Do you hear what I’m hearing? London’s calling my dear!

So grab your passport and let’s cross the ocean among our English friends to talk about the British Invasion. And believe me, it’s going to move!

THE BRITISH INVASION, WHAT IS IT?

It’s used to describe the huge phenomenon that emerged in the mid-1960s. This is explained by the colossal number of British bands entering the American music market at that time.

This term, created by journalists, coincides with the arrival of the Beatles in the USA.

However, this British invasion is global.

In this post, we’re going to simplify things and split it into two categories: the USA and the EU.

HOW WAS CREATED THE BRITISH INVASION ?

The movement is based on a generation of young Englishmen with a particular attraction for America and its culture. It can also be said that many artists of this kind have attended art schools. 

Many of these young people claim a strong attachment to African-American music: blues, rhythm and blues, soul and rock n’ roll of course! They walk in the footsteps of their idols.

On the music level, some start to play skiffle (I tell you all about it in this post), others go directly to an electrified sound. 

In 1963, many artists and bands met on the market: The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who, The Kinks, The Yardbirds, The Animals, The Small Faces, The Spencer David Group, The Troggs, Them, and many more.

THE BRITISH INVASION IN THE USA

The Beatles in the USA

When they arrived in the USA on February 9, 1964, THOUSANDS of people were waiting for them to land. As for their appearance on the Ed Sullivan show, 50 000 seats have been requested while there are only 700 seats available! And during that event, over 70 million Americans gathered to watch the show. 

Three months later, the Beatles flood the charts.

Today, the appearance of the Beatles at the Sullivan show is considered as an iconic event that has led to the emergence of important cultural changes.

And yet, a year before, no one could imagine this scenario! In 63, when George Martin approached Capitol and Vee-Jay (another record company) in America, he was ignored. Over this year, they will be going through failure after failure on the other side of the Atlantic. 

The situation changed in December 1963, when the Beatlemania exploded in England and the latter was covered by the American press. 

American teenagers, intrigued by these 4 young men, rushed to the record stores to buy one of their single. Unfortunately, the record stores had no stock and they found themselves faced with increasing demand.

This led, in December 1963, in the middle of the Christmas holiday, to a huge number of people plundering their single. This is how the British invasion and Beatlemania in the USA began.

In the wake of the Beatles

Dozens of English bands follow the path set by the Beatles. We can include The Rolling Stones, The Animals, The Yardbirds, The Kinks, or The Who. But those bands will have a success that will come more slowly, if not much more. We can mention the Who, whose success took off only 3 years later.

THE BRITISH INVASION IN EUROPE

In Europe, except in England, it’s more nuanced. The popularity of bands is measured by record sales.

We find, of course, in many countries the phenomena Beatles and Rolling Stones, but they are confronted with other phenomena and musical genres.

I speak mostly of these two bands, because the others, as in America, are very far behind or are known for one or two titles.

In France

At this time, it is the ye-ye who take the country by storm. The Beatles and The Rolling Stones meet Claude François, Adamo, Sheila, Richard Anthony, or Johnny Halliday.

Note :

In French-speaking countries, the success of English bands is also reflected in the phenomenon of translation. The success of the Beatles was such that artists will adapt and make their own versions. From then on, Francophone/local productions will be much more successful than the original ones.

Examples :

• Please, Please Me → Tu perds ton Temps – I. Trovatori
• All My Loving → Toi L’Ami – Richard Anthony
• She loves You → Elle t’aime – Jimmy Frey

At the same time, Johnny Halliday (a French rock star afterward) also starts by proposing an adaptation of a Beatles song. But he’ll be much more known for his cover of the Animals’ song The House of The Rising Sun which becomes Les Portes du Pénitencier.

Others will choose to adopt the attitudes and postures of English groups like Antoine or Jacques Dutronc.

In Italy

It’s the same thing. However, it is the Italian variety that is in the spotlight with artists like Adriano Celentano, Gianni Morandi, Dalida, and Adamo (again).

An exception comes from the Nordic countries, where most English hits are at the top of the charts.

THE INFLUENCE OF THE BRITISH INVASION

The British invasion, just like the rock n’ roll when it began, gives a sense of belonging to teenagers.

This movement will greatly influence modern rock, the one we listen to today. Especially on Garage Rock bands. We can also see the first rockstars, guitar hero as well as the first rock composers.

EVOLUTION

The movement died out around 1967, leaving room for the Swingin’ London and the Hippie movement, which reached the pinnacle of its success.

SWINGIN’ LONDON

Swingin’ London, also called Swingin’ Sixties overlaps with the British Invasion.

It is a musical and cultural revolution generated by young Londoners. Everything goes : music, fashion, cinema, etc. For the first time, young people have money to spend and are free enough to unleash their creativity and free themselves from morals. They value modernity and the hedonistic lifestyle.

It is located in King’s Road, Kensington, or Carnabary Street. There are many art galleries, clubs, shops, and concert venues. Stores are becoming more than sales places, they are also meeting places. As for the venues, major groups like The Rolling Stones and Pink Floyd make their debut.

We can mention various symbols belonging to this period:

• The Beatles, who initiated the British invasion;
• The appearance of the mini-skirt;
• Some popular models (e.g., Twiggy or Jean Shrimpton);
• The anti-nuclear movement;
• The sexual liberation

If you really want to see what the Swingin’ London was like, I invite you to watch The Avengers (TV show) or the first James Bond. These give a good representation of gender because they were created in relation to that period.

