Rock Music
smith9
fil7.pdf
• Read the lectures, "Funk","Reggae" and "Disco" posted below
• Read Chapter 9
• Watch all videos contained in the lectures (if the song is not there, go to YouTube and search for an equivalent video)
• Take the "Week 7 Quiz
• African-American Music in the early 1970s.
The hope of the 1960s was replaced by disillusionment in the 1970s with the Martin Luther King assassination. The sixties slogan ‘make love not war’ began to feel tired in this new era, and a new age of militancy took the place of the pacifism that was prominent in the 1960s. Distrust of the government reached an all time high with the Watergate scandal and President Richard Nixon being dismissed from office. This distrust of government would be an important topic in the music of this era. The Vietnam War was enraging people from all walks of life throughout America. Protests were mounting to end the war and the senseless killing of innocents in Vietnam. The economy in the seventies was having a very difficult time as well, and there were oil embargoes and gas shortages. In other words, this is a time of great instability and great change.
There was an interesting dichotomy in funk music. No matter how bad things got in the real world, the groove and feel of funk music kept things upbeat. It was a positive, feel good type of music. Many songs had messages that reflected what was happening in society, and others provided an escape for the hardships that many were enduring.
Funk music was the dominant African-American style of music in the early seventies. The sound was bass driven and heavily percussive, and had influences of James Brown and other soul acts. This music is some of the most important dance music in history because it filtered James Brown’s sound and modified it in a way that made it more accessible to the future generations. Thus, it directly impacted pop styles such as disco, rap and many hybrid forms that have come since early 70s.
The funk style ranges from pop sounds to more hard-hitting and off the beaten path styles of music. Here we start with the pop sounds of Stevie Wonder and the Jackson 5.
Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder was groomed by Motown for stardom from a very young age. His career paralleled the Motown aesthetic as well as the spirit of the sixties and the seventies. He moved from hope, to anger, to distrust, and finally a certain resignation and blandness.
His music was influenced by gospel, blues, rhythm and blues, latin music, soul, Bob Dylan, surf music, jazz, reggae, rock, and African rhythms. Stevie Wonder was a great genius who was able to take all these different styles and make them his own. Because of that, he is difficult to place in the genre. This blending of styles is one of the things that makes Stevie so unique and so great.
Stevie Wonder was one of the pioneers of the synthesizer, and one of the few musicians to be able to play virtually all the instruments on his records. He almost single-handedly started the trend that continues to this day of musicians being heavily into technology.
Away from music, Stevie was a lifelong advocate of nonviolent political change, influenced by Martin Luther King and Gandhi. He believed strongly in the sixties utopian view.
Stevie Wonder was born Steveland Judkins Morris in 1950 in Detroit. He was blind since infancy. His career started when he joined his mother and siblings singing in a Baptist church. By age 10 he was proficient on the piano, harmonica, and drums. His talents were recognized by Ronnie White of the Motown band The Miracles, who heard him playing harmonica for his kids. White introduced Stevie to Berry Gordy of Motown, who nick named him Little Stevie Wonder. In 1964, The Rolling Stones opened for Stevie Wonder!
Listen to his first hit, Fingertips in the early 1960s.
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Fingertips (Parts I & II) - Stevie Wonder (1963)
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Fingertips (Parts I & II) - Stevie Wonder (1963)
Duration: (6:48) User: BlindFocus1 - Added: 11/14/10
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During these early years, Stevie was presented as Motown’s version of Ray Charles- blind/ piano playing/ singing genius. He was combining pop with a utopian social view. In the mid-1960s he had numerous hits.
Listen to an example of his early Motown hits.
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Stevie Wonder - Uptight (Everything's Alright) (Live on TOTP 1966)
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Stevie Wonder - Uptight (Everything's Alright) (Live on TOTP 1966)
Duration: (2:44) User: totparchive - Added: 3/7/12
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His teen years were problematic in that his voice was changing as he matured, and he was no longer a child prodigy. He was however able to overcome the change in his voice, and throughout the sixties he many number one hits coming.
