History of Rock and Roll Essay Example For Students

History of Rock and Roll Essay In the early 50s, at the end of the big band swing era, came a form of music that, like others, parents would reject and their children would love. This type of music is known as Rock and Roll. Rock and Roll is defined as a popular type of music played on electric instruments and characterized by a strong beat and much repetition. Simply this means music that kids like, music that parents hate, and in some places banned from schools. Although there are many different types of Rock and Roll, its true origins came from the 50s with groups such as Dion and the Bellmonts, Chuck Berry, and the King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley. It was influenced by swing and jazz. Rock and Roll was probably one of the most well known types of music because of the invention of the television just a few years earlier. With the invention of the TV Rock and roll could now reach the homes of thousands. From the late fifties to the early sixties this type of Rock and Roll, listened to by kids in slicked back hair and leather jackets, dominated the charts. This could most be seen in the movie Back to the Future.In the late sixties however a new type of rock emerged. Led by four young British men known as Paul, John, George and Ringo this music was more like the gateway from Elvis Presley to Jimi Hendrix. Known as the Beatles they stole the hearts of millions of teenage girls with songs such as Michelle and Julia. If you were lucky enough to have one of those names you were idolized for life. This new type of Rock and Roll, sometimes referred to as Hippie Music is probably the most well known because of the unique use of color and face paint which most of the bands more. Kids wore bell bottoms and guys had long hair. Once again the parents rejected. The kids loved it. For three days in August of 1969 on a farm in Woodstock, New York, bands and thousands of kids got together for three days of peace, love and music. The reason for this was to protest the death of innocent teens being sent off to Vietnam to fight in the war. Bands that headlined this event were Jefferson Airplane, The Who and Jimi Hendrix. In the early seventies another type of rock and roll was emerging. With bands such as the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath it was sure to draw a crowd. All three of these leading bands are still around now. In the late seventies a new band brought back the face paint costumes to the extreme. This band as Kiss. Peter Criss, Ace Frehley, Paul Stanley, and Gene Simmons made up the band of long haired, make up wearing hooligans. They always loved Rock and Roll and put on great shows. Although a ticket was sometimes eighty dollars, it was well worth it. With Kiss and Led Zeppelin on mainstream record labels and sales depleting there were bound to be more new bands coming out. With groups such as Aerosmith Rock and Roll was coming back. But some people got tired of the loud guitars and almost beatless music. They wanted a music they could dance to. DJs started to play a kind of Rock and Roll at clubs that people could dance to and called it Disco. Disco brought back the bell bottoms and long hair except this time the costumes were a little more extreme. With tight spandex clothes, big gold chains and platform shoes it was bound to happen sooner or later that someone or something would rebel. This group was known as the generation swine or more often referred to as punks. The punk movement happened was because a couple of working class kids got tired of hearing the mainstream Rock and Roll played on all the radio stations. The didnt want to hear hour long guitar solos. They wanted their music to be short and sweet. Just like the Beatles a group of four men known as the Sex Pistols led a massive movement that would not soon be forgotten. With shaggy hair and leather jackets their image would be imbedded into the minds of thousands of kids and their parents. Just like their parents parents did to them, they would reject and not le t their kids to listen to it. With such bands as Minor Threat, the Ramones and the Sex Pistols the punk movement was well known. It didnt last long though and by the early eighties people were trading in their leather jackets and spikes for leather spandex and lipstick. This type of music like many others was separated by the clothes people wore and how they presented themselves. This music is some times referred to as heavy metal although it wasnt actually heavy metal. It is mostly commonly refereed to as Glam Rock. Glam rock bands were perhaps the most outrageous because men wore lipstick, women wore mens clothes and everyone used alot of hairspray to hold their hair up. With such bands as Warrant, White Snake and Mtley CRE, it had alot of effect on the kids and apparently on the next group of musicians who rebelled the fashions. Perhaps one of the most noticed group of anti-glam rock bands in the eighties were Guns N Roses. Lead singer Axl Rose was immortalized by millions. He has his own statue in Florida and even had a pair of sneakers made for him by Converse. These were called The Axl Kickwears and had his name on the tongue of both sneakers. By the late eighties a two new types of music were emerging out of the working classes of the United States. These two types of music were Grunge and Rap. Some people call it grunge, some people call it hard rock, others call it anti-fashion music. but by 1991 most of the eighties bands were dying and kids were trading in their spandex for flannel shirts and ripped jeans. Grunge became a part of pop culture. It even made it to the run ways with models sporting flannel shirts in a little more prestigious way. In an interview with MTV Courtney Love of her band Hole states I have had this sweater for 7 years. And now that its on the runway your gonna sell it for $1000?. This shows how much people would pay to be like one of the rockstars. The most influential and known group of the grunge movement would have to be Nirvana. With the band staying the same all through their fame except with a minor drummer change from Chad Channing to Dave Grohl the were the best. Kurt Cobain was greatly renowned for his creativity. In their music video Smells like Teen Spirit it opens up with shots of cheerleaders doing cheers. These cheerleaders arent normal though. They