1970s popular music
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1970s Popular Music. Day 29: The Fragmentation of Pop. The 1960s rolled into the 1970s, leaving behind a series of unresolved issues. As a result, the 1970s are often viewed as a decade of retreat. Rock became scattered and unfocused, breaking up into little genres. Merger Mania. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
1970s Popular Music
Day 29: The Fragmentation of Pop
• The 1960s rolled into the 1970s, leaving behind a series of unresolved issues. As a result, the 1970s are often viewed as a decade of retreat.
• Rock became scattered and unfocused, breaking up into little genres.
Merger Mania
Warner Communications Empire– Warner Brothers Records
• Signed the Grateful Dead in 1967• Steve Ross became President of the company
– By 1973, Warner Communications owned:• A couple dozen record labels• Holdings in film and television• Mad magazine• 63 comic books• A piece of Ms. magazine
• Connection between music and the military• Recording Technology – multi-track
recording• Promotional Power – new visual dimension
to live rock shows, new small venues for performances with new effects…eventually went out of business as shows became too big and moved to stadiums and arenas
• Progressive FM Rock Radio – replaced Top 40 format
• Rock Press– Rolling Stone Magazine and Jann Wenner
• Launched on October 18, 1967• First issue featured John Lennon on cover
Day 30: Rock as Art
• Music became at the same level as the status of art
• Musicians became central to the creative process
• ‘Rock’ became the mature form of R&R• Change in race relations that devalued the
contributions of African Americans to rock
Art Rock continued…The Who• Treated their stage act as
performance art• Experimented with noise, and
destroyed instruments and sound systems
• Their image established them as the first pop art band
• First rock opera in 1969, Tommy
Andy Warhol
• Most famous pop artist• Designed many famous
album covers
Pink Floyd
First British group to perform with a light show
Reached their pinnacle in 1973 with release of Dark Side of the Moon album
Introduced the 360 degree sound system
Another Brick in the Wall
Rock as Art continued…
• Inclusion in the art rock category was linked to art school training, to the appropriation of classical and other obscure resources, and even to being British as well as a white male.
• Art Rock focused on extended songs and LP suites• Art rockers usually sold far more albums than
singles• Art rock music was music of the mind, not a music
of the body.
Day 31: Sweeter Soul Music
• Resurgence of AAs on the pop charts in 1972– AA artists emerged as album-oriented acts– Popularization of softer soul sounds build the
foundation for disco• Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff– Writer-producer team who pioneered Philadelphia
soft soul music– Formed Philadelphia International Records (PIR)– Their groups set the standard in black popular music
Jackson 5
Saved Motown when its other artists were leaving to go with other labels
First 4 releases went to #1 on the pop charts in 1970: I Want You Back, ABC, The Love You Save, & I’ll Be There
Motown continued…Stevie Wonder• Began career at the age of
12• Challenged Motown’s
formula mentality• I Was Made to Love Her
Marvin Gaye• Spent years trying to
convince Berry Gordy to back him as an album artist
• What’s Goin’ On (1971) & Let’s Get It On (1973)
Stevie Wonder & Marvin Gaye introduced Motown to the financial joys of independent production and album-oriented releases. Both challenged Berry Gordy and his Motown formula.
• James Brown adapted to a new political era by singing a new political tune.– In 1970, he voiced that he didn’t want to “help Nixon.” By
1972, his loyalties changed. He went from ‘Soul Brother No. 1’ to ‘Sold Brother No. 1.’
– Living in America from Rocky IV (1986)• Aretha Franklin– Also faded from the Top 10 charts in mid-70s.
• Roberta Flack– Killing Me Softly with His Song
• Barry White– Took romantic sincerity all the way to self-parody with his
Love Unlimited female trio and Orchestra
Day 32: Singer/Songwriters, Soft Rock Solutions, and More
• Singer/Songwriters of 1970s were intensely personal
• Soft Rock was gentle…the opposite of ‘hard rock.’ First style that allowed women to sing in their own voice.
