The 1960s - British Invasion
The term 'British Invasion' describes the group of British Bands that stormed he USA during the 1960s. The term was made popular via the Ed Sullivan Show. There were many important bands that were part of this movement, bands like The Beatles, The Who and The Rolling Stones to name a few.
The British Invasion was host to bands of a few different genres,Rock 'n' Roll, Beat and Pop. Pop bands like the Beatles usually consisted of two jingly jangly guitars a bass and a kit. The nice up beat melodies of the main vocals were usually backed up by lucsious harmony vocals. But there was also bands like the Rolling Stones and the Kinks who whilst they were still Pop, they were considerably more Rocky than that of the Beatles. Guitars usually had some distortion and guitar solos were much more common. Most of the songs from most of the bands used a common 4/4 beat with a typical ABAB form. The songs usually lasted around the 3 minute mark
Lyrically there wasn't really a constant theme between each band, but like many songs from before that decade and now, the lyrics were quite often about Love and Relationships e.g. 'Love me Do' by The Beatles or 'You've really got me' by The Kinks.
The Beatles are definately one of the more if not the most important and biggest band of this movement to hit the States. The Beatles were a band from Liverpool, UK that formed in 1960. They went from playing pubs and clubs in Liverpool to becoming one of the most commercially succesful bands ever. The Beatles quite literally ran the British Invasion movement. The Beatles played their single 'I want to hold your hand' live on radio and the rest was history, WWDC's phones were going off the hook with requests for the record. Soon after the CBS Evening News ran a story about The Beatles' United States arrival that afternoon in which the correspondent said "The British Invasion this time goes by the code name Beatlemania" This proves that The Beatles quite literally were the British Invasion. Two days after this the Brit Rockers appeared on The Ed Sullivan show where a massiv 75 percent of all Americans watching TV saw the show that night. The Beatles then went on to hold the top 5 positions on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, the only time to date that any act has accomplished this. After this The Beatles would then go on to well and truly conquered Britain and America and the rest of the world.
The British Invasion took direct influence from the Surf Rock bands such as the Beach Boys, many people claim that the music of the British Invasion bands is not that much different. However, the British Invasion also had a massive influence on the future of music. It proved that the UK was a viable centre of musical creativity. It meant that vocal groups and teen idols were no longer able to dominate the charts like they previously had done. The British Invasion quite literally made the rock band, electric guitars and bass and drums where musicians would create and write their own music. I beleive if the British Invasion had not happened that music today could still be dominated by those girl bands and teen idols of the 50s.
Webography
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_rock#The_Beatles_and_the_.22British_Invasion.22
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_invasion
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_beatles
http://search.eb.com/britishinvasion/home.html
Tuesday, 22 June 2010
1950s - Handout
1950s Handout
Essential Listening
Bill Haley and The Comets - Rock Around the Clock (Single 1954)
Little Richard - Tutti-Frutti (Single 1955)
Elvis Presley – Blue Suede Shoes (Single 1956)
Jerry Lee Lewis – Lewis Boogie (Single 1956)
Chuck Berry - Johnny B Goode (Single 1958)
Elvis Presley - Jailhouse Rock (Single 1956)
Jerry Lee Lewis - Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin On (Single 1957)
Buddy Holly and the Crickets – Peggy Sue (Single 1957)
Useful Websites
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Richard
http://www.chuckberry.com/about/bio
http://www.history-of-rock.com/indx
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_and_roll
http://www.thecrickets.com/bios.html
http://www.billhaley.co.uk/comets2.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elvis_Presley
Essential Listening
Bill Haley and The Comets - Rock Around the Clock (Single 1954)
Little Richard - Tutti-Frutti (Single 1955)
Elvis Presley – Blue Suede Shoes (Single 1956)
Jerry Lee Lewis – Lewis Boogie (Single 1956)
Chuck Berry - Johnny B Goode (Single 1958)
Elvis Presley - Jailhouse Rock (Single 1956)
Jerry Lee Lewis - Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin On (Single 1957)
Buddy Holly and the Crickets – Peggy Sue (Single 1957)
Useful Websites
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Richard
http://www.chuckberry.com/about/bio
http://www.history-of-rock.com/indx
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_and_roll
http://www.thecrickets.com/bios.html
http://www.billhaley.co.uk/comets2.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elvis_Presley
Monday, 5 April 2010
The 1970s – Punk
Punk is a term given to a genre of music that developed in the 1970s. It began in the USA, UK and Australia. Some of the more popular bands included: The Sex Pistols, The Clash, and The Ramones.