Swingin’ London died a year after the British Invasion in 1968. It will also stop with the arrival of American psychedelism and the hippie movement.

Conclusion

The British Invasion had a MAJOR influence on current music. Whether rock, metal, or even pop! Still today, many people listen to the artists of this period (and I included myself in it).

So if you want to dive back into those years, you can listen to the Spotify playlist dedicated to this article right here.

Feel free to share if you liked it or if you think it might interest someone.

Also, you can see all the drawings / caricatures right here !

See you soon !

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Hey there ! Today we meet for a recognizable and inevitable genre! I’ll get you in the mood. Imagine…

sources :

Une histoire musicale du rock – Christophe Pirenne

Hguitare, La (petite) histoire du rock #2 – La british Invasion : https://www.hguitare.com/communaute/blog/conseils/histoire-du-rock-british-invasion

Musicislife – La british Invasion : http://www.musicislife.fr/la-british-invasion.html

Wikipedia

MusiqXXL- Swinging London, Londres et ses années folles de 1965 – 1968

 : http://www.musiqxxl.fr/swinging-london/ 

Claire Abe

The post The British Invasion: everything you need to know appeared first on Rock N' Roll World.

So put on your sunglasses, take your surfboard (if you have one) and let’s go for a ride on the sunny beaches of the California coast.

SURF ROCK: WHAT IS IT?

Surf rock is a musical genre born in the late 1950s in California. But it will not take off until the 1960s. It is intimately linked to the lifestyle and the surf culture. 

The funny thing about this story is that a lot of bands doing this music don’t live near the sea nor are surfers themselves. 

Furthermore, in the beginning, surf rock was not a particular genre. It was just a rock very influenced by the surf culture. And it’s made for! The goal was to get all these young people who belong to this community to dance.

The latter was introduced by artists such as Duane Eddy or Dick Dale. They will be followed by groups such as The Ventures, The Surfaries, Jan and Dean, The Astronauts, and The Orbits.

However, it will be democratized and internationalized by THE band that you must surely think of when I tell you about surf rock: the Beach Boys.

FEATURES OF SURF ROCK

Tone

Generally, the songs are short, fast, and joyful.

Lyrics

Surf music lyrics usually speak about the daily life of surfers: girls, cars, parties, and big waves.

Bands

Surf rock bands are generally composed of :

• a lead guitarist and a rhythmic guitarist. They will have a preference for the Fender guitar brand,
• a bassist,
• a drummer.

However, the singer is not required because some bands only play surf instrumentals. 

They can sometimes be accompanied by a Hammond organ.

The aim is to highlight their musical virtuosity. Moreover, this genre, even if it’s “light”, gives to hear new sonorities for the time.

Melody

We can see an influence of the rock n’roll of the early days. But also other influences and techniques that have revolutionized the world of music such as:

• They use a lot of reverb and vibrato.
  Reverberation: When a sound is emitted from any source, it reverberates on the objects that surround it (a wall for example). The effect of sound against these objects (arranged at intervals more or less close to the sound source) is called reverberation, 
• The rhythm of the drum is very fast and in 4/4,
• They are inspired by Latin sounds and jazz (for drums)
• Dick Dale has also spread the use of effects like tremolo picking or glissando on guitar. These techniques have the effect of creating noise resembling the effect of waves. If you do not know them, I explain them in this article.

Taking the example of the Beach Boys music, we can also see:

Vocal parts were largely inspired by black Doo-Wop, white vocal groups (e.g.: the four seasons), and women’s groups (e.g.: the Crystals, the Ronettes, the Shangri Las).

The rhythmic, very catchy, is a direct legacy of Chuck Berry rock’n’roll.

To give this choral aspect and give more scope to their songs, they use techniques of recordings close to the Wall of Sound.

The WALL OF SOUND

In fact, it is a question of building a sound wall by filling different stamps or magnifying the sonorities.

It’s associated with 2 things:

• Phil Spector. He developed this recording technique that gives such a special sound to the artists who recorded with him.
• The Gold Star Studio, where he recorded almost exclusively between 1962 and 1966. It has an echo chamber, a DIY mixer, a 3-track recorder, and a group of musicians named the Wrecking Crew.
  Echo chamber: an electromechanical or electronic device that adds one or more copies of this signal to the electrical signal with a delay, repeating itself in a decreasing manner.

2 main techniques are used:

• Layering: several guitarists, bassists or percussionists play the same note/the same chord or the same passage to give a certain “thickness”. The expected effect is to look like an orchestra.
• The layout of the microphones and the echo effect: in the studio space, the microphones are placed to capture both a specific instrument and neighboring instruments. These plugs are sent to the echo chamber for re-recording.

SURF ROCK DIFFUSION

The spread of the genre will be accelerated by the publication of the book Gidget by Frederick Kohner. He was inspired by the stories told by his daughter, who frequented the surfing community a lot. This book will then be adapted into several movies.

With this success, several other films will be launched, in the same vein as Beach Party, with Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello.

THE SURF ROCK EVOLUTION

Surf rock began to fade out in the mid-1960s. It coincided with the emergence of a new phenomenon: the British Invasion. Garage rock, blues rock, and psychedelic rock will also contribute to its decline.

Only the Beach Boys would resist and compete against their English counterparts, the Beatles, but nothing more.

However, in the 70s, a revival of interest in some punk bands or derivatives brought back to taste some titles of the genre.