• Joni Mitchell– 3-octave range for her voice, started
the feminism movement– Big Yellow Taxi
Singer/Songwriters, Soft Rock, cont…James Taylor• One of the most successful
careers of the 1970s• Very talented and polite• Married Carly Simon in
1972• Fire and Rain & Country
Roads
Carly Simon• Signed to Elektra in 1970• Her #1 single, You’re So
Vain, is still a mystery• Nobody Does It Better from
James Bond movie (1977)
Carole King
Was genuine and wrote with a personal touch, sang in conversational tone
Outsold everyone in the music business in 1971
Began career as Brill Building songwriter in 1960
Her 2nd album, Tapestry, broke all existing records (1971).
You’ve Got a Friend
Bruce Springsteen
Singer/Songwriter
A working-class hero, promoted as the new Dylan
Signed to Columbia Records
1975 – Born to Run album broke him into the Top 10
1979 – Headlined No Nukes (weeklong concert series protesting the construction of nuclear power plants)
Singer/Songwriters continued…
• Van Morrison– Brown Eyed Girl
• Bob Marley• First black international
superstar• Singer/songwriter from
Jamaica• No Woman No Cry
Day 33: Women’s Music• Fanny – first self-contained all-
female rock band signed to a major label (Reprise Records)– Helped give women access to
electric instruments– Charity Ball
• The Runaways – Made up of 4 southern CA teenagers– Joan Jett, Lita Ford, Micki Steele, &
Suzi Quatro– Broke up, formed separate bands,
and had more success in the 1980s– Cherry Bomb
Women’s Music continued…
• The failure of all-female rock bands and the hostility of the music industry toward women in rock bands led to the development of explicitly female, mostly folk-oriented alternative music.
• Olivia Records – started in 1973 in Washington, DC– Formed a network called WILD (Women’s Independent Labels
Distributors) to distribute records at concerts, in feminist bookstores, and door-to-door
**Women’s music was originally conceived as music by women, for women, and about women.
Country Rock• Country Rock – genre started by Bob Dylan– Nashville, TN was the center for recording Country
Rock– The Band was hired by Bob Dylan to play back-up
for his 1965 tour.– The Byrds also moved to a country rock sound.
Country Rock continued…
The Eagles• Had 16 Top 40 hits & four #1
albums in a row• Hotel California
John Denver• A pop/country variant who
scored 15 Top 40 albums and 32 singles in the Hot 100 between 1971 and 1982
• Country themes and a jeans-and-flannel image
Country Rock continued…
• The Outlaws – country artists that were drawn to rock.– Challenged the conservative control of Nashville– Willie Nelson, Dollie Parton, and Kenny Rogers
Southern Boogie BandsThe Allman Brothers• Ramblin’ Man• Ain’t Wasting No More Time
Lynyrd Skynyrd• A phonetic spelling of the
name of the high-school gym teacher who suspended the group for wearing long hair
• Sweet Home Alabama
Southern Boogie Bands continued…
• ZZ Top– Texas-based trio– Influenced by acid rock and
infused a Tex-Mex culture– In the 1980s, they adopted
their anonymous bearded look
The southern rockers could only be distinguished from their hard rock friends by geography, and, in some cases, personal appearance.
Day 34: Mad with Power – Heavy Metal• Heavy Metal represented the absolute rejection of the
peace and love culture. It was hard rock taken to the extreme.
• Distinctive Qualities:– Sound quality: power expressed as sheer volume– The Power Chord– The power of heavy metal was intended to overwhelm its
listeners.