Punk often tends to sound very bare. A typical Punk Rock band would consist of one or two electric guitars, an electric bass, a drum kit and vocals. The sound tends to be very raw and minimal. Barre chords or power chords were often used over a repetitive bass line. Most tracks tended to be a typical ABAB form; however the songs usually were shorter than most other songs in popular music, usually around the two minute mark. The songs were mostly in 4/4. I think the fact that the style of music was raw and straightforward helped to further convey their image as being a Punk. It also to a certain extent made room for the lyrics to be the main features of the song. Punk was often about getting a message out so this worked particularly well.
Lyrically, Punk was often about causing controversy and stirring a fuss. A good example of this is the song ‘Anarchy in the UK ‘by the Sex Pistols on which Lead vocalist Johnny Rotten slurs ‘I am an Anti-Christ’ on the first line. Many Punk songs were also often about current political and social issues. A great example this is the song ‘My Brain is hanging upside down’ by The Ramones. Apparently the song is about former US President Ronald Reagan’s trip to Germany where he attended a memorial at a cemetery which held quite a lot of Nazi’s. The song was first titled ‘Bonzo goes to Bitburg’; however it was soon changed by Johnny Ramone due to his Right Wing Pro Reagan’s beliefs.
The Sex Pistols are probably the most significant punk rock band. They formed in London in 1975. Although their actually career lasted only 2 and half years, they are still regarded as one of the most influential bands ever. The Sex Pistols consisted of Johnny Rotten AKA John Lydon, Steve Jones, Paul Cook and Glen Matlock. Matlock was later replaced by Sid Vicious in ’77.
Lydon describes how the band came together: ‘Early Seventies Britain was a very depressing place. It was completely run-down, there was trash on the streets, total unemployment—just about everybody was on strike. Everybody was brought up with an education system that told you point blank that if you came from the wrong side of the tracks...then you had no hope in hell and no career prospects at all. Out of that came pretentious moi and the Sex Pistols and then a whole bunch of copycat wankers after us’ this statement really defines typical Britain at the time.
Some of the most important albums include
• The Ramones – The Ramones 1976
• The Clash – The Clash 1977
• The Sex Pistols – Never Mind the Bollocks: Here’s the Sex Pistols 1977
• Crass – The feeding of 5000 1978
Punk was influenced by a number of previous genres glam rock, garage rock and surf rock to name a few. Bands like the New York Dolls, The Velvet Underground and Roxy music are examples of artist which influenced the genre as a whole.
Punk was not only about the music though. Fashion was a big part of the Punk Culture. Many punks use clothing and fashion as a way of making a statement. The typical punk look generally consisted of unkept, short hair styles, dirty simple clothes. Punk was all about relating to the working class Britain and the fact that bands were dressing like this helped fans relate to what they were bringing forward.
The list goes on and on as far as post influences from Punk are concerned. During 1976 and 1978 post punk bands like Joy Division, The Fall and Magazine started to come about. Then in the late 70s in the USA hardcore bands began to emerge, bands such as Black Flag, The Dead Kennedys and Bad Brains. More recently we have pop punk bands with the likes of the Offspring, Blink 182 and Greenday at the for front of the subgenre. There is now, Emo, Ska-Punk, queercore and all the above categories that have been directly influenced by Punk.
It seems like without punk, without bands like the Sex Pistols, The Ramones and The Clash, so, so many of today’s artists we know and love would simply not exist, or at least not in the way they do today.
Webography
http://www.amazon.com/gp/richpub/syltguides/fullview/XD45LVDUO79F
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Punk_rock
www.songmeanings.net
Punk is a term given to a genre of music that developed in the 1970s. It began in the USA, UK and Australia. Some of the more popular bands included: The Sex Pistols, The Clash, and The Ramones.
Punk often tends to sound very bare. A typical Punk Rock band would consist of one or two electric guitars, an electric bass, a drum kit and vocals. The sound tends to be very raw and minimal. Barre chords or power chords were often used over a repetitive bass line. Most tracks tended to be a typical ABAB form; however the songs usually were shorter than most other songs in popular music, usually around the two minute mark. The songs were mostly in 4/4. I think the fact that the style of music was raw and straightforward helped to further convey their image as being a Punk. It also to a certain extent made room for the lyrics to be the main features of the song. Punk was often about getting a message out so this worked particularly well.