dont have black hair and they arent anorexic. They have curly black hair and are overweight. Nirvana showed not everyone is the same and you could be just as great even if you arent a stereotype. Ironing as a Window EssayDJs started to play a kind of Rock and Roll at clubs that people could dance to and called it Disco. Disco brought back the bell bottoms and long hair except this time the costumes were a little more extreme. With tight spandex clothes, big gold chains and platform shoes it was bound to happen sooner or later that someone or something would rebel. This group was known as the generation swine or more often referred to as punks. The punk movement happened was because a couple of working class kids got tired of hearing the mainstream Rock and Roll played on all the radio stations. The didnt want to hear hour long guitar solos. They wanted their music to be short and sweet. Just like the Beatles a group of four men known as the Sex Pistols led a massive movement that would not soon be forgotten. With shaggy hair and leather jackets their image would be imbedded into the minds of thousands of kids and their parents. Just like their parents parents did to them, t hey would reject and not let their kids to listen to it. With such bands as Minor Threat, the Ramones and the Sex Pistols the punk movement was well known. It didnt last long though and by the early eighties people were trading in their leather jackets and spikes for leather spandex and lipstick. This type of music like many others was separated by the clothes people wore and how they presented themselves. This music is some times referred to as heavy metal although it wasnt actually heavy metal. It is mostly commonly refereed to as Glam Rock. Glam rock bands were perhaps the most outrageous because men wore lipstick, women wore mens clothes and everyone used alot of hairspray to hold their hair up. With such bands as Warrant, White Snake and Mtley CRE, it had alot of effect on the kids and apparently on the next group of musicians who rebelled the fashions. Perhaps one of the most noticed group of anti-glam rock bands in the eighties were Guns N Roses. Lead singer Axl Rose was immortalized by millions. He has his own statue in Florida and even had a pair of sneakers made for him by Converse. These were called The Axl Kickwears and had his name on the tongue of both sneakers. By the late eighties a two new types of music were emerging out of the working classes of the United States. These two types of music were Grunge and Rap. Some people call it grunge, some people call it hard rock, others call it anti-fashion music. but by 1991 most of the eighties bands were dying and kids were trading in their spandex for flannel shirts and ripped jeans. Grunge became a part of pop culture. It even made it to the run ways with models sporting flannel shirts in a little more prestigious way. In an interview with MTV Courtney Love of her band Hole states I have had this sweater for 7 years. And now that its on the runway your gonna sell it for $1000?. This shows how much people would pay to be like one of the rockstars. The most influential and known group of the grunge movement would have to be Nirvana. With the band staying the same all through their fame except with a minor drummer change from Chad Channing to Dave Grohl the were the best. Kurt Cobain was greatly renowned for his creativity. In their music video Smells like Teen Spirit it opens up with shots of cheerleaders doing cheers. These cheerleaders arent normal though. They dont have black hair and they arent anorexic. They have curly black hair and are overweight. Nirvana showed not everyone is the same and you could be just as great even if you arent a stereotype. For three and a half years Nirvana kept the spotlight on themselves. With all five of their albums going mutliplatnum it looked like they would be on top forever. Only something drastic would be able to change this.In February of 1994, Kurt Cobain (lead singer/guitarist) was said to be in an irreversible comma. It looked like Nirvanas career was over. But within twenty four hours Kurt was up chatting with the nurses. A chronic heroin addict, Kurt Cobain would always shoot up in his house. One day he sat down shot up and committed suicide by shooting himself with a 13 gauge shotgun blow to the head. With the break up of Nirvana the drummer went of to the Foo Fighters and the bassist went to join Sweet 75. Both members now currently play guitar and those bands. The other great music of the late eighties, early nineties is rap. Rap is a spin off of disco which was spun off of rock. Rap is a type of music that people can dance to and still have fun listening to. Most rap artists take a part of an old song, loop it over and over again and rap over it. This can most be seen with Puff Daddys song Ill be missing you (which was the Polices Every Step you take) and his other song off the Godzilla soundtrack witch he got from Led Zeppelins Kashmier.The Beasties Boys along with Run DMC are said to be the creators of rap. The Beasties Boys are still around and one many awards including the 1998 MTV Video Vanguard Award for life time achievement. Another rap artist who has received this award is LL Cool J. The world of rap though was built around the urban population and community which included crime, drugs and unfortunately death. Great rap artists Tupac Shakur and the Notorious B.I.G. were recently killed. Most music today, in the late nineties is a ll revival of old music. We have swing bands (Brian Setzer Orchestra, Cherry Poppin Daddies), Rockabilly bands (Stray Cats), Punk bands (NoFX, Screeching Weasel), Ska bands (Less then Jake, Save Ferris), Grunge bands (Pearl Jam), Glamrock bands (Motley Crue), and Rap bands (Puff Daddy, Busta Rhymes). We have bands that play music that was played back in the forties. I think this shows that now in the nineties we have a wider range of tastes and a wider range of people. People are living longer and perhaps this is why music has been lasting longer, Although music has evolved greatly over the years, it can all be linked to each other. With every generation comes a new type of music. You might not always like what your parents like but you have to remember they probably dont like what their parents like. Everyone has different tastes and every generation have music that present those different tastes.