When Stevie reached his 21st birthday, he negotiated a contract with Motown that gave him unprecedented artist control. He found out that he was entitled to just $1 million of the $30 million he had made from Motown. At this point he negotiated a contract in which he owned his own publishing company and had total control of his business. This contract was a huge stretch for Motown. If you
remember, Berry Gordy controlled every aspect of Motown including all the songwriting. Stevie wonder demanded autonomy, and because he was so successful, Motown gave in.
In 1972 Stevie Wonder released Superstition, whose “trust no one” motto fit the times perfectly. This record was one of the biggest selling albums in history, and for a time Stevie Wonder was truly the King of Pop.
Listen to some of Stevie wonder's great music from this era.
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Stevie Wonder ~ Superstition
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Stevie Wonder ~ Superstition
Duration: (5:03) User: sante3d - Added: 3/5/07
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Stevie Wonder - Living for the City
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Stevie Wonder - Living for the City
Duration: (4:00) User: cctaximan - Added: 11/11/07
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Stevie Wonder - You are the sunshine of my life
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Stevie Wonder - You are the sunshine of my life
Duration: (2:56) User: swf - Added: 1/30/06
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Stevie toured with the Rolling Stones once again and was thus introduced to a huge white audience, which helped his sales even more.
As the decade progressed his political activism was increasing while his music was becoming less cutting-edge less popular. His sound gradually became more insipid and what was called ‘middle of the road’ pop.
Stevie Wonder's most recent albums have shown that his most creative days are probably behind him, but in the early to mid-1970s, he was the King of Pop.
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Jackson 5
Jackson 5
The Jackson 5
The Jackson 5 was Motown's last great act. With little Michael moving like a miniature James Brown, the Jacksons transcended all barriers of race and age. Their talent was the real thing. Michael Jackson singing at 10 years old is considered one of the great wonders and pop music history. He was a true genius of soul singing.
Since their debut hit in 1969, they have been one of pop's most accomplished vocal groups, as well as one of the most famous family acts in history. They upheld and expanded on the vocal tradition laid down by the Temptations, and paved the way for such bands as New Edition, The Backstreet Boys, N’Sync, and the current boy band, One Direction.
The group's father, Joe Jackson, was a guitar player and professional musician. An ever growing family forced him to give up his musical ambitions to become a crane operator. He did keep playing his guitar for his family however. The children often sat around and sang harmony to country-western songs, soul standards and other styles of pop music.
Beginning in the early 1960s, the three oldest sons played in a band around Gary, Indiana and were billed as the Jackson family. When Michael and his brother Marlon joined the band in 1964, the band became known as the Jackson 5. They toured around the country in a van and until they were spotted by the famous Motown singer, Gladys Knight, who brought the band to Motown's attention.
By that time, Motown had moved to Los Angeles, and the boys and their father moved there to polish their act and record.
Their 1st hit was I Want You Back, and this was followed by a string of hits.
Listen to songs from the late 60s and early 70s
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I Want You Back - The Jackson 5
Watch Video
I Want You Back - The Jackson 5
Duration: (3:00) User: ibelovinthej5 - Added: 1/10/10
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The Jackson 5 - ABC
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The Jackson 5 - ABC
Duration: (3:31) User: czikes - Added: 7/20/09
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Michael Jackson & Jackson 5 singing - I'll Be There Acapella
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Michael Jackson & Jackson 5 singing - I'll Be There Acapella
Duration: (3:51) User: fabricioface - Added: 6/26/09
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In 1972 Congress gave the group a commendation for its contribution to American youth. The entire family was upheld as role models, with strong religious beliefs and an equally strong work ethic. The family was often erroneously depicted as having risen up from the ghetto (for PR purposes) which infuriated the Jackson parents. This was not the case at all!
As trends moved toward dance music, the group began to splinter and eventually left Motown.
Listen to music from this era, and noticed the disco dancing and disco).
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The Jacksons - Shake Your Body Down - Live 1979
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The Jacksons - Shake Your Body Down - Live 1979
Duration: (10:01) User: 1980triumph - Added: 1/23/11
Notice the name is the Jacksons, not the Jackson 5. This was due to legal constraints
because the Jacksons left Motown to have more creative control of their careers.