– Origins lie in blues-based rock, psychedelic music, and classical music.• Three pivotal heavy metal bands – Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, & Deep
Purple
Heavy MetalLed Zeppelin• Became the standard for
heavy metal groups, were a hit from their first self-titled album in 1969
• Stairway to Heaven
Black Sabbath• 5 platinum albums in a row
in less than 4 years• Lead singer: Ozzy Osbourne• Iron Man
Heavy MetalDeep Purple• Added the influence of
classical music• Ritchie Blackmore (guitarist)
defined the generation of metal guitarists
• Smoke on the Water
Aerosmith• Signed by Columbia in 1972• Was Boston’s answer to the
Rolling Stones• Steven Tyler (lead singer)• Walk This Way
Heavy MetalVan Halen• Signed to Warner in late
1970s• Eddie Van Halen dominated
the guitar, trained as a classical musician
• (Oh) Pretty Woman
Grand Funk Railroad• Played raw, basic rock that
was usually out of tune• We’re an American Band• Achieved status with
virtually no radio air play and no press coverage
Heavy Metal: Glitter or Glam RockAlice Cooper• Group of white middle-class
suburban athletes• Main influence was TV• Outrageous stage antics• Performed in spandex, high-
heeled boots, and makeup• School’s Out
Kiss• Made makeup their
trademark• Their image was their most
important contribution to rock history.
• I Want to Rock ‘n’ Roll All Night
Glitter or Glam Rock continued…
• Challenged traditional notions of masculinity and femininity as no other music had.– Men wore sequins, platform boots, and full
makeup.• David Bowie– The ultimate glam rocker– Fame
Day 35: Punk and Disco (The Poles of Pop)
• Popular music was on the verge of being tamed.
• Fleetwood Mac– Album, Rumours, hit #1 and sold 10 million copies
in the US
Elton John
• Piano player• Wore eccentric, glitter
costumes, and wild eyeglasses
• Early Hits were Rocket Man, Crocodile Rock, & Bennie and the Jets
Billy Joel
• Piano player• Intensely personal
songwriter• Piano Man• We Didn’t Start the Fire
Punk vs. Disco• Differences between punk and disco:
– Disco was smooth, punk was rough.– Disco depended on technological sophistication in the recording studio, punk
was easy to play.– Disco required dancing, punk had a ‘pit.’– Disco was a black dance music style, punk aimed to deconstruct R&R.– Disco focused on leisure suits, punk adorned black leather gear and ripped t-
shirts held w/ safety pins.• Similarities:
– Both shunned by radio.– Both were seen as destroying Western civilization.– Both encouraged active participation.– Both arose in reaction to the “boring” music that preceded them.– Both wanted to intensify the feeling of the moment in an otherwise uncertain
world.
Day 36: Punk - Rock as (White) Noise• Rivalry between London and New York in the competition
for the punk throne. Started in NY 2 years before it erupted in London.
• The Sex Pistols– British group– Never registered a Top 40 album & were not on the singles
charts in the US, broke up before completing their first and only US tour.
– Important feature of punk: ‘its myth is always more powerful than its reality.’
CBGB (Country Blue Grass and Blues)
Velvet Underground• Extremely important band to
the punk scene• Added the electric viola to
their sound which became their trademark
• Sunday Morning
Iggy Pop and the Stooges• Iggy Pop was named
“Godfather of Punk”• The Passenger
NYC bar that opened in 1974 and became the heart of the NY rock underground (punk scene)
Punk continued…
• Punk followed the maxim: Whatever is popular, do the opposite.– Refused to conform, the refusal to act with good
behavior, and in some cases, the refusal to learn how to play music.
– Every punk group was very different.• Television– First CBGB group to make a splash
Patti SmithFirst artist associated with CBGB to become famous
Started out as a poet
Used an independent single to attract major label attention
Signed to Arista Records in 1976
Trademark was a man’s white shirt and tie
Because the Night
Punk as New Wave
The Ramones
Formed by a group of middle-class kids from Forest Hills, NJ
Played only original music
Signed with Sire Records after performing in the CBGB Festival of Unsigned Bands in 1975
2nd punk band to get a major record contract
I Wanna Be Sedated
New WaveBlondie• London was the launching
pad for their success in US• Lead singer is Deborah
Harry• Call Me
Talking Heads• Instant hit at CBGB• Headlined for the Ramones• Signed to the Ramones’
label, Sire Records• Burning Down the House
New Wave• New York was not the only punk Mecca in US.