Lyrically, Punk was often about causing controversy and stirring a fuss. A good example of this is the song ‘Anarchy in the UK ‘by the Sex Pistols on which Lead vocalist Johnny Rotten slurs ‘I am an Anti-Christ’ on the first line. Many Punk songs were also often about current political and social issues. A great example this is the song ‘My Brain is hanging upside down’ by The Ramones. Apparently the song is about former US President Ronald Reagan’s trip to Germany where he attended a memorial at a cemetery which held quite a lot of Nazi’s. The song was first titled ‘Bonzo goes to Bitburg’; however it was soon changed by Johnny Ramone due to his Right Wing Pro Reagan’s beliefs.
The Sex Pistols are probably the most significant punk rock band. They formed in London in 1975. Although their actually career lasted only 2 and half years, they are still regarded as one of the most influential bands ever. The Sex Pistols consisted of Johnny Rotten AKA John Lydon, Steve Jones, Paul Cook and Glen Matlock. Matlock was later replaced by Sid Vicious in ’77.
Lydon describes how the band came together: ‘Early Seventies Britain was a very depressing place. It was completely run-down, there was trash on the streets, total unemployment—just about everybody was on strike. Everybody was brought up with an education system that told you point blank that if you came from the wrong side of the tracks...then you had no hope in hell and no career prospects at all. Out of that came pretentious moi and the Sex Pistols and then a whole bunch of copycat wankers after us’ this statement really defines typical Britain at the time.
Some of the most important albums include
• The Ramones – The Ramones 1976
• The Clash – The Clash 1977
• The Sex Pistols – Never Mind the Bollocks: Here’s the Sex Pistols 1977
• Crass – The feeding of 5000 1978
Punk was influenced by a number of previous genres glam rock, garage rock and surf rock to name a few. Bands like the New York Dolls, The Velvet Underground and Roxy music are examples of artist which influenced the genre as a whole.
Punk was not only about the music though. Fashion was a big part of the Punk Culture. Many punks use clothing and fashion as a way of making a statement. The typical punk look generally consisted of unkept, short hair styles, dirty simple clothes. Punk was all about relating to the working class Britain and the fact that bands were dressing like this helped fans relate to what they were bringing forward.
The list goes on and on as far as post influences from Punk are concerned. During 1976 and 1978 post punk bands like Joy Division, The Fall and Magazine started to come about. Then in the late 70s in the USA hardcore bands began to emerge, bands such as Black Flag, The Dead Kennedys and Bad Brains. More recently we have pop punk bands with the likes of the Offspring, Blink 182 and Greenday at the for front of the subgenre. There is now, Emo, Ska-Punk, queercore and all the above categories that have been directly influenced by Punk.
It seems like without punk, without bands like the Sex Pistols, The Ramones and The Clash, so, so many of today’s artists we know and love would simply not exist, or at least not in the way they do today.
Webography
http://www.amazon.com/gp/richpub/syltguides/fullview/XD45LVDUO79F
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Punk_rock
www.songmeanings.net
Sunday, 7 February 2010
The 1980s - The New Romantics
The 1980s – New Romantics
The New Romantic movement was not only a term given to musical genre but also a fashion too. The New Romantic scene began in the early Eighties with some of the more popular bands including Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet, Adam & the Ants, Depeche Mode and the Human League.
The New Romantic scene had taken direct influence from punk and was happening parallel to the punk movement of the 80s. However, they differed greatly in fashion; the punks at the time would be dressed very working class and a lot less elegant than the New Romantics. The New Romantics were very glamorous and often wore make-up. This could be seen as a direct influence from the ‘Godfather of New Romanticism – David Bowie’ Bands often had fashion designers working for them. Adam & the Ants for example had Vivienne Westwood design for them. Westwood later designed the ‘pirate look’ for the group. For me, the scene and the fashion of this genre is one of the main reasons it appealed to so many. A good example of the typical New Romantic look is shown in this video for Duran Duran’s single – Planet Earth. The record reach number 12 in the UK Charts on the 21st Feb 1981.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-recskrzunI&feature=player_embedded
The New Romantic sound could be described as New wave, Synth, alternative Rock/Pop. The vocals were often dark and mysterious; you can really here the emotion in Duran Duran’s Simon Le bon’s voice. The guitarists often used effects and sometimes it is even hard to define the guitar from the keyboards. Although the vocals at times were dark the actual songs were usually quite upbeat and had a nice ‘danceable’ rhythm.
