1. MUSI 2007 W12 Early 1970s Rock

2. Although early rock and roll (especially rockabilly) drew heavily from country music influences, for the most part the country and rock worlds were separate all the way through the 1960s. They had different fan bases, different industry homes, and different ideologies. This is not to say that there wasn’t significant overlap as well. Some 1960s rock artists, like The Grateful Dead and Neil Young, retained an obvious influence from country. But it wasn’t until around 1968 that the idea of country rock began to emerge as a distinct genre. Important early influences here were Bob Dylan and Gram Parsons circa 1966-1968. But it was acts like The Band and The Eagles which brought the style to mass attention circa 1969-1971.

3. The Band first came together as a backing group for Ronnie Hawkins in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Four out of five members were Canadian and one was from Arkansas. They also had a unique range of influences between them: blues and R+B, country music, gospel, and classical. Bob Dylan began using them as the core of his touring group in 1965. And during Dylan’s retreat of 1966-67 they spent a great deal of time woodshedding and songwriting with him. Overhead: The Band “next of kin” photo, 1968. Overhead: The Band, 1968 promo shot. Audio: The Band “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” (1969).

4. The Band didn’t like to be called country rock, but people called them that anyway (partly because of the Jan. 12, 1970 cover of Time Magazine, which pictured them under a banner reading “The New Sound of Country Rock”). What stands out about the group visually and lyrically? What are they associating themselves with?

5. Musically, the group stood out for a number of reasons... A generally “acoustic” kind of sound -- even though many electric instruments were used, there wasn’t any radical sonic experimentation, and the overall effect was mellow. References to many different kinds of roots music and Americana, both in the lyrics and in the stylistic influences. A lack of leaders or central figures. They had three lead singers. Their group vocal sound was influenced by The Staple Singers (a gospel vocal group) – blended, but with individual voice personalities still coming through. The instruments blended together very closely, and generally none stood out as soloists – instruments come forward briefly and then tend to recede to make room for others. General question: How does all of this relate to the mood of earlier 1960s styles? Is country rock a break with the 60s, a continuation of it, or both?

6. Another important development of the late 1960s and early 1970s was the singer-songwriter genre. Singer-songwriter music was generally seen as a part of the folk scene, although stylistically a lot of it sounded like what was also starting to be called soft rock (the best example here is probably James Taylor). So we can ask a few questions as we listen to an example: (i) why would this be seen as a kind of folk music? (ii) does it represent a new kind of ‘folk authenticity’ (recall the Dylan lecture on this point); (iii) what does the overlap with soft rock say about the target audience? (iv) can we read it as a reaction to the 1960s, as we did with country rock? Audio: Joni Mitchell “The Last Time I Saw Richard” (1971).

7. Although genres like country rock and singer-songwriter were quite introspective, there was also a trend in the 1970s towards epic, grandiose genres as well. This is illustrated by the rise of heavy metal, progressive rock, and glam/shock rock (we’ll just look at the first two). One thing that led to this was the live performance situation. By the early 1970s, stadiums had become the normal context for rock concerts by successful groups. What effect does that have on the relationship between performer and audience? What kind of staging and music are required for a stadium show? Both progressive rock and heavy metal were closely related to psychedelic rock in that they became interested in themes of fantasy and magic, and produced long song forms with a great deal of sonic exploration. But they elaborated these influences in very different ways, so before looking at them individually let’s do a quick overview comparison...

8. Progressive RockHeavy Metal Roots in late-1960s England (upper-middle class) Roots in late-1960s England (working-class) Became very popular in the U.S. in the early 1970s Same Large-scale and spectacularSame Long songs, emphasis on virtuosity (drawing on classical music as a model) Same (drawing more on electric blues at first) Fantasy and science-fictionFantasy (but darker) and occult Mostly oriented towards teenage males Same Black roots of rock almost entirely erased Black roots of rock largely erased in later phases (after the blues influence became less prominent)

9. The earliest forms of heavy metal evolved out of heavy psychedelic blues rock in the late 1960s. During this period, the distinction between metal and other kinds of heavy rock is extremely blurry, so rather than saying which bands are ‘metal’ which are not, we’ll look at the evolution of particular style traits that were clearly influential on metal. After Eric Clapton left The Bluesbreakers he co-founded Cream. Most people identify this group as a key ancestor of heavy metal for a number of reasons. Audio: Cream “Crossroads” (1968). The guitar hero element here is obviously even more developed than in Clapton’s earlier work. And all the elements of volume and distortion already discussed are even more intense. How are the bass and drums playing? What does that have to do with the power trio format? The power trio lineup became very influential on metal.

10. Although Cream was a crucial stepping stone towards heavy metal, they are almost never called a metal band. Why not? What is missing? Or what is there that shouldn’t be? One of the earliest bands who are sometimes called metal (although only sometimes) was Led Zeppelin. When listening to the following, pay special attention to: the voice, the drumming (especially what’s sometimes called round the kit drumming), the lyrics, the basic tone of the guitar, bass and drums, and the use of riffs. We’ll talk about how all of those are closer to what might be called a metal style... DVD: Led Zeppelin and the Royal Albert Hall (January 1970).

11. The group which is just about universally regarded as founding the heavy metal style as such is Black Sabbath. So the question: What makes the following recording an example of early heavy metal? What does it have that the preceding recordings didn’t? What does it leave out? Audio: Black Sabbath “Iron Man” (1971).

12. Circa 1966-1968, the term progressive rock was applied to any kind of rock music that was experimental and countercultural. So, for example, both Cream and Jimi Hendrix were called progressive rock, even though they wouldn’t be called that today. In the late 1960s, progressive FM radio referred to stations which played long album cuts (instead of short singles) and tended to prefer less obviously commercial material. However, by the early 1970s, progressive rock (or just prog rock) had a more specific meaning: it referred to rock groups that borrowed certain elements from classical music and jazz, and who had a particular attitude about their aesthetic worth relative to other kinds of popular music. The movement is partially rooted in mid-late-1960s ‘art rock’ experiments, as we saw with The Beatles.

13. Although prog rock bands varied quite a bit, most displayed the following features... An attitude of superiority which rubbed many old-school rock critics and fans the wrong way (consider the implications of calling yourself ‘progressive’). Some rockers saw the whole concept of ‘art rock’ as an oxymoron (why?) An interest in gaining for rock music some of the same prestige traditionally given to classical music. Very long songs, often in sectional form. Many changes of texture, key, tempo, and time signature. A generally unpredictable formal approach. A liking for asymmetrical time signatures. Great emphasis on instrumental virtuosity. Foregrounding of keyboards (prog rock put forward the first keyboard heroes as rivals to guitar heroes).

14. Audio: Emerson, Lake, and Palmer “Karn Evil No. 9 – 1 st Impression, Part 2” (1973). One other thing that progressive rock and heavy metal had in common was that they tended to be largely ignored by the press and by commercial radio. Although both genres were very successful in the early 1970s, this was achieved largely through word of mouth and touring.