There was also Boston and Cleveland.• Devo– Formed at Kent State University in Ohio in 1972– Inverted flowerpot hats and jerky robot
movements defined their image.– Whip It
Day 37: Anarchy in the UKSex Pistols• Had difficulty finding
suitable venues to play in• Used scandals to generate
free publicity• Anarchy in the UK
The Clash• Name came from the word
used in tabloid headlines concerning class and race relations in Britain
• Represented the working middle class in Britain
• London Calling• Rock the Casbah
UK Punk continued…
• The Punk Rock Festival– Stage at the 100 Club in England in Sept 1976– Lots of problems…was a roaring success in punk
terms!
• The Roxy– The CBGB of London (home of punk)
Rock Against Racism
• US was started to see “reverse racism” come into our social language
• Rock Against Racism (RAR) was organized as a mass movement to oppose the National Front in Britain– Staged concerts, paired reggae with punk– Feeling of “black and white together” at events– Bob Marley was key to appeal of reggae in Britain– Crossed line of gender and sexual orientation– One of the most successful marriages of music and
politics ever to occur.
Day 38: Riding the New WaveElvis Costello• Bridged the gap between
punk and new wave• Combined the words of a
poet with the temper of a madman
• Staunch supporter of RAR
The Police• Viewed as too commercial
by the punk community• Appeared in TV
commercials• Sting – lead singer• Roxanne• Every Breath You Take
New Wave continued…
• The Pretenders– Immediate success in Britain and US– Back on the Chain Gang
• Hardcore Punk – increase the speed of the music to the limits of human endurance– The Dead Kennedys
• Straightedge Punk – found in Washington, DC, avoided drugs and alcohol
Disco• Defining elements: lights shows AND records
rather than live performances.• Eurodisco: controlled, high-tech energy and
pulsing beat• Funk Sound:– Wild Cherry, Play That Funky Music– Kool and the Gang, Jungle Boogie & Celebration
Funk side of Disco continued…Earth, Wind, & Fire• Turned out only platinum-
selling Top 10 albums• Transformed their spiritual
interests in Egyptology into a media-savvy image.
• September
George Clinton• Wore sequined jumpsuits
and a blonde wig• Had two bands: the
Parliaments and Funkadelic• We Want The Funk
Up from the Disco Underground• When disco first began to emerge as
a genre, most of the initial releases were by black artists…continued the development of black dance music.
• Van McCoy and the Soul City Orchestra – The Hustle
• Gloria Gayner, I Will Survive• Donna Summer became the first
disco diva.
Day 39: Disco continued…
• Disco was rarely heard on the radio. Its primary exposure was in clubs where music was played by disco deejays.
• Disco fans loved to buy records.• A Fifth of Beethoven• Shake Your Booty & That’s The Way I Like It• Turn the Beat Around
K.C. and the Sunshine Band
Integrated 10-piece Band (black, white, & latino)
Get Down Tonight
Boogie Shoes
Their strong r&b sound became known as “Miami Sound”
Donna Summer
Signed to Casablanca Records
Became the ‘Queen of Disco’
Last Dance earned her the first of 4 Grammies in 1978 and an Academy Award for Best Original Song
The Village People
Signed to Casablanca Records in 1978
A gay-oriented novelty act whose members represented a cowboy, an Indian, a construction worker, a soldier, a cop, and a leather freak
Macho Man, YMCA, In the Navy
Worldwide sales of 10 million albums
The Bee Gees
Brought disco into mainstream life
Made disco safe for white, straight, male, young, and middle-class America
Singing in falsetto became their trademark
You Should Be Dancing
Commissioned to write the soundtrack for Saturday Night Fever
Crossover Media• Robert Stigwood was a master at crossover
media (a product in one medium that can sell a product in another).
• Stigwood’s involvement in Jesus Christ Superstar, Tommy, Grease, and Evita.
• Saturday Night Fever– Movie with unprecedented success with $130
million in ticket sales– Sold 15 million copies of the soundtrack in US
and 30 million worldwide– Starred John Travolta