Even if the success is no longer there today, it resurfaces from time to time in the BO of film or series.

In conclusion

Even if it’s not what it was in the 1960s, the influence of surf rock is still present. Even today, we can listen to this genre (without being ashamed) to put ourselves in a good mood or on the holiday road for example.

So if you want, you can listen to the playlist dedicated to this post just below. And you can share if you liked it or if you think it might interest someone you know.

Also, you can see all the drawings / caricatures right here !

See you soon !

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Posted on April 25, 2025 by Claire Abe

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Hey ! Today, we meet to discuss a topic that I find very interesting: What makes a good rock/metal s…

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Blues rock : Back to the roots

Posted on January 24, 2025 by Claire Abe

Hey there ! Today we meet for a recognizable and inevitable genre! I’ll get you in the mood. Imagine…

Sources:

Une histoire musicale du rock – Christophe Pirenne

Histoire du rock – surf rock : https://histoiredurock.fr.gd/Surf_Rock.htm

Wikipedia

WeCompose – Les reverb / delay : https://compositeur.wecompoze.com/reverb-delay-fonctionnement/ 

L’influ X – La surf music en 3 vagues : https://www.linflux.com/musique/la-surf-music-en-3-vagues/ 

Claire Abe

The post Surf rock: everything you need to know about appeared first on Rock N' Roll World.

Last time, we saw that from the creation of rock’n’roll there were 4 different genres.

We already discussed the characteristics of mainstream rock n’roll and rockabilly in the article right here. Today it’s the turn of the last two genres: soft rock and doo-wop!

So let’s dive in!

Soft rock music

If rockabilly has caused controversy over its authenticity, soft rock represents the UNACCEPTABLE at the time.

That rock music – which is rebellion music – could be soft is simply unthinkable and impossible. Many consider it either as not composable, or as a sham, or both at the same time.

Soft rock music characteristics

Characteristics are :

• Use of slow tempos, even boring,
• The absence of marked backbeats,
• An almost exclusive focus on the search for «beautiful» melodies,
• Frequent recourse to ternary rhythms (pulsation probed in 3 notes of equal duration)
  E.g : I Want You, I Need You, I Love You – Elvis Presley
         Love Letter In The Sand – Pat Boone

• Use of 4 successive chords in a loop.

However, some can have the features of rock music like:

• Some have a faster tempo.
  In example, Wonderful Time Up There of Pat Boone. This song has a tempo of 185 beats per minute with a very slight accent on the backbeats.
• Many «beautiful» melodies have blue notes in them,
• They also contain ways of singing directly from rhythm and blues (falsettos, onomatopoeias, etc.). As well as a timbre that anchors even more firmly soft rock in rock n’roll music.

Other characteristics, this time concerning the production of soft rock music, are present as:

• An Italian-American influence in certain aspects of music (even if we can say that all Euro-American influences are at equal levels). Besides, many figures in soft rock are Italian-American.
  Example : Frankie Avalon (Francis Avalon), Bobby Darin (Walden Robert Cassotto) or Connie Francis (Concetta Franconero). All have Americanized their names by retaining some of their cultural references.
• Its geographical anchorage: a large part of the artists of this kind come from the northeast of the USA. And especially in Philadelphia where there are 3 independent firms named Chancellor Records, Cameo and Swan.

Soft rock complementary to mainstream rock n’roll?

Yes! Soft rock music is a natural and necessary complement to the existence of rock n’roll mainstream music.

First, you have to know that the different genres of rock are also styles of dance! For some teenagers of the time, it was one of its main attractions. And whether it was at any party, it seemed essential to balance the “hard and fast” music with the slower and softer ones. And this is for two reasons:

1. For a physical reason: dancing on a tempo of 180 (and more) for hours requires good physical ability. (Personally, I love to dance, but in these conditions, I pass my turn, thanks!)
2. For more sentimental reasons: teenagers love slows. It allows them to approach the “target” they squint at – more or less discreetly – for a few minutes (or hours) and to try to kiss her (or him).

Soft rock was such a necessity that many rockers got into it. We can give, as example, Love Me Tender from Elvis.

However, while some occasionally recorded soft rock titles, others specialized in the field, including Paul Anka and Pat Boone.

Pat Boone has, moreover, had successes by covering rock n’roll mainstream hits and making them discovered to his audience. He served as a bridge between mainstream rock music (a musical genre that was forbidden to listen to by parents) and the teenagers and young adults of the time.

Doo-Wop music

The latter is a derivative of rhythm and blues and rock n’roll.

It’s the soft rock of African-Americans if I can call it that way, except it’s been around for a longer period of time.

This genre has existed since the late 1940s, but it will only be named many years later (like 40 years later, which is rare!). And again, it’s a term that was used earlier to define white rock’n’roll bands from the late 1960s.
When the term Doo-Wop is fixed in the 80s, it designates a vocal repertoire produced in the 40s-50s by predominantly black groups and almost always composed of men. (I will avoid making a comment on this last point)

Moreover, doo-wop refers to onomatopoeias sung by the choirs. The « shabada bada », « sha-na-na-na-na » or else « doo-be-doo-be-doo” or « doo-wop ». We could say that they really sprang to find the name of the genre…

Its roots come from the so-called barbershop harmonies (a practice dating back to the second half of the 19th century). Barber shops were the overall rallying point for a capella using harmonies in quinte, quarte and third.

