1. How A Popular Form of Music Came About
Roots of Rock and Roll
How A Popular Form of Music Came About

2. Rock and Roll is the culmination of “Black” and “White” music integration.
Black and white culture starts to come together in the 1950s
Rock and Roll is always reinventing itself (which is why it’s still around today!)
Rock and Roll is always changing!
2 main themes of Rock and Roll: Sex and Youth
Rock and Roll is meant to be democratic - “with equal participation by all” and accessible - “easily understood”
RnR is not musically sophisticated
Rock isn’t necessarily about musicianship, but a sense of energy

3. 7 Different “Roots” That Rock and Roll Comes From
Blues (“black” music)
Jazz (“black” and “white” music - depending on the style of jazz)
Gospel (“black”)
R&B (“black”)
Country (“white”)
Folk (“white”)
Pop (music heard on the radio that was almost exclusively white... circa 1940’s - Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, etc.)

4. The Blues
Blues songs were generally songs of frustration, ordeal or longing
Usually based on a 12-bar harmonic pattern that is repeated
Lyrics were simple and direct and usually revealed a “darker side” of life
Several styles of blues: classic, country, city, Delta... the list goes on and on
Blues serves as a basis for R&B, jazz, pop and to some extent gospel

5. Blues continued...
Gives to Rock and Roll: the idea of sexuality and accessibility... chords, song structure and personal expression (soul)
Origins: Late 1880s to early 1890s in the south.
Major Players: Robert Johnson, T-Bone Walker, Muddy Waters, B.B. King

6. Jazz
Ragtime was the precursor to jazz, It was the first popular “black” style in the United States (went for about 20 years... Scott Joplin and Jelly Roll Morton were important Ragtime pianists)
In 1917, Jazz is exclusive to New Orleans
Several styles of jazz including Dixieland, Swing and Bebop
Major Players: Dixieland - Louis “Satchmo” Armstrong, King Oliver. Swing - Benny Goodman, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald. Bebop - Charlie “Byrd” Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis.
Gives to Rock and Roll: Improvisation & creativity, use of horns

7. Gospel Gospel becomes popular in the 1920s
Prevalent in black churches (virtually every black RnR singer learned how to sing in church)
Gospel borrowed 3 basic song types from spirituals:
Call and response
Slow, syncopated, long phrase melodies
Fast syncopated motivic melodies
Gospel influenced: James Brown, Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, Elvis Presley, R&B, etc...
Gives to Rock and Roll: “soulful delivery”, spirituality, “soul” and voice

8. Rhythm and Blues (R&B)
Closest thing to Rock and Roll (some people insist that 50s R&B was just renamed Rock and Roll)
R&B had a blues element and a gospel element
There was heavy use of guitar and horn sections (sax lead)
R&B was considered “dance music”
Gives to Rock and Roll: Rhythm, energy and sound

9. Country
Mixture of narrative ballads, lively instrumental dance music played on fiddle, guitar and banjo and religious music in the form of Hymns and Gospel tunes
Gives to Rock and Roll: a sense of narrative (personal experience) and simple lyrics
Major Players / Icons: Grand ‘Ol Opry (established as an American Institution), D Ford Bailey (1st black star on radio), Hank Williams, The Carter Family

10. Folk
Folk was the first form of “popular” music. It was generally not complicated and speaks of every day subjects
Socially conscious music - a lot of artists used their music to publicize or criticize a controversial social/political issue
Gives to Rock and Roll: Simplicity, storytelling, democracy and the idea that you don’t have to be an amazing musician to be heard

11. 1940’s Pop
1940’s Pop started the idea of an artist as an idol to people
Many artists doubled in media art forms; a lot were actors as well as singers and were in movies or TV shows
Major Players: The Rat Pack, Nat “King” Cole, Rosemary Clooney, Peggy Lee
Gave to Rock and Roll: the idea of an artist as an idol, something for kids to relate to because none of the other music at the time was relevant to them