In the early 50's, 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 50's 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 didn't 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 let their kids to listen to it. With<...