Lyrically the New Romantic bands could differ quite uniquely. ‘Vienna’ by Ultravox is a fantastically uplifting song, yet the lyrics are extremely eerie ‘A voice reaching out and a piercing cry, it stays with you until the feeling is gone’ and ‘Alone in the night as the daylight brings a cold empty silence, the warmth of your hand and a cold grey sky’ are great examples of this.
Duran Duran are probably the most significant band of the New Romantics. The band formed in Birmingham in 1978 and the original line-up consisted of Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes, Andy Taylor, Stephen Duffy, and Roger Taylor. Duran Duran managed to place 14 singles in the top ten of the UK singles chart and 21 in the billboard hot 100. The band has now sold over a whopping 100 million records. Duran Duran began as an art rock/post punk alternative rock group but soon moved on. The bands influences could be traced back to the New York underground music scene of the 1970s with bands like The New York Dolls, The Velvet Underground and of course David Bowie.
The group have now reached the point where they have influenced a massive number of popular acts today. These names include Pink, Justin Timberlake, Beck and Gwen Stefani. Moby speaks about the band in high favour too, on his website diary he posted "... they were cursed by what we can call the 'Bee Gees' curse, which is: 'write amazing songs, sell tons of records, and consequently incur the wrath or disinterest of the rock obsessed critical establishment'."
Important albums of the genre included:
‘Rio’ by Duran Duran
‘Dancing with tears in my eyes’ - Ultravox
‘Japan’ – Japan
‘None stop ecstatic dancing ‘– Soft Cell
Important singles included:
‘Fade to grey’ – Visage
‘Girls on Film’ – Duran Duran
‘Cars’ – Gary Numan
‘Gold’ -Spandau Ballet
The main relationship between the music and society and culture of the time was fashion. As I said previously, The New Romantic movement was similar to that of the glam rock movement in the UK during the early 1970's. New Romantics often dressed up as 'Counter - Sexual' wearing eye liner and frilly tops. Boy George from New Romantic band Culture Club was massivley famous for dressing this way.
Without the New Romantic movement, I do believe that todays music would be vitaly different. Many of the modern British Indie Bands have quite clearly taken their sound direct from the sound of New Romanticism. Taje Franz Ferdinand for example, if you have a look at ' To Cut a long story short' music video by Spandau ballet, you can see that Franz Ferdinand have not only been inspired of the sound, but also of the bands stage movements and fashion and general demeener.
Webography
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duran_Duran http://www.elyrics.net/read/u/ultravox-lyrics/vienna-lyrics.html
http://www.duranduran.com/wordpress/?page_id=13338
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=77:2684~T2
The New Romantic movement was not only a term given to musical genre but also a fashion too. The New Romantic scene began in the early Eighties with some of the more popular bands including Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet, Adam & the Ants, Depeche Mode and the Human League.
The New Romantic scene had taken direct influence from punk and was happening parallel to the punk movement of the 80s. However, they differed greatly in fashion; the punks at the time would be dressed very working class and a lot less elegant than the New Romantics. The New Romantics were very glamorous and often wore make-up. This could be seen as a direct influence from the ‘Godfather of New Romanticism – David Bowie’ Bands often had fashion designers working for them. Adam & the Ants for example had Vivienne Westwood design for them. Westwood later designed the ‘pirate look’ for the group. For me, the scene and the fashion of this genre is one of the main reasons it appealed to so many. A good example of the typical New Romantic look is shown in this video for Duran Duran’s single – Planet Earth. The record reach number 12 in the UK Charts on the 21st Feb 1981.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-recskrzunI&feature=player_embedded
The New Romantic sound could be described as New wave, Synth, alternative Rock/Pop. The vocals were often dark and mysterious; you can really here the emotion in Duran Duran’s Simon Le bon’s voice. The guitarists often used effects and sometimes it is even hard to define the guitar from the keyboards. Although the vocals at times were dark the actual songs were usually quite upbeat and had a nice ‘danceable’ rhythm.
Lyrically the New Romantic bands could differ quite uniquely. ‘Vienna’ by Ultravox is a fantastically uplifting song, yet the lyrics are extremely eerie ‘A voice reaching out and a piercing cry, it stays with you until the feeling is gone’ and ‘Alone in the night as the daylight brings a cold empty silence, the warmth of your hand and a cold grey sky’ are great examples of this.