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Motown Special
Motown Special The group played on a Motown 25th reunion special. This show propelled Michael to a new level of superstardom, and signaled the beginning of the end for the The Jacksons. Michael's appearance on the show was so successful that although he had a very strong solo career happening, it propelled them to heights previously unknown in pop music history.
Listen and watch this classic TV special.
As we all know, the Jackson's have numerous successful family members, and have been one of the most talked about families in showbiz. With Michael's tragic death, this chapter of popular music has come to an end.
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Michael Jackson - Billie Jean (Live 1983)
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Michael Jackson - Billie Jean (Live 1983)
Duration: 4:59 User: n/a - Added: 2/28/14
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Sly and the Family Stone
Sly and the Family Stone Sly And The Family Stone
In the late 1960s, Sly Stone turned funky rhythms with a psychedelic aesthetic into a hybrid style of music that was popular with both black and white audiences. Along with James Brown, he virtually invented 1970s funk. He influenced bands from Earth Wind and Fire to Prince, Michael Jackson, Arrested Development, and hundreds of groups in between.
Sly grew up in the Bay Area singing gospel at various Baptist churches, and studying trumpet and composition at Vallejo junior-college.
This was an innovative, multiracial, multi-gendered band from the beginning. Not only was it very unusual in this era to have African-Americans and whites in the same band, but to have women in the band who played instruments was almost unheard of. The sound and the look of the band made them accessible to a wide range of people.
After 1970, Sly Stone was notorious for missing concerts because of drug issues. It became almost a game for concertgoers to see if Sly would actually show up to his own gigs!
By 1972, the group was splintering. Sly was in out of jail. For all practical purposes the band was over by 1979.
Listen to this great music, and check out the look of the band as well as the closing. His band had a psychedelic look with the funky sound.
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Sly & The Family Stone Medley
Watch Video
Sly & The Family Stone Medley
Duration: (4:01) User: ianabroad - Added: 5/10/08
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Sly & The Family Stone Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin) HQ Audio
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Sly & The Family Stone Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin) HQ Audio
Duration: 4:52 User: n/a - Added: 5/8/16
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George Clinton
George Clinton George Clinton–Parliament Funkadelic
For years George Clinton has led and aggregation of musicians composed of mostly two groups, Parliament and Funkadelic. This organization made some of African American pop’s most adventurous and popular music. Clinton's crazy persona and music have influence artists like Prince, Public Enemy, Dr. DRE, the Chile Peppers, and countless others.
The music is a mixture of funk, polyrhythms, psychedelic guitars, jazz horns, and incredible group vocalizing.
One of his famous quotes–
“free your mind, and your ass will follow”.
Clinton cut hair in New Jersey before moving to Detroit to be a staff writer for Motown. In Detroit he found himself hanging out with hippies in the psychedelic music scene and not putting much time in at Motown.
George Clinton's Parliament /Funkadelic drew a huge following. Clinton would jump out of the coffin, smoking marijuana,, and wearing a diaper. The other version of the group was more alien based, with spaceships and strange alien costumes.
By 1980, the group was falling apart. Members left the band to start their own projects. However, over the years there have been numerous reunion tours and his music still lives on.
Check out the wackiness of George Clinton and his bands.
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Parliament Funkadelic - Bring The Funk
Watch Video
Parliament Funkadelic - Bring The Funk
Duration: (3:47) User: smokalot187 - Added: 8/19/09
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George Clinton - Atomic Dog
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George Clinton - Atomic Dog
Duration: (4:15) User: joeyfanatic - Added: 8/27/06
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Flash Light (Part 1)- Houston 1978
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Flash Light (Part 1)- Houston 1978
Duration: (6:12) User: 898106 - Added: 8/1/07
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Earth Wind and Fire
Earth Wind and Fire Earth Wind and Fire
Earth Wind and Fire was the most commercially successful funk band of the 1970s. They changed the sound of seventies pop and funk music with their innovative yet highly popular sound. They were incredibly tight and precise, but never lost their visceral appeal. They combined funk, Latin rhythms, gospel harmonies, tight punchy horns, and a beautiful lead singing voice to create a funky and often exotic sound.
