7 - British Invasion, American Pop. Music, 60s Counterculture

Question 1

What group kicked off the 1960s with their distinctiveness and popularity, turning them into a media sensation?

Answer 1

The Beatles!

Question 2

When did The Beatles hit media sensation in UK? When in US?

Answer 2

UK 1963
US 1964

Question 3

Why were The Beatles popular in the US?

Answer 3

their novelty as a british group!
= someone coming from far away with a completely new perspective on rock n roll

Question 4

What are some general factors of the Beatles music and style?

Answer 4

• show their comraderie through their music
• repertoire variety
• musicalty, enthusiasm
• psychedelic feeling
• skill in singing and playing
• irreverence toward establishment figures **1st countercultural push back against corp structure
  = overwhelming charisma!

Question 5

Who were the members of The Beatles and their roles in the band? Who was distinctively politics related?

Answer 5

John Lennon = rhythm guitarist
Paul McCartney = bass guitar, writer, lead vocals
George Harrison = lead guitarist, some singing + writing
Ringo Starr (aka Richard Starkey) = drummer

John Lennon was seen as threat to established society with his views (Imagine song talking about “imagine theres no heaven // no hell below us”)
=> he spoke out against society and harm of humans and as a result was assassinated

Question 6

Who/what genres are biggest influences on the Beatles sound?

Answer 6

• CHUCK BERRY
• ^ rhythm blues 1950s, Little Richard
• rockabilly (Elvis, Carl Perkins, Everly Brothers)
• Brill Building pop music (girl grouups!)
• Motown

= took all the influences from th epast and put em togeher in their own way

Question 7

Where (genre/style) did the Beatles get their start?

Answer 7

Skiffle! (folk music performed in a rhythmic manner borrowed from traditional British jazz)

Question 8

What is the most special/revolutionary aspect of the Beatles?

Answer 8

they do it themselves!! (that anti-corporation, counterculture thing)
- 3/4 of em are composers
- can all play many intruments well
- able to borrow other song and put a spin on it

Question 9

Do the Beatles fall under the category of ‘contemporary rock group’? Why?

Answer 9

kind of!

• very novel in rock n roll
• Rubber Soul 1965 album had introspective lyrical content and artsy cover = not seen before in pop music at the time
• lots of other quieter, subtle songs
• helped (with Bob Dylan’s music) suggest that rock music could be music of adults with intellect (not just dang teens)

Question 10

What is the album that put the Beatles on the map? What was the album about? What was distinct about this album?

Answer 10

SGT PEPPER’S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND

about: concept album, simulating concert given by the Beatles’ alter egos

discint:
- tons of sound effects and other weird uses of recording studio
- orchestral unstruments
- sound processing
- WON OVER ppl that had maintained concdescnding stance toward pop music until then

Question 11

What band was seen as the antithesis to the beatles? Why?

Answer 11

The Rolling Stones, esp Mick Jagger lead singer

• arrogance
• ironic detachment
• aggressive sexuality
  = all opposite of cuter, more polite image of Beatles

Question 12

What are the differences between the beatles nad rolling stones/? Similaroties?

Answer 12

differences
- stones had rawer, blues-based sound vs beatles polished, conventionally melodic pop
- stones influenced by chicago blues vs beatles rockabilly
- stones “down home” soul singers vs Beatles motown inluences

similarities
- stones def took some influence from beatles
–> use of strings!
–> sitar
–> psychedelia
- both did songs that brought political involvement

Question 13

What were the sources of the shift to counterculture and heightening of politics to foreground? Who helped do this?

Answer 13

sources:
- grpwth of antiwar movement
- riots at democratic convention in chicago
- assassination of
– Martin Luther King Jr
– Robert Kenedy

helped: Beatles and Stones

Question 14

Where did Janis Joplin start? How is she different + similar to the Rolling Stones performance style?

Answer 14

started with Big Brother and the Holding Company band, but her success grew out of them

similar to stones Mick Jagger with the movement energy dancign while singing
different bc
- get involved with the audience
- more emotion
- incredible Elvis like range
- FORCE that you cant describe

Question 15

What were the contradictory labels placed on Janis Joplin? Why might these labels have been so emphasized with her as opposed to other artists?