Duran Duran are probably the most significant band of the New Romantics. The band formed in Birmingham in 1978 and the original line-up consisted of Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes, Andy Taylor, Stephen Duffy, and Roger Taylor. Duran Duran managed to place 14 singles in the top ten of the UK singles chart and 21 in the billboard hot 100. The band has now sold over a whopping 100 million records. Duran Duran began as an art rock/post punk alternative rock group but soon moved on. The bands influences could be traced back to the New York underground music scene of the 1970s with bands like The New York Dolls, The Velvet Underground and of course David Bowie.
The group have now reached the point where they have influenced a massive number of popular acts today. These names include Pink, Justin Timberlake, Beck and Gwen Stefani. Moby speaks about the band in high favour too, on his website diary he posted "... they were cursed by what we can call the 'Bee Gees' curse, which is: 'write amazing songs, sell tons of records, and consequently incur the wrath or disinterest of the rock obsessed critical establishment'."
Important albums of the genre included:
‘Rio’ by Duran Duran
‘Dancing with tears in my eyes’ - Ultravox
‘Japan’ – Japan
‘None stop ecstatic dancing ‘– Soft Cell
Important singles included:
‘Fade to grey’ – Visage
‘Girls on Film’ – Duran Duran
‘Cars’ – Gary Numan
‘Gold’ -Spandau Ballet
The main relationship between the music and society and culture of the time was fashion. As I said previously, The New Romantic movement was similar to that of the glam rock movement in the UK during the early 1970's. New Romantics often dressed up as 'Counter - Sexual' wearing eye liner and frilly tops. Boy George from New Romantic band Culture Club was massivley famous for dressing this way.
Without the New Romantic movement, I do believe that todays music would be vitaly different. Many of the modern British Indie Bands have quite clearly taken their sound direct from the sound of New Romanticism. Taje Franz Ferdinand for example, if you have a look at ' To Cut a long story short' music video by Spandau ballet, you can see that Franz Ferdinand have not only been inspired of the sound, but also of the bands stage movements and fashion and general demeener.
Webography
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duran_Duran http://www.elyrics.net/read/u/ultravox-lyrics/vienna-lyrics.html
http://www.duranduran.com/wordpress/?page_id=13338
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=77:2684~T2
Monday, 16 November 2009
The 1990s - Girl Group and Girl Power
The 1990s – Girl Groups and Girl Power
There was a burst of all Girl Groups merging onto the music scene in the 1990s, many of which were only able to find short term success. However, there were a group of bands that stood out and really defined the girl power movement of the decade.
Most of the girl groups would be presented as being clean cut or straight edge. This was to relate to their primary target audience; Female Children and Young Teenagers.
B*Witched were a prime example of a clean cut image.
Unlike most musical genres, the 90s Girl Group movement did not have a particular sound; it did not have particular traits like most other musical genres. Instead it fused many styles of music to create an all around pop sound. Genres fused included, R&B, Dance, Electronica and Disco. The Spice Girls for example had a mixed array of records which included snippets of different genres. This becomes apparent in all three of their albums, ‘Spice’, ‘Spiceworld’ and ‘Forever’.
Lyrically, girl groups would often sing about men, love, friendship and more generally independence, hopes and despair, but from a woman’s point of view. The song ‘Goodbye’ by the Spice Girls was released following the departure of former member Emma Bunton in ’98. This song was basically about losing a close friend.
Although Destiny’s Child released the single ‘Independent Woman’ right on the fringe of the 90s merging onto the next decade, I think this single was very important. For me, it really summed up ‘Girl Power’ and defined everything it stands for. The song sent a message across, a message that woman can fend for themselves and don’t need to rely on a man for emotional and financial support. Lyrics like this are a constant theme throughout the song ‘The house I live in, I bought it, the car I’m driving, I bought it, I depend on me’
The most significant artist of the 1990s Girl Group scene was without a doubt, the Spice Girls. The band sold over 65 Million records worldwide. The Spice Girls are often compared to the Beatles due the fact that they have both produced replica dolls and released a movie. You could say that they have been influenced by many bands of the 60s, really grabbing a hold of the ‘Swinging Sixties’ vibe wearing bright fluorescent colours on stage. Many of the 60s girl groups such as ‘The Supremes’ had an independent, girl power attitude. The Spice Girls constantly took influence from this even using the slogan ‘Girl Power’.