Two bands were successful in the 1930s and 1940s with this kind of music: The Mills Brothers and The Ink Spots. They will influence doo-wop groups and surf groups that will then appear, especially with their use of close harmony.

Other links are to be added to complete the doo-wop:

• Gospel: for the dramatic aspect of interpretations
• Rhythm and blues: for rhythm and instruments.
• Soft rock: for soft tones, moderate or slow times and the same time cutting.

The idea of Doo-Wop is to strengthen the solo vocals with vocal harmonies and syncopated choruses.

Those groups are often nicknamed « bird groups », « car groups » or « V groups ». These groups often baptize them with birds names, car names, and it can also be seen that many groups have a name starting with a V.

We can mention : The Crows, The Ravens, The Penguins, The Falcons, The Wrens, The Cadillacs, The Lincolns, The Imperials, The Impalas, The Valentines, The Veltones, The Velons or The Velvetones.

Features of the doo-wop

Features are :

• The multitude of records without geographical anchorage,
• The presence of onomatopoeia (but I think you already suspected it),
• Romantic and cheesy lyrics,
• Beautiful harmonies,

Another characteristic of the genre is the choreography. The singers in suits/ties line up and dance in coordination with small leg movements, arm movements, head movements, and even a little hip swing.

Even if we don’t usually remember their names, two bands are emblematic of the doo-wop genre and have most of the above-mentioned characteristics: The Coasters and The Platters (and there’s a girl in this last band!).

The group The Drifters can also be named as an example of which Clyde McPhatter (founder) and Ben E King were singers.

You now know the first 4 genres of rock n’roll present since the 50s. These genres will evolve and continue to make other genres to create the sounds we hear today.

Now you have all the cards in your hands. Tell me if you are more of a rock n’roll mainstream, rockabilly, soft rock or doo-wop?

We are coming to the end of this post. You can find the playlist dedicated to this one right here! Also, feel free to share if you liked it or if you think it could interest someone you know.

Also, you can see all the drawings / caricatures right here !

See you soon !

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Posted on April 25, 2025 by Claire Abe

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Posted on February 28, 2025 by Claire Abe

Hey ! Today, we meet to discuss a topic that I find very interesting: What makes a good rock/metal s…

Uncategorized

Blues rock : Back to the roots

Posted on January 24, 2025 by Claire Abe

Hey there ! Today we meet for a recognizable and inevitable genre! I’ll get you in the mood. Imagine…

Sources :

La noire, la blanche et la ronde – Les figures musicales – Apprends les rythmes – Cours de musique : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxU1g4w7Jvshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxU1g4w7Jvs

Une histoire musicale du Rock – Christophe Pirenne

Wikipedia

Bookwiki – encyclopédie libre : https://boowiki.info/art/doo-wop-2/doo-wop-4.html

Claire Abe

The post The early genres of rock: part 2 appeared first on Rock N' Roll World.

However, this diversity of genres goes back to the creation of rock n’ roll. We’ll see about that right away.

First, rock n’ roll appeared in the 1950s. If you haven’t read the post about rock music’s creation and its creators, I put the link here. But as soon as it appears, we can see that there are 4 different kinds of rock!

Let’s see the characteristics of each of them in 2 posts (I take care of our brains ;))

Mainstream Rock n’Roll

Mainstream rock n’roll refers to the rock n’roll we hear on the radio. Its characteristics are:

The dominant influence of Black music.

Almost everything in this style brings us back to Rhythm and Blues. The most direct link is formal and harmonic.

–What’d I Say : Ray Charles

– Whole Lotta Shaking Going On: Jerry Lee Lewis

– Ain’t That A Shame: Fats Domino

– Rock Around The Clock et Shake, Rattle and Roll: Bill Haley

– Johnny B. Goode: Chuck Berry

– Hound Dog, Jailhouse Rock et I Got Stung: Elvis Presley

– Tutti Frutti, Lucille et Good Golly Miss Molly: Little Richard

It is a non-exhaustive list of examples of blues whose initial form was not always respected. Whether it’s the measurements or the construction of the songs.

The accompaniment is often played on the double bass

This is one of the most emblematic elements. Its main characteristic is to be more melodic and to play a more active role in rock n’roll and blues than in variety and country and western.

A fast tempo

Even very fast. It’s possible that a song has a black pulse far greater than 180.

For those whose musical notions are very distant, if not zero, a black equals a time.

Treatment of accentuation is different

In popular music, on 4 bars, the 1st and 3rd beats are generally more pronounced than the 2nd and 4th. In many rock songs, the usual approach is reversed. This would be one of the reasons for the attraction for rock music.

Vocal performances inspired by Rhythm and Blues as well

Part of the rock reputation comes from the name given to singers: shouters. The latter are more used to spit their words than to singing. This practice will become established in rock. A typical example is Little Richard.

Others simply change their tone of voice to make it harder and/or rougher. However, the majority of rock singers sing like those of variety.

Also, sometimes in songs, when the singer doesn’t sing/shout:

• Either a soloist takes over with his instrument,
• Either the choirs sing/shout in response to the latter.

This practice refers us, once again, to the African-American practices of work songs, blues, and jazz.

Nevertheless, mainstream rock n’ roll (and all forms of rock after it) is much more than music. They are also texts, attitudes, clothes, hair trends, and so on.

Lyrics

If you look at the lyrics of rock n’ roll, there is nothing revolutionary. Most of them talk about love. It’s the sonorities and the turn of the texts that mark.

