HISTORY 141: A History of Early Rock and Roll: Music And Culture of the 1950'S

HISTORY 142: History of Rock and Roll Music: Music and Culture of the 60's & 70's

Professors:

Howard De Witt
Darren Bardell

Advisory

Must be eligible for English 151B & 163

Catalog Description of Hstory 141:

This course presents a historical overview of the emergence of rock and roll music as a
cultural phenomenon in the U.S. The major figures of the 1950's, Bill Haley, Fats Domino,
Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry and Little Richard will be studied as examples of rock and roll
music as an American popular cultural form during the mid-twentieth century.

Course Content of History 141:

A.The Foundations of Rock and Roll Music: The Blues, Jazz and the Rise of Rhythm and
Blues Music
1. The Roots of Rock and Roll: The Great Depression and the Blues-Jazz influences
upon rock music
2. Jump Blues during and after WWII: The Central Avenue LA Exp. and the Harlem
Musical Renaissance
3. The early years of Rhythm and Blues music: The last roots of rock and roll

B. The Five Founding Fathers of Rock and Roll Music and the Small Record Label: The case of Chuck Berry, Fats Domino, Elvis Presley, Bill Haley and Buddy Holly
1. The Chess, Sun, Holiday, Coral and Imperial Record Labels as economic-musical
influences upon rock music
2. The civil rights activity from 1951 to 1956 and its relationship to rock and roll
music
3. The record industry in the 1950's and the media's discovery of the rock music
subculture

C. The first golden age of rock and roll music, 1956-1958: The large scale rock and roll show, the radio-TV-newspaper-magazine discovery of rock music and the furor over cultural values
1. Lawrence Whipple, Jersey City, NJ. Police Commission and the image of rock and
roll as an outlaw cultural phenomena
2. The buying habits of the American public and the commercial appeal of rock and
roll music

D. The Rockabilly phenomenon and the 1950's: Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and the
Southern cultural tradition in rock music
1. The Rise of Rockabilly and Civil Rights
2. The use of Rockabilly as a cultural explanation of the 1950's

E. Black music in the 1950's: Little Richard and the birth of the key issues surrounding black singers and musicians
1. Sam Cooke, Jackie Wilson, Lloyd Price, Larry Williams and James Brown as
cultural icons in American rock music
2. John Hammond and the rose of mainstream black artists recording for major record
labels

F. Early rock and roll criticism: Ralph Gleason the cultural tradition of the rock critic: the
roots of jazz in rock journalism

G. The American Bandstand Show and Payola: Dick Clark and the Media Profits from rock
and roll
1. The role of Alan Freed as s rock music promoter
2. The Apollo and the rise of black shows
3. American Bandstand and the major networks discover rock and roll
4. The Ed Sullivan Show and the Institutionalizing of rock and roll
H. Elements of rock music as a major cultural art form

 

Catalogue Description of History 142:

The development of rock and roll music is studied from the Beatles to Led Zeppelin.
Slides, music and lecture material will analyze the cultural impact of recent rock music.

Course Content of History 142:

A. A HISTORY OF ROCK AND ROLL: THE 1960's ARE REFLECTED IN THE ROOTS
OF PAST MUSIC
1. An Introduction to Rock and Roll Music as an Art Form
2. Ragtime, Jazz and Big Band Influences Upon Rock Music
3. Scott Joplin and the Ragtime Era's Influence
4. Duke Ellington and Jazz Rock in the 1930's
5. Folk Music During the Depression as a Catalyst to Rock and Roll
6. The Andrews Sisters and the Rise of Rock in the 1940's
7. The Business Side of Rock Music: The 1940's and 1950's
8. Capital Records and the Rise of Big Business
9. Olive Davis and Recent Business Attitudes in Rock Music
10. The 1950's as the Catalyst to Rock and Roll: African Americans and Rock Music
11. The Vacuum Rock of the 1960 to 1963 Period: The Beatles and the English Invasion
12. The Conditions Which Produced the mid-1960's Rock Revolution

 

B. THE BEATLES AND THE EMERGENCE OF MAINSTREAM ROCK MUSIC: THE
CULTURAL SIDE
1. The Rise of Mass Popular Acceptance of Rock Music
2. World Politics and Rock Music: An Analysis
3. Rock and Its Relationship to Jazz, Pop and Symphonic Music in the 1960's
4. Rock and Roll as an Art Form: The Critics Debate and the Rise and Influence of
Rolling Stone Magazine
5. The Racial Side of Rock Music: A Lesson in Cultural Diversity

C. THE DRUG YEARS AND THE PROBLEMS WITH ROCK CULTURE:
WOODSTOCK ET AL
1. The Anarchy of Rock and Roll and Cultural Disparity
2. The Rise of the Singer-Composer and the Cleansing of Rock Lyrics
3. The Importance of Court Battles and Litigation over Contracts: The Business End of Rock Music Revisited in the 1960's

 

D. ROCK AND ROLL MUSIC IN THE EARLY 1970's: THE FRACTIOUS ISSUES
1. Glitter Rock and Its Consequences: David Bowie
2. Rising Mergers of Big Recording Companies and the Artistic Problems: WEA and
Monopoly
3. The New Rock and Roll From Europe in the 1970's
4. The Revival of the 1960's and the Return of the Beatles: Nostalgia and Record Sales

 

E. ROCK AND ROLL FROM A POLITICAL SCIENCE VIEWPOINT
1. The Rise of Rock Lyrics and Protest in the 1960's: Del Shannon as a Case Study
2. Ethnic Conflict and Rock Lyrics
3. Middle Class Values and Rock Lyrics
4. Rock Lyrics: A Summary of Influences: Bob Dylan as a Case Study

 

F. ROCK AND ROLL FROM A MUSICAL STANDPOINT
1. Rock and Roll and the itinerant Musician: Punk, New Wave and Heavy Metal
2. Forms of Composition: Songwriting and the Social Revolution
3. Rising Attitudes Toward Writing Music

 

G ROCK AND ROLL IN THE LATE 1970's: A SUMMARY .

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