Although there may not be another girl group quite as big as the spice girls for many years, they have certainly had a huge influence on current popular music today. But not only girl groups but male groups and solo artist too. The Spice Girls are the reason for many of today’s pop musicians that they are in the music business at all.
Another important band from the Girl Power scene was the US’s ‘TLC’. Their smash hit single ‘No Scrubs’. Like the Destiny’s Child single ‘Independent Woman’ this track is also about being a woman and being independent. Taking note of the lyrics in the piece, I have come to a conclusion that a ‘scrub’ is a bit of a waster, with no hopes and ambitions. The song is about saying no to a ‘scrub’ and not falling for any of the man’s false charm. ‘I don’t want no scrub, a scrub is a guy that can’t get no love from me, hanging out the passengers side of his best friends ride, tryin’ to holla at me’.
One of the more influential albums of the movement was definitely the self titled debut album by ‘All Saints’. Key tracks included ‘Never Ever’ which reached number 1 in the UK and a cover version of Red Hot Chili Peppers ‘Under the Bridge mixed with Labelles ‘Lady Marmalade’. The fact that All Saints covered a modern rock song brought in a wider audience instead of their typical all female audience.
Fashion and Image was a giant asset of the success of many Girl Groups at that time. Like previous Girl Groups, most artists would dress to a certain accordance with one another and have the same or at least a similar image. There was one group that really differed in this way and that was the Spice Girls. They were unique in that the five girls in the band had their own image and personality. This was a way for women and girls to relate to at least one of the girls. The record company (Virgin Records) and manager (Nancy Phillips) would use this as a way to connect to a broader range of people thus making more sales.
The Spice Girls were also one of the first artists to jump on the ‘Cool Britannia’ bandwagon. Gerry Halliwell aka Ginger Spice even wore a dress covered with the Union Jack flag. This was to become a massive symbol of the 90s pop culture.
This Cool Britannia image was one of the main factors of their great success.
Webography
B*Witched image http://blog.roodo.com/moses_camui/171128cd.jpg
The Spice Girls
· http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://www.technovelgy.com/graphics/content07/spice-girls.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.technovelgy.com/ct/Science-Fiction-News.asp%3FNewsNum%3D1097&usg=__yX2Y1UMwGJd8F_T5UaBLXhmXLWQ=&h=303&w=400&sz=36&hl=en&start=2&um=1&tbnid=3w7WiwBOreOlKM:&tbnh=94&tbnw=124&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dspice%2Bgirls%2Blive%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26um%3D1
· http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spice_girls#.22Cool_Britannia.22
· http://www.thespicegirls.com/
· http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/1615054.stm
All Saints
· http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_Saints_(group)
Destiny’s Child
· http://www.lyrics007.com/Destiny
· http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Independent_Women
There was a burst of all Girl Groups merging onto the music scene in the 1990s, many of which were only able to find short term success. However, there were a group of bands that stood out and really defined the girl power movement of the decade.
Most of the girl groups would be presented as being clean cut or straight edge. This was to relate to their primary target audience; Female Children and Young Teenagers.
B*Witched were a prime example of a clean cut image.
Unlike most musical genres, the 90s Girl Group movement did not have a particular sound; it did not have particular traits like most other musical genres. Instead it fused many styles of music to create an all around pop sound. Genres fused included, R&B, Dance, Electronica and Disco. The Spice Girls for example had a mixed array of records which included snippets of different genres. This becomes apparent in all three of their albums, ‘Spice’, ‘Spiceworld’ and ‘Forever’.
Lyrically, girl groups would often sing about men, love, friendship and more generally independence, hopes and despair, but from a woman’s point of view. The song ‘Goodbye’ by the Spice Girls was released following the departure of former member Emma Bunton in ’98. This song was basically about losing a close friend.