Gender doesn’t get worked up, teach lessons or wish to deliver a coherent message. They claim that love, friendship, and other entertainment are the priority of teenagers.

This observation is surprising when we know that the majority of rockers come from difficult social backgrounds and that their biographies testify to the dysfunctions of the USA at the time (segregation, poor white trash).

They have no demanding messages, but a desire to touch the hearts and guts of young people.

Rockabilly

Rockabilly is a portmanteau word for rock and hillbilly. The latter designates traditional white music (or the stereotype of the uneducated peasant attached to his land, but we will stay on the first option).

Some set his “date of birth” at the time of Elvis’s release of that’s All Right Mama in 1954.

It is also, originally, the work of small independent labels such as Sun Records. But other labels will mark its existence like Meteor Records, King Records, CBS or Chess Records.

The big difference between mainstream rock n’roll and rockabilly is the dosage of country and western music in them.

Its characteristics are complicated to define like that. It’s by comparing it to mainstream rock n’roll that it is easier to spot its features.

More restraint

Rockabilly is more in restraint. There are fewer raw sounds, savagery, and abruptness.

Processing of backbeats

There is also less emphasis on the backbeats (2nd and 4th beats of a measure). This will be worth the first controversy in the field of rock between authenticity and trade.

We find, in rockabilly, a majority of white people from the south of the USA who work in the same studios and with the same musicians as the stars of rock n’roll mainstream. More than that, some will oscillate between the two genders. Examples include Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Bill Haley.

Other features of rockabilly are:

Lyrics

They refer to the recurring themes of the time, that is to say: cars and sentimental relationships.

The construction of melodies

Songs often follow patterns in 8 or 16 bars directly inheriting the country and western.

Here are examples:

• Peggy Sue, Not Fade Away and That’ll Be The Day: Buddy Holly
• Wake Up, Little Susie and Bye Bye Love: Everly Brothers
• Susie Q.: Dale Hawkins
• Great Balls On Fire: Jerry Lee Lewis

The occasional use of the blues form

We can sometimes see the presence of the blues form in the melodies. However, it does not give this style to the song.

For example :

• Oh boy !: Buddy Holly
• Bird Dog: Everly Brothers
• Be-Bop-a-Lula: Gene Vincent

The bass line

The latter is much more influenced by country and western than rhythm and blues.

Instrumentation very similar to Rhythm and Blues

However, with some changes:

• A saxophone that “screams less”
• More frequent use of acoustic guitar and double bass. The latter is played in a “slapped” way. (that is to say, pulling the rope to hit the key. This produces a more percussive sound.)
• Melodies are sung with a natural voice and in an understandable way.

Rockabilly became an acceptable alternative to the rock n’ roll mainstream.

Especially as the rockabilly singers often seem more reasonable than their “savages” colleague screaming their rock n’roll. Moreover, most have an ideal son-in-law look that works best with parents.

We just discovered what the rock n’roll mainstream and rockabilly genres were. Next time, we will see the 2 other genres that existed from the beginning of rock.

Now, if you had to choose, would you be more team rock n’roll mainstream or rockabilly?

That’s for now! You can listen to the artists and songs mentioned in the article in the playlist right here. And feel free to share if you liked it or if you think it could interest someone you know.

Also, you can see all the drawings / caricatures right here !

See you soon !

Uncategorized

Speed Metal : the beginning of speed

Posted on April 25, 2025 by Claire Abe

Hey ! We meet today to talk about a genre that marked a turning point in the world of metal when it …

Various theme

What makes a good rock / metal song ?

Posted on February 28, 2025 by Claire Abe

Hey ! Today, we meet to discuss a topic that I find very interesting: What makes a good rock/metal s…

Uncategorized

Blues rock : Back to the roots

Posted on January 24, 2025 by Claire Abe

Hey there ! Today we meet for a recognizable and inevitable genre! I’ll get you in the mood. Imagine…

Sources :

Une histoire musicale du rock de Christophe Pirenne

Wikipédia

Musical Notation – Learning Music for Kids – The quarter note, the half note and the whole note – Smile and Learn : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y46FuaUMtBw

Artiste Audio :https://artisteaudio.fr/histoire-du-rockabilly/

Claire Abe

The post The first genres of rock music: part 1 appeared first on Rock N' Roll World.

Each of us can claim they’ve used or heard the word “rock n’roll” or “rock music”. But do we know what that means? How and who created it?

Let’s have a look!

WHAT’S ROCK MUSIC ?

When I checked in the Oxford Learner’s dictionaries, rock music is: “a type of loud popular music, developed in the 1960s, with a strong beat played on electric guitars and drums“. There you go! You’re welcome.

I hope you don’t stick to this definition, because I don’t! Let me explain to you a little more about rock music.

Rock is a musical genre born far from the framework of any academic teaching. At first, it was a bit like «uncultivated peasant music». Great right?

It is the meeting between different genres of music from various cultures including blues, rhythm and blues (mix of jazz and blues), gospel, and country. I’ll talk about it more deeply in this post.
Basically, musicians took the predominant presence of the guitar and then speed the rhythm.

Then, rock music has evolved again and again to lead to a lot of different categories of rock and then metal music.

WHO CREATED ROCK MUSIC?

Well, the official story is this one.

