what genres were favoured by white, middle class, college educated listeners in the 70s?
singer songwriter, art rock, psychedelic rock, prog rock
what genres were favoured by white, younger, middle-working class listeners in the 70s
heavy metal and hard rock
how did soul evolve into the early 70s?
soul diverged into…
- “hard” funk
- commercial “smooth” soul sub-styles
what was the influence of the high art aesthetic on 70s genres?
- genres either embraced the artiness and became coded as intellectual/challenging/complex
- or, they negated it and appealed as simple/authentic/”roots” rock
what is progressive rock? what are its defining traits?
- emerged out of countercultural movement
- long, complex forms with contrasting sections, emphasis on concept albums
- heavy emphasis on guitar virtuosity
- eg. Pink Floyd, Genesis, Yes, etc.
what are the main differences between soul and funk, in terms of their genre label connotations?
- soul is spiritual, transcendent, focuses on the form or melody
- funk is down to earth, danceable, taking Black music to its roots, focuses on the rhythm
what musical characteristics did James Brown pioneer in the funk genre?
- repetitive open vamps (improvisations over repeated sections)
- emphasis on rhythm, groove, beat
- vocal exultations/howls (inspired by little richard)
- re-introduction of jazz horns
- call and response
- often associated with popularizing the live album
why was Sly and the Family Stone particularly influential in the counterculture setting?
- interracial group that played at woodstock
- filled the racial gap that had emerged in the counterculture movement; “satisfied a particular need in white counterculture”
- politically conscious, proponents of the Black Power movement
what technique that became a funk signifier was invented by Sly and the Family Stone?
slapping the bass
who popularized the “greatest hits” album?
Earth Wind and Fire
what attitudes prompted the emergence of hard rock?
rebelling against the pretentiousness of high art progressive rock; themes of anti-progress, anti-virtuosity, and a “back to basics” attitude
hard rock was most popular with what audience?
white, younger, middle-working class audiences
in the early 70s, what were the main differences between heavy metal and hard rock?
- at the time, the two labels were used pretty much interchangeably
- retrospectively, bands that we now consider heavy metal (Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath) placed more emphasis on guitar virtuosity and satanic imagery
what are the main characteristics of glam rock?
- androgynous male stylization, make-up, glamour, glitter
- theatrical performance culture (eg. Ziggy Stardust)
- mostly a UK phenomenon
- heavy guitars, flamboyant vocal intonations
what is power rock?
- American bands who took the loud powerful electric guitar-driven hard rock sound and placed it within the context of pop songs with catchy hooks and melodies
- power ballads, melodramatic, importing sentimental themes from singer-songwriter genre
what was the paradox of disco?
- inclusivity vs exclusivity:
- the genre was birthed as a radical inclusive genre centred around marginalized communities (popular with working class, gay and Black communities, emphasis on liberal sexual freedom)
- as it became more mainstream and commercial it lost track of its roots (popular with elite society, conservative values)
what was “Disco Sucks”? what were the broader implications?
- half time event held at baseball stadium in which attendees could bring their disco records to smash and burn
- turned into a riot
- represented the social and musical tension playing out between rock and disco fans in the late 70s, with undertones of racism and homophobia
following the disco sucks movement, how did record companies start to market disco music?
advertised as “dance music” to avoid the increasingly negative connotations of the disco label
what are the main lyrical theme(s) of reggae music?
somewhat nationalistic; emphasis on Jamaican freedom/independence
what is ska? what are its defining characteristics?
- combined mento and calypso rhythm
- walking bass line
- off beat rhythms
- featured horns and up-beat tempos
- usually featured celebratory themes, following Jamaica’s 1962 independence from the UK
- precursor to reggae
what was the first non-western genre to become a mainstream genre in the US?
ska (one of the predecessors to reggae)
what is rocksteady? what are its defining characteristics?
- a development of the ska genre
- slower tempos, more off-beat accents and rhythms, more emphasis on bass, muted guitar, doubling bass line
- associated with soundsystem culture
what is soundsystem culture?
- a culture of playing American R&B in communal spaces via loudspeakers in Jamaica
- emphasis on having heavy deep bass
- served as a through-line from reggae to hip hop
- associated with the popularity of the rocksteady genre and dub-culture
how did reggae differ from its predecessors (ska and rocksteady)?
- slower tempo
- low tuned drums