Although Destiny’s Child released the single ‘Independent Woman’ right on the fringe of the 90s merging onto the next decade, I think this single was very important. For me, it really summed up ‘Girl Power’ and defined everything it stands for. The song sent a message across, a message that woman can fend for themselves and don’t need to rely on a man for emotional and financial support. Lyrics like this are a constant theme throughout the song ‘The house I live in, I bought it, the car I’m driving, I bought it, I depend on me’
The most significant artist of the 1990s Girl Group scene was without a doubt, the Spice Girls. The band sold over 65 Million records worldwide. The Spice Girls are often compared to the Beatles due the fact that they have both produced replica dolls and released a movie. You could say that they have been influenced by many bands of the 60s, really grabbing a hold of the ‘Swinging Sixties’ vibe wearing bright fluorescent colours on stage. Many of the 60s girl groups such as ‘The Supremes’ had an independent, girl power attitude. The Spice Girls constantly took influence from this even using the slogan ‘Girl Power’.
Although there may not be another girl group quite as big as the spice girls for many years, they have certainly had a huge influence on current popular music today. But not only girl groups but male groups and solo artist too. The Spice Girls are the reason for many of today’s pop musicians that they are in the music business at all.
Another important band from the Girl Power scene was the US’s ‘TLC’. Their smash hit single ‘No Scrubs’. Like the Destiny’s Child single ‘Independent Woman’ this track is also about being a woman and being independent. Taking note of the lyrics in the piece, I have come to a conclusion that a ‘scrub’ is a bit of a waster, with no hopes and ambitions. The song is about saying no to a ‘scrub’ and not falling for any of the man’s false charm. ‘I don’t want no scrub, a scrub is a guy that can’t get no love from me, hanging out the passengers side of his best friends ride, tryin’ to holla at me’.
One of the more influential albums of the movement was definitely the self titled debut album by ‘All Saints’. Key tracks included ‘Never Ever’ which reached number 1 in the UK and a cover version of Red Hot Chili Peppers ‘Under the Bridge mixed with Labelles ‘Lady Marmalade’. The fact that All Saints covered a modern rock song brought in a wider audience instead of their typical all female audience.
Fashion and Image was a giant asset of the success of many Girl Groups at that time. Like previous Girl Groups, most artists would dress to a certain accordance with one another and have the same or at least a similar image. There was one group that really differed in this way and that was the Spice Girls. They were unique in that the five girls in the band had their own image and personality. This was a way for women and girls to relate to at least one of the girls. The record company (Virgin Records) and manager (Nancy Phillips) would use this as a way to connect to a broader range of people thus making more sales.
The Spice Girls were also one of the first artists to jump on the ‘Cool Britannia’ bandwagon. Gerry Halliwell aka Ginger Spice even wore a dress covered with the Union Jack flag. This was to become a massive symbol of the 90s pop culture.
This Cool Britannia image was one of the main factors of their great success.
Webography
B*Witched image http://blog.roodo.com/moses_camui/171128cd.jpg
The Spice Girls
· http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://www.technovelgy.com/graphics/content07/spice-girls.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.technovelgy.com/ct/Science-Fiction-News.asp%3FNewsNum%3D1097&usg=__yX2Y1UMwGJd8F_T5UaBLXhmXLWQ=&h=303&w=400&sz=36&hl=en&start=2&um=1&tbnid=3w7WiwBOreOlKM:&tbnh=94&tbnw=124&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dspice%2Bgirls%2Blive%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26um%3D1
· http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spice_girls#.22Cool_Britannia.22
· http://www.thespicegirls.com/
· http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/1615054.stm
All Saints
· http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_Saints_(group)
Destiny’s Child
· http://www.lyrics007.com/Destiny
· http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Independent_Women
Monday, 21 September 2009
Coldplay
Jonny Buckland, Will Champion, Chris Martin and Guy Berryman met in the 90s as students at University College London. Jonny was studying Maths and Astronomy, Will was an Anthropologist, Chris was doing a course in Ancient History, and Guy was training to be an Engineer. Soon after meeting they formed Coldplay, an extremely successful British Alternative Rock band.
Although Chris was the main songwriter, they all shared the same passion for music and would try and practice whenever and wherever possible, Chris says ‘we used to play in bathrooms, the basement, even in the park,'.
Coldplay set out to do something different from the start, Martin says 'That you can try to be catchy without being slick, poppy without being pop, and you can be uplifting without being pompous.’
Musically, Coldplay have been compared to the likes of Jeff Buckley, Travis, Radiohead and most commonly U2. Martin says, ‘U2 are the only band whose entire catalog I know by heart.’ Quite regularly, In Chris Martin’s melody you can hear bits of similarity to that of U2’s Bono.
