vocal solo (Chuck Berry), accompanying himself on
guitar, with piano and drums
Texture: Homophonic. Listen for the call-and-response between Berry
and his guitar.
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
17
Surfing Music

Surfing songs described
relaxed life in CA

Brian Wilson (b. 1942)
formed the Beach Boys
in the 1960s


Pet Sounds: Influential
theme album
Good Vibrations: Bestselling single featuring
non-traditional rock music
sounds.
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
18
Motown



Formed by black songwriter, Berry Gordy
Jr., to aggressively market black rock and
roll
Established in “motor town” – Detroit
Motown groups included:



Diana Ross and The Supremes
The Temptations
The Miracles
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
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Listening Example 53
Stop! In the Name of Love
by Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier,
and Eddie Holland
Performed by The Supremes
This recording features
the Supremes (female
vocal trio) accompanied
by the Funk Brothers
backup band. The song
is said to have had its
origin in a real-life
dispute between one of
the songwriters and his
girlfriend.
Listening guide page 234
Meter: Quadruple. Notice the constant steady pulse, no sophisticated
cross-rhythms or polyrhythms
Form: Modified verse-chorus. The chorus, or refrain, serves as the
“hook,” a catchy four-measure phrase that begins the song and
recurs after each verse
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
20
The British Invasion

The Beatles were formed in Liverpool, England by
John Lennon. Included Paul McCartney, George
Harrison, Ringo Starr

1964 performance on Ed Sullivan Show in the
USA

Song I Want to Hold Your Hand led to
Beatlemania
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
21
Back to Black Rock: Gospel
Also called “religious blues”
 Descends from spirituals
created in slave cultures



Thomas A. Dorsey (1899-1993)
“Father of Gospel Music”
Ray Charles
Fusion of Gospel and Blues
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
22
Listening Example 54
A traditional spiritual or
gospel song performed
by Sister Rosetta Tharpe,
who was known for her
fiery R&B guitar playing
as well as her gospel
singing.
Down by the Riverside
Anonymous
Performed by Sister Rosetta Tharpe
Listening guide page 237
Meter: Quadruple.
Timbre: Solo voice and guitar (both Tharpe), male chorus, piano, bass
Texture: Homophonic.
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
23
Back to Black Rock: Soul



Black artists, resented basically white flavor
of Motown
Created a kind of updated rhythm and
blues
“Soul” was a post-1950s term for black
pride, and came to replace the term
“rhythm and blues”
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
24
Soul



Secular lyrics and gospel energy were blended together
Aretha Franklin known as “Lady Soul” and “Queen of Soul”
transferred emotional gospel style to popular and rhythmand-blues songs
Ray Charles (1930-2004), the “father of soul”, sang secular
songs with the abandon of gospel music


Used call-and-response to involve the audience
James Brown (1933-2007), the “godfather of soul” pointed
soul in a fiery new direction
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
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Listening Example 55
The emphasis on Africaninfluenced polyrhythms
more than melody move
this soul song in the
direction of funk.
Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag
Composed and performed by James Brown
Listening guide page 239
Meter: Quadruple. Overlapping independent rhythm patterns
(polyrhythms) add timbral and rhythmic interest
Timbre: Vocalist James Brown accompanied by bass, horns, drums,
and guitar.
Form: 12-bar blues, with adaptation. The second line of text in each
verse is original, departing from the traditional form.
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
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Back to Black Rock: Funk

New expression of black consciousness

Rooted in soul

Interracial issues often the subject of lyrics

Highly complex rhythms
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
27
From Rock and Roll to Rock

Racial tensions, race riots, and the murder
of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. changed the
mood and the music of the country

Popular music reflected the mood of protest

Against discrimination, authoritarianism, the war
in Vietnam
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
28
From Rock and Roll to Rock:
Psychedelic Rock
Also
called “acid rock” after the
psychedelic drug LSD
Began in San Francisco
in 1965
Attempted to reproduce
sensations of someone
under the influence of LSD
Music was loud and distorted, causing
emotional effects in the listener
Shows featured special effects such as
dramatic lighting and smoke and fog
machines
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
29
From Rock and Roll to Rock:
Psychedelic Blues

Janis Joplin (1943-1970)


White singer inspired by Bessie Smith and Willie
Mae “Big Mama” Thornton
Jim Hendrix (1942-1970)


Sang of despair and frustration, anger and
violence
Developed guitar techniques to astounding levels
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
30
From Rock and Roll to Rock:
Heavy Metal

Sound of the late 1960s was inspired by
Led Zeppelin

Frenzied performances and distorted guitar
sounds

Theatrics dominated rock performances as
in music by Alice Cooper
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
31
A Future Unassured

Major rock festivals were held across the
country



In August 1969, the Woodstock festival was
attended by more than 400,000 people
Some festivals spawned violence and tragedy
Rock music had grown strong and varied,
but its future seemed insecure as the
1970s began
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Part 4: Vernacular Musics Since Rock and Roll
Chapter 13: Rock and Roll
32