MUSC 2019 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Brown Eyed Handsome Man, This Machine Kills Fascists, Newport Folk Festival
History of Rock and Roll – MUSC 2019
Lecture 2, Wednesday 10th
• Form = structure
• Verse-chorus form
• Chorus – hook
− AABA
• 12 Bar Blues – Blues form
− African Americans learned harmonics from western Europe in the church
− Blues form used for over 100 years in blues
− 12 bars that use the 1, 4, 5 chords
− 1, 1, 1, 1, 4, 4, 1, 1, 5, 4, 1 chord form
− improvise over the form is easy once you know the form – ‘jam’ with strangers to
make up music on the spot
− Lyrics AAB phrase
• Rhythms
− Straight or square – are with the pulse of the music – sweet dreams by euthrymics
− Syncopation – emphasize against the pulse of the music ex: brick house by
commodores
• Rise of Rock in Roll 1950s
− Baby boom in the 1940s generation
− Post war prosperity
− These people were teenagers in the 1950s therefore they became a large target for
consumerism
− “teenager” became a whole new demographic
− technological advancements like radio in most households
− exposure of music to a national level or even internationally
− up rise of independent labels who were less afraid to promote and produce music
from African Americans and music that is somewhat ‘offensive’
− television was also used to promote music; most households were able to afford a
TV
• Elvis Presley
− Charismatic musician who became famous after being on a performance broadcast
on TV
• Rhythm and Blues
− Moving away from racist south
− Moved to Memphis, Chicago, New York…
− Blues from rural setting was in bigger cities where rhythm was needed in order to
fill these bigger performances
− Louder and more appropriate for bigger venues
• Backbeat
− Played on the 2nd and 4th beat
• Early Rhythm and Blues lyrics – black artists seemed to have misogynistic lyrics in their
songs to compensate for the emasculating conditions that they had to face
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
• White artists stole black musician’s music and re-recorded them into hits
− Covers
− Shake, Rattle, Roll by Bill Haley and the Comets is a cover of Joe Turners version
− But the lyrics were changed in order to follow Christian and conservative views
− No reference to the bedroom
• Hound Dog
− Written by Leiber and Stoller two Jewish children who fell in love with the African
American culture
− Recorded by Big Mama Thorton
− Hound dog – a flattering guy who was scummy and ‘used’ woman for financial or
other benefits from them
− Elvis Presley covered it and it became a mega-hit
− Cleaned up the sexual innuendos that were written about the relationship, it’s now
just about a dog
• First rock and roll hits were by white musicians who covered black artists
• Alan Freed
− DJ who helped to rise rock and roll
− Played R&B who played integrated playlists on the radio
• Rock and Roll was controversial because it was desegregating culture
• 1957 desegregate school in Little Rock HS
− Ruby Bridges 1960 going to school had to be escorted by federal agents into a
white public elementary school
• Chuck Berry
− Pioneers of rock and roll
− Chess records signed him
− Claims of racial pride
− Had to say brown eyed handsome man, not brown skin handsome man
− Civil rights theme of the 1960s
• Muddy Waters from Mississippi
− Raised picking cotton
− Moved to Chicago
− Field holler is deeply rooted in slave culture which can be seen in his music
− “Mannish Boy”
− sexual innuendo, swagger, male sexuality
− based around a riff (recurring pattern) – insistence to the music
January 22 Surf Music Lecture 5
− Dick Dale – the father of surf guitar
o Famous for holding the guitar upside down and plucking one string at a time
o Lead to idiosyncratic style
− Immigrated from Lebanon – European style influenced his style
− Surfer in California
− Self-taught on guitar – but became a guitar pioneer
o Developed technology Leo Fender – worked for him – the first electric guitars
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
− Reverb – huge sound used by electronic effect
o Being in the tube of surfing – similar
− “Miserlou” (Arabic) melody is based on middle eastern song – greek folk melody
o Surf music = defining hit was actually based on above
o 1961
− Sufaris – Wipe out
o Follows 12 bar blues form
o Blues at the basis
− The Beach Boys – the most successful
o From southern California
o Brian Wilson
▪ Anxiety, didn’t like performing
o Brothers Dennis and Carl, cousin and pal
o Abusive father – Brian uses music as escape form harsh family life
o Hits: 1st – Surfin USA – melody possibly stolen from Chuck Berry
− Girl Group sound – Wrecking Crew
o Don’t worry baby by the Beach Boys had in mind “Be my Baby” by the Ronettes
− 1966 Pet Sounds
o landmark in pop music history
o music became art – concept album
o singles based medium from up to now, but this whole album became a hit
▪ records used to be an afterthought – arguably in the 60s this changed to
album oriented
▪ album: all the songs are related to each other – Pet sounds – zoo of sounds
o Wouldn’t it be nice, God only knows and good vibrations – all have very unique
sound creations
− Good Vibrations 1966
o Not on the pet sound album
o Famous for introducing the Theremin (electro-theremin)
▪ Instrument you play without touching, the electronic waves are
manipulated by moving your hands in the air
o Based the groove off of a Crystals song (girl group)
o Brian saw the Beatles albums and was inspired / challenged by their progression
o Good vibrations – pinnacle of his creative visions and abilities
▪
− The Beatles – Rubber soul album – to be doing more than what pop music was doing by
being artful and unique
Urban Folk Revival
− Woody Guthrie: great depression, telling the stories of these people
o Traditional
o Left wing politics, anti capitalist, anti poverty
o “This machine kills fascists” – on guitar
− Folk Music focus on community – singing songs in oral tradition for years, songs are the
property of the community
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
History of rock and roll musc 2019. Lecture 2, wednesday 10th: form = structure, verse-chorus form, chorus hook. Aaba: 12 bar blues blues form. African americans learned harmonics from western europe in the church. Blues form used for over 100 years in blues. 12 bars that use the 1, 4, 5 chords. 1, 1, 1, 1, 4, 4, 1, 1, 5, 4, 1 chord form. Improvise over the form is easy once you know the form jam" with strangers to make up music on the spot. Straight or square are with the pulse of the music sweet dreams by euthrymics. Syncopation emphasize against the pulse of the music ex: brick house by commodores: rise of rock in roll 1950s. These people were teenagers in the 1950s therefore they became a large target for consumerism. Technological advancements like radio in most households. Exposure of music to a national level or even internationally.