To me, the massive influence U2 have musically on Coldplay becomes more apparent when listening to the 2005 album ‘X & Y’. The guitar riffs and sounds that Jonny Buckland creates throughout the entire album are very much alike to that of U2’s ‘The Edge’. Not that this is a bad thing, instead the guitar sounds Buckland uses seem to give the songs a huge, epic sound.
Radiohead have been a major influence on Coldplay too. However, The New York Times have said, ‘Coldplay could easily be summed up as Radiohead minus Radiohead's beat, dissonance or arty subterfuge.’ The New York Times also goes on to mention how Chris Martin has clearly heard the way Radiohead’s Thom Yorke Stretches his voice to creaking point and mimics this often.
Outside of music Martin also does a lot of work towards Charity too, doing a great amount towards Oxfam’s ‘Make Trade Fair’ campaign. Chris has travelled across the world to meet farmers and see the direct effects of Unfair Trade. This keenness towards Charity seems a direct influence from Bono, seen as though he was Chris’s idol whilst he was growing up.
Bono has been involved in many charitable events and organisations over his 20 year + career; he was even a nominee for Nobel Peace prize in 2003, 2005 & 2006 for philanthropy.
Chris seems to have also been influenced politically by Bono. The U2 front man has met with many politicians, such as former US President George W. Bush and Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin. Chris Martin was a vocal critic of President George W. Bush and the war in Iraq. Martin has also given a ‘shout out’ to Barack Obama whilst live on air on American Television. Over in Britain however, Martin supports the conservative party, he even wrote a new theme song for the party called ‘Talk to David’, although this was later unmasked as an April fool’s joke.
By taking influence from many bands and artist over the years, of different genres and styles, Coldplay have developed a unique and lushes sound that has proved to be successful throughout their entire career.
Jonny Buckland, Will Champion, Chris Martin and Guy Berryman met in the 90s as students at University College London. Jonny was studying Maths and Astronomy, Will was an Anthropologist, Chris was doing a course in Ancient History, and Guy was training to be an Engineer. Soon after meeting they formed Coldplay, an extremely successful British Alternative Rock band.
Although Chris was the main songwriter, they all shared the same passion for music and would try and practice whenever and wherever possible, Chris says ‘we used to play in bathrooms, the basement, even in the park,'.
Coldplay set out to do something different from the start, Martin says 'That you can try to be catchy without being slick, poppy without being pop, and you can be uplifting without being pompous.’
Musically, Coldplay have been compared to the likes of Jeff Buckley, Travis, Radiohead and most commonly U2. Martin says, ‘U2 are the only band whose entire catalog I know by heart.’ Quite regularly, In Chris Martin’s melody you can hear bits of similarity to that of U2’s Bono.
To me, the massive influence U2 have musically on Coldplay becomes more apparent when listening to the 2005 album ‘X & Y’. The guitar riffs and sounds that Jonny Buckland creates throughout the entire album are very much alike to that of U2’s ‘The Edge’. Not that this is a bad thing, instead the guitar sounds Buckland uses seem to give the songs a huge, epic sound.
Radiohead have been a major influence on Coldplay too. However, The New York Times have said, ‘Coldplay could easily be summed up as Radiohead minus Radiohead's beat, dissonance or arty subterfuge.’ The New York Times also goes on to mention how Chris Martin has clearly heard the way Radiohead’s Thom Yorke Stretches his voice to creaking point and mimics this often.
Outside of music Martin also does a lot of work towards Charity too, doing a great amount towards Oxfam’s ‘Make Trade Fair’ campaign. Chris has travelled across the world to meet farmers and see the direct effects of Unfair Trade. This keenness towards Charity seems a direct influence from Bono, seen as though he was Chris’s idol whilst he was growing up.
Bono has been involved in many charitable events and organisations over his 20 year + career; he was even a nominee for Nobel Peace prize in 2003, 2005 & 2006 for philanthropy.
Chris seems to have also been influenced politically by Bono. The U2 front man has met with many politicians, such as former US President George W. Bush and Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin. Chris Martin was a vocal critic of President George W. Bush and the war in Iraq. Martin has also given a ‘shout out’ to Barack Obama whilst live on air on American Television. Over in Britain however, Martin supports the conservative party, he even wrote a new theme song for the party called ‘Talk to David’, although this was later unmasked as an April fool’s joke.
By taking influence from many bands and artist over the years, of different genres and styles, Coldplay have developed a unique and lushes sound that has proved to be successful throughout their entire career.
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