On July 5, 1954, three young men named Elvis Presley (singer), Scotty Moore (guitarist), and Bill Black (bassist) walked into the studio to initially record some pop cover. They keep making recordings without success. Then, during a break between two recordings, Elvis started a cover of a song written by bluesman Arthur Crudup named That’s Allright. This was a huge success! Two weeks later, they returned to the studio to record a second cover, this time of a bluegrass song, Blue Moon Of Kentucky. That’s how the legend of Elvis, the King, was born.

This is all very well, but did Elvis invent something?…
The answer is NO. He just picked up some hits that we suggested to him, or that he liked, and then he adapted them with a more contemporary sound and a faster rhythm. These aspects may give the impression that he is the creator, but he’s actually not.

However, he has contributed greatly to the spread of rock music.

I’d like to compare this to putting a filter on a picture to make it look better and pretend it’s your own when it’s not your pic in the first place…

PS : to be clear with the King’s fans, I have no problem with Elvis Presley. I’m just exposing facts.

WHO DID REALLY CREATE ROCK MUSIC?

We can say that several artists helped create rock n’roll music. We can mention :

Sister Rosetta Tharpe :

Before all the artists I’ll quote below who helped create rock n’roll music, there was Sister Rosetta Tharpe.

Considered the godmother of rock n’roll music even as the creator, she’s a gospel and blues singer, songwriter, and guitarist. This is in one of her songs, where we’ll be able to hear a guitar solo for the first time. She’ll influence great rock n’roll figures like Chuck Berry or Little Richard.

Unfortunately forgotten for decades (like a lot of women would I say), She’ll be back in the spotlight in 2018 when all of her records came out and with her introduction to the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame.

Louis Jordan :

Very popular in the 40s, he’s called The King of Jukebox ’cause he’s one of the rare black artists to have his name in both rhythm and blues and American pop charts.

Ex-saxophonist of the Chic Webb orchestra, his high-energy style of playing gives a “jive” sound to it. This allowed him to be considered one of the rhythm and blues and rock n’roll pioneers.

It develops some basics of the genre as :

• Wild and powerful stage performances,
• Lyrics full of innuendo,
• And mostly, great quality of interpretations.

Antoine “Fats” Domino :

Singer, pianist, and songwriter, he’s the most famous New Orleans rock ‘n’ roll rep.

His first album, The Fatman, recorded in December 1949, soon inherited the title of «first rock’n’roll album». The song is part of the New Orleans tradition, as well as boogie-woogie and blues.

His features as well as his round and warm voice will influence many rhythm and blues bands.

Ike Turner

March 5, 1951, he recorded with singer and saxophonist Jackie Brenston Rocket88. Almost everything is there to make a rock’n’roll success :

• Lyrics about a powerful old mobile,
• A rhythm based on the eight to the bass*,
• A furious saxophone,
• A relentless riff,
• The use of an artificially saturated guitar.

However, the song was released under the name of Jackie Benston and His Delta Cats. He wasn’t credited as a co-writer, and nothing changed in his career.

By the way, for those who don’t know Ike Turner, but know Tina Turner and think “Oh! That’s funny, they share the same name”, well, that’s because he was her ex-husband. Here you go!

Little Richard Penniman :

Pianist, singer-songwriter, he records his first album in 1951. In it, we can hear some typical characteristics of rock n’roll music, like :

• The piano and bass are punctuated by a walking bass* that will become THE melodic phrase of rock n’roll,
• The stop time (stop of the musical accompaniment) that precedes the chorus,
• Minimalist lyrics,
• An accompaniment including a trumpet and a saxophone section

* Eight to the bass and walking bass are explained in this post.

However, the closest one who can be credited as the “creator of rock n’roll music” is :

Bill Haley :

After being one of the first white country musicians to sing a rhythm and blues song, his transition to rock n’roll music will be done in a radical way by integrating a drummer in his band. Rock around the clock (April 1954) shows EVERY musical trait of rock n’roll :

• A real band with bass/drums/guitar/piano/saxophone,
• Festive lyrics,
• All musical characteristics of the genre (e.g., rhythmic, riff, syncope, etc.)

The success will be even bigger when the song will be taken for the film credits of the movie Blackboard Jungle, released in 1955. Thanks to the cinema, rock n’roll music has its first anthem.

WHY IS ELVIS MORE REPRESENTED AS THE ROCK AND ROLL CREATOR THAN BILL HALEY?

The recording condition

First, the answer lies in the recording condition of Bill Haley and His Comets’ title. They don’t match the image we want of rock n’roll:

• The song was recorded by two famous Tin Pan Alley celebrities. (Tin Pan Alley was the name of the first popular music industry in the USA). At the time, the song lyricist was 59 and the songwriter 39. (which was considered as old for the teenagers and young adults )
• It was recorded in a big firm (Decca)

Making this one a founding title of rock music is to reconsider the fact that rock is from an African-American rural genre and practiced by disadvantaged south white trash.

Bill Haley image

Then, the second part of the answer is Bill Halley himself.

The way he looked didn’t match either with what was expected of teenagers and young adults. He didn’t fit with rock music’s values. Bill Haley was 29 in 1959 (so, when you referred above, he was old), he was considered “ugly”, was married, a father, and agreed with eternal America’s values which he should be against. It was a lot, there!

You need to know that, in those days, to be black, ugly, alcoholic, vulgar, wise, or stupid was enough to compromise success. Time has changed…

Elvis makes the connection and corresponds perfectly to the image of rock. He is a kind of link between White Trash and Black people.

By being seduced by Black people’s music, he crosses borders.