They always preached a clean, uplifting message. The leader of the band, Maurice White, was the son of a doctor who became a studio musician at the Chess Record label in Chicago. After touring with Ramsey Lewis for a number of years, he decided to start his own band.
The band was heavily influenced by Egyptology, and often their clothing and stage sets reflected this aesthetic. Maurice White said “ we came her to render a service to mankind, not to be stars”.
Listen to some of the great hits from Earth Wind and Fire, and perhaps you will recognize them, as many are still popular today.
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Earth, Wind & Fire - September
Watch Video
Earth, Wind & Fire - September
Duration: (3:36) User: earthwindandfirevevo - Added: 1/11/13
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Earth, Wind & Fire - Getaway (Audio)
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Earth, Wind & Fire - Getaway (Audio)
Duration: 3:49 User: n/a - Added: 5/9/13
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Earth Wind And Fire - Shining Star(1975)
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Earth Wind And Fire - Shining Star(1975)
Duration: (2:52) User: reallassnigga123 - Added: 8/9/08
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Earth, Wind & Fire - Reasons (Official Video)
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Earth, Wind & Fire - Reasons (Official Video)
Duration: 5:14 User: n/a - Added: 8/15/13
• Reggae is the name given in 1968 to various Jamaican dance rhythms from styles derived from Afro-Cuban and American R&B.
Reggae’s distinctive sound is achieved by reversing instrumental roles. The guitar in reggae functions mainly as a rhythm instrument, scratching out chords on off-beats or upbeats. The bass plays a melodic counter rhythm to the vocals, often highly syncopated and starting on different beats than a typical pop or rock style. The drums use various unusual accents and counter rhythms. Put all this together, and the reggae beat is a very unique blend of rhythms and textures which are highly danceable.
Reggae is often associated with the cult of Rastafarian which included ritual drumming, chanting, mystical political teachings, and marijuana smoking.
Bob Marley
Bob Marley and the Wailers were national heroes in Jamaica, and reggae’s most effective international ambassadors.
Bob Marley’s songs of rebellion, determination, and faith were loved worldwide, and had a huge impact in the 70’s and 80’s with the general public and musicians alike.
Marley left his rural home in Jamaica at age 14. He formed the Wailers in 1964, and released their first recordings in 1970. Though he died very young, his music continues to have a huge impact on music worldwide. In particular, many New Wave bands used reggae music as a part of their style and sound. The Police are the best example of cross-pollinating pop with reggae.
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Bob Marley - Get Up Stand Up [HQ Sound]
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Bob Marley - Get Up Stand Up [HQ Sound] Duration: 3:10 User: n/a - Added: 3/15/08
Please read the listening guide for this song in your book, page 355.
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Bob Marley Jammin
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Bob Marley Jammin Duration: 3:21 User: n/a - Added: 9/8/08
• Disco was dance music from the 1970s. This music set the stage for development in future musical trends of the era, namely, hip hop, rap, house music, acid jazz, and various other dance related styles. Disco emerged in reaction to many ‘dance resistant’ styles that were prevalent in the 70’s. Rock in this era was often perceived of as listening music, and in reaction to this trend, a new dance-only music sprang up.
Often the music was recorded vs played live and DJ’s became a huge part of pop culture at this time. This trend with DJ’s playing prerecorded music is still very important and popular today.
With the movie Saturday Night Fever, disco exploded onto the international scene.
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Bee Gees - Stayin' Alive [Version 1] (Video)
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Bee Gees - Stayin' Alive [Version 1] (Video) Duration: 4:03 User: n/a - Added: 1/10/17
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Bee Gees - more than a woman (Dancing Saturday Night Fever)
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Bee Gees - more than a woman (Dancing Saturday Night Fever) Duration: 3:14 User: n/a - Added: 5/7/14
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Donna Summer - Love To Love You Baby
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Donna Summer - Love To Love You Baby Duration: 3:24 User: n/a - Added: 4/27/17
Please read the listening guide for this song in your book, page 361.