Answer 15

• “hippy poster girl” but also “proto-feminist” bc assertive performing style, extroverted, bandleader
• “the best white blues singer of all time”

labels bc critics attempting to exmplain this woman taking the stage, comanding the space

Question 16

What did Janis Joplin say about soul?

Answer 16

“Theres no patent on soul. It;s just feeling things.”

Question 17

Who were some of Janis Joplin’s influences?

Answer 17

• otis redding
• bessie smith

Question 18

What did Jimi Hendrix do to revolutoinize rock?

Answer 18

He recontextualized the entire guitar instrumetn!!! kicked in the door for exploiting the electrification of instruments
- used it in every single way possible, whatever noises etc he could make
- sustai and feedback became an integral part of his technique
- pioneered electronic devices

Question 19

What electronic devices did Jimi Hendrix pioneer?

Answer 19

fuzztones
wah-wah pedals!!! = can adjust between bright and hollow sound

Question 20

Where did Jimi Hendrix take his inspiration? Who?

Answer 20

• blues
• r&b
• psychedelic innocations in sound and recording (hippy, weird sounds from guitar)

who:
- Bob Dylan!!!
–> he took folk and exploded it with electric guitar, just like JH did with rock
–> he had great lyrics

Question 21

What was Jumi Hendrix’s most significant performance?

Answer 21

Star Spangled Banner at the Woodstock festival = MADE U.S. ANTHEM INTO ANTIWAR PROTEST SONG
- used guitar wizardry to simulate exploding bombs, sky-diving aircraft
- was noise based version of the anthem, made it ugly to show ugliness of war/country at the time

Question 22

What was criticized about Jimi Hendrix? What was acknowledged as impressive? What did critics think o his early performances?

Answer 22

croticized = singing, abliity as lyricist
applauded = guitar playing abliity

early performances: thouight they were very theatrical and couldnt tell if it was a gimmick

Question 23

What did Jimi Hendrix say about giving the public music? What said related to corporatization?

Answer 23

have to make it presentable in some way, they ahve to have an identification mark

corp: you used to be able to give them just one page of a book, now you can give them two or three pages, but never the whole book

Question 24

What were Jimi Hendrix’s thoughts aobut a negative or unresponsive crowd?

Answer 24

“I don;t even care if they boo, as long as it isn’t out of key” = they dont need to like it, but they need to try to appreciate it and dislike it efffectively

“I don’t try to move an audience - its up to them what they get from the music. If they paid to see us then we are going to do our thing” ‘If we stand up there all night and play our best and they dont dig it, then they just dont dig us and that al there is to it”

Question 25

What ggoes hand in hand with the rise of counterculture? Why?

Answer 25

The rise of festivals!

why? bc both looking to see how can change the artistic/music experience

Question 26

What was the first major music festival? What were main characteristics of this festival? What message did it manage to connote?

Answer 26

The Monterey Pop Festival in 1967!

characteristics
- several days
- lots of merchandising
- wide variety of artists, appeal to wide mix of perspectives
- epicentre of counter cultural activity

message = anti-materialism within what were still basically capitalist enterprises

Question 27

What was Woodstock? What did attendance indicate? What did its popularity signify?

Answer 27

another festival, August 1969

after it happened, people who went were seen as hip (and maybe also hippies)

popularity: concept of Woodstock and “Woodstock Nation” became nearly synonymous with the “new age” of peace and love that many hoped was coming

Question 28

What was the Altamont Festival? What issues were there?

Answer 28

Rolling Stones finale of their tour in 1969, brought a bunch of other popular local bands

issues:
- Hells Angels biker gang were hired as security, made people paranoid
- there was tons of violence (3 deaths, a stabbing, tons of property damage, theft, injuries)

Question 29

Was Woodstock the hippie takeover that many hoped it would be?

Answer 29

not really

• many optimistic reviews demonstrated the SELF-DELUSION involved in counter culture
  = promoting new era of peace and love but old attitudes always creeping in
  = counterculture resisted materialism BUT status and prestige still important even if acquired non-materialistically