What transforms Elvis as a King, it’s his capacity to personify a new social type. With his position, he redefines at the same time values of social classes, ethnicity, age, sex, and nationality.

What about Chuck Berry?

You’re gonna tell me I’m writing a post about the creation of rock and I’m not talking about Chuck Berry? Well, here I am!

Guitarist, singer, and songwriter, Chuck Berry is considered one of the pioneers of rock and roll and one of its greatest representatives. By mixing country, rhythm, and blues and blues, he creates his style.

His stage performances will earn him the nickname Crazy Legs. It was even copied years later by some guy called Angus Young.

Although his role is undeniable in the history of rock, he takes a lot from artists such as Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Louis Jordan.

So from my perspective, Chuck Berry, like Elvis Presley, mixes different elements already existing to do something else.

Again, I’m just stating the facts, and I really like Chuck Berry’s work.

In conclusion

What we must remember, is that several artists contributed to the creation of rock n’roll music. And ALL can be considered founders, co-founders of rock’n’roll.

I end this post with a list of artists (not as known as those above) who helped to lay the foundation of rock n’roll music.

• Merle Travis : Merle’s BoogieWoogie (1947)
• Frank Culey : Cole Slaw (1949)
• Ralph Willis : I’m gonna rock (1949)
• Amos Milburn : Bad, bad Wiskey (1950)
• Billy Love : Juiced (1951)
• Curley Williams : Move a little closer (1951)
• Dominos : Sixty Minutes Man (1951)
• Lucky Joe Almond : Gonna Rock n’Roll (1954)

Also, you can find just below the playlist where all the artists and songs I mentioned are. And don’t forget to share the post if you liked it or if you think it might interest someone you know!

Also, you can see all the drawings / caricatures right here !

See you soon !

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Sources:

Oxford Learners Dictionaries : https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/rock-music

Une histoire musicale du rock – Christophe Pirenne

Wikipédia

Qu’est-ce que le rock ? – Nicolas Journet – Les Grands Dossiers des Sciences Humaines : https://www.cairn.info/magazine-les-grands-dossiers-des-sciences-humaines-2012-3-page-31.html

Rosetta Tharpe, la marraine du rock’n’roll – La chronique d’Aliette de Laleu – France Musique https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEmip-4TAJk

Sister Rosetta Tharpe, la femme qui inventa le Rock’n Roll – Campus Protestant https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5m3yh2gTLk

Universal :https://www.universalmusic.fr/artistes/20000126256

Universal :https://www.universalmusic.fr/artistes/20000087921

Universal : https://www.universalmusic.fr/artistes/20000055301

TéléMatin -Musiques – Le père du rock n’ roll aka Chuck Berry : https://www.universalmusic.fr/artistes/20000055301

Claire Abe

The post Rock music : definition and creation appeared first on Rock N' Roll World.

Now we know roughly what rock music is. But what influenced it? What allowed rock to be created?

In the post What’s rock music and creators, we already know (in the big lines) that rock music is a meeting between different musical styles.

In today’s post, we’re gonna talk a little more in-depth about the genres that influenced it.

Rock has :

ROOTS IN BLACK MUSIC

Which include:

Blues

It’s a vocal musical genre, which is also instrumentally derived from African-American work songs. It appeared in Mexico and in the South of the USA during the 19th century. The singer expresses his sadness and misfortunes through it.

Blues imposes itself as a crucial element of rock n’roll with the following:

• The blues scale: sequence of notes on which two degrees are lowered (if we take the C scale: C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C, it will give C- E _b – F – F# – G – b _b – (C) in blues)
• Syncope: accentuation of a downbeat (2-4) extending over an upbeat (1-3). This produces a break effect.
• A musical form of its own: 12 measures repeated in a loop (the measure is the division of a musical piece into parts of equal time periods)

Blues also bring the taste of original tones including guitars and «impure» voice types.

Here are some artists from this genre: Big Mama Thornton, Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown

Boogie-woogie

The Boogie-woogie is a jazz-specific pianistic style consisting of playing blues on a fast rhythm.

It appeared in the early 20th century and is associated with the south and southwest of the USA. It was originally called “fast western-style” or “western rolling blues”. Clarence “Pine Top” Smith is arguably the precursor.

The concept of boogie-woogie is simple. With the left hand, the pianists continuously repeat small patterns that follow the harmonic line of the blues. On the right hand, the pianist plays riffs.

It uses 12 measures like blues and the basic rhythm is given by the bass. The latter uses the:

• Eight to the bar: 8 eighth notes per measure. A measure is the division of a piece of music into equal parts, and an eighth note is worth half a black note in music.
• Walking basses: way to accompany bass/contrabass, consisting of improvising a note per time according to a defined harmonic grid.

Boogie-woogie will make the good days of rock n’roll, especially with pianists such as Fats Domino or Little Richard. Decades later, it will ensure a huge reputation for bands like ZZ Top or AC/DC.

Among the great names of boogie-woogie, we can mention in addition to Clarence “Pine Top” Smith: Jimmy Yancey, Albert Ammons, Pete Johnson, and Meade « Lux » Lewis.

Rhythm n’blues

Rhythm and Blues is derived from blues, jazz, and gospel. First called «race music», it will become rhythm and blues in the late 1940s. «Rhythm» denotes an accelerated tempo, and «Blues» refers to the 12 measures of the genre.

The real specificity of rhythm and blues is that it is played by Black people for Black people. It emerges in the south of the USA and will follow the population’s migration to the major metropolises.

The link between rhythm and blues and rock n’roll is so direct that many rhythm and blues songs recorded between 1945 and 1954 could belong to the 1950s rock n’roll register!

One of its essential elements is the band’s formation. They are generally composed of:

• Drums,
• Bass,
• Guitar,
• Piano,
• Singer and/or saxophonist.

Those bands have been themselves influenced by jump blues bands (a kind of big band for poor people).
From those jump blues bands, the brass and woods were abandoned, only stay the piano and guitars that can perform solos and riffs as well as accompaniment.

We can identify 3 trends in this genre:

1. The one from New York and Los Angeles: based on small formations and «screamed» singing in the «blues shouters» tradition.

2. The one from the South and Middle West: marks the synthesis of rural blues and electric guitar.

3. Vocal groups

Afro-American music

Rock n’roll music borrows some technics from those kinds of music, like the riff. The latter is a short musical phrase repeated several times in the piece.

When in big orchestral jazz bands it is performed by clarinets, saxophones, trumpets, or trombones; in rock music, it’s the guitar and choirs that take over.

ROOTS IN WHITE RURAL MUSIC

When immigrants land in the USA, they also come with their own cultures (including music). Some of them will last long after their disappearance on the European continent.

The Appalachian repertory

One of the most famous (and important) examples of the development of rock n’roll is this repertoire. It was imported to the USA by English and Scottish settlers. This music style was named « old-time music » or « songs from Dixie » when it started to be known.
With time, those rural kinds of music will be gathered under the name COUNTRY. This genre differs according to the region and has different styles.

Country and western

It’s the most influential country style. It’s popularized by singing cowboys in Hollywood westerns and television shows. Thanks to this, America transmits the image of a new hero: white, hard-working, and patriotic. This image is used to represent the cultural traditions of “real Americans” and expresses the Conservative ideology.

Among the artists representing this kind of music, we can find Gene Autry and Patsy Montana. However, it was decades later that Johnny Cash made it much more popular by mixing it with rock n’ roll.

Western swing

In the late 1930s, western swing was one of the most popular dance music.

From Texas, it’s the synthesis between country music and jazz, as well as other rural music. This style will leave a lot of room for improvisation. It’s played by a string orchestra (guitars, banjo, fiddle violins, steel guitars, etc.) and complemented by drums, saxophones, trumpets, or piano. It was originally called «hot dance country music» before becoming western swing.

The fathers of the genre are Bob Willis and Milton Brown

Bluegrass

In the same period, Bill Monroe develops bluegrass music. It’s a mix of Euro-American melodies on very syncopated African-American rhythms. This music is performed on makeshift and European instruments such as dulcimer, violin, banjo, acoustic guitar, and steel guitar.

Country music gives also to rock n’roll music :

• The desire of returning to natural voices,
• The use of clean and clear sounds,
• A form of instrumental virtuosity.

The American variety

For softer rock songs, we can find many references to American crooners such as Nat «King» Cole, Eddie Fisher, Tony Bennett, and Franck Sinatra. Love me Tender by Elvis Presley is a good example of the influence of American variety in rock.

ROOTS IN RELIGIOUS MUSIC AND WORK SONGS

In the 1930s and 1940s, agriculture and religion were two pillars in the South Americans’ lives.

Work songs

The long work hours in the fields, where people break their backs every day, are punctuated by work songs. Thousands of children and teenagers are in contact with this kind of music. A few of them will become rock stars like Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash, or Carl Perkins decades later.

Religious practices

Another side of the musical baggage of these rockers is religious practices. South churches are dominated by different forms of Protestantism. In most cases, music has an important place.

As for the black parishes, they perform gospel music whose swinging rhythms evoke jazz, boogie-woogie, or blues.

This religious background has two consequences :

• An impregnation in rock n’roll, especially through extroverted vocal and scenic behaviors,
• A tension between their religious education and the various rock temptations.

All these musical genres continue today to influence and inspire artists. Whatever their musical styles and in addition to other «more current» musical styles. These artists then transpose them in their own ways.

Personally, I find it very interesting to see the various influences that have led to rock. It shows that all musical genres can mix and create something unique.

We can already see that the mixes are made on several levels. The songs of African-American workers have influenced the blues and rhythm and blues, which themselves will influence years later the rock n’roll. How amazing it is!

That’s it for now. You can listen to all the artists and songs I mentioned in this article right below. Also, feel free to share if you liked it or if you think it might interest someone you know.

Also, you can see all the drawings / caricatures right here !

See you soon !

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Posted on January 24, 2025 by Claire Abe

Hey there ! Today we meet for a recognizable and inevitable genre! I’ll get you in the mood. Imagine…

Sources :

Une histoire musicale du rock – Christophe Pirenne

Wikipédia

Acadezik – https://www.acadezik.com/definition-mesure/

Artiste Audio – https://artisteaudio.fr/histoire-du-blues/

Universalis – https://www.universalis.fr/encyclopedie/boogie-woogie/

https://www.larousse.fr/encyclopedie/divers/rhythm_and_blues/88459

Le Rhythm and Blues et son histoire – C. Eudeline – Cadence Info: https://www.cadenceinfo.com/histoire-de-la-musique-rhythm-and-blues.htm

Universalis – https://www.universalis.fr/encyclopedie/western-swing/

Claire Abe

The post The first roots of rock music appeared first on Rock N' Roll World.