History and Analysis of Rock and Roll

This article discusses the history and analysis of rock and roll, including the evolution of punk culture, the disco genre, and the influence of artists like The Stylistics, Carole King, Donna Summers, The Supremes, and Aretha Franklin.

Running head: History and analysis of Rock and Roll
HISTORY AND ANALYSIS OF ROCK AND ROLL
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1HISTORY AND ANALYSIS OF ROCK AND ROLL
Response to Part 1:
The Stylistics is a great and perhaps one of the most underrated musical groups in the
history of music, who specialize in the genres of soul and rhythm and blues. Their songs are
nowhere close to the genre of rock and go on to redefine the genre of soul and rhythm and blues.
In their song “You make me feel brand new,” the aforesaid phenomenon can be witnessed with
the application of soothing vocals and instrumental track. The vocals are not shouted upon and
are smooth and seductive in nature. The instruments are also not played in upbeat rhythms and
melodies are also soothing in nature (Neal, 2014). This helps in sustaining the flavor of the song
while maintaining the genre. Furthermore, the lyrics are direct and free of innuendoes, which act
as a major factor of maintaining the genre of the song.
Carole King is one of the best singer songwriters present and she has been redefining the
genre of pop and soul music with her compositions, lyrics and voice. Her song “You got a
friend” is one of the compositions that prove her legacy as an artist. The song is very direct with
simple lyrics and backed by a simple melody which makes the song an easy listener. Even
though this song does not seem to fall under the genre of rock on the first thought, on the second
thought, this can be classified into a softer version of rock called “soft rock” due to its simplicity.
Therefore, the songs by The Stylistics and Carole King build up slowly unlike the songs from the
upbeat genres which are why they are classified under the mellower spectrum of the rock genre.
Response to Part 2:
The punk culture came into existence during the early 60s when the people following the
culture spoke against the mistreatments of the establishments in the form of visual art and music.

2HISTORY AND ANALYSIS OF ROCK AND ROLL
The artists like the Pretenders and Bob Marley were termed as punk artists because of their
attitude and presentation. As a matter of fact, the punk rock genre is also defined by the type of
attitude and presentation that these artists had. The Pretenders composed and performed typical
punk songs in their career and the concerned song “Brass in Pocket” even though is not typically
punk rock but it can be termed as punk influenced. The song does not have extreme playing of
music with similar guitar riffs throughout the song (Goodyer, 2013). The band is a four piece one
comprising of a rhythm guitarist, a lead guitarist, a bassist and a drummer. This is similar to Sex
Pistols and gives the same aesthetic and appearance of a punk rock setup. The song “Brass in the
pocket” does not have much in common with the track “I don’t wanna be learned, I don’t wanna
be tamed.” A similarity can be found out only if the song is slowed down and a chorus is added.
The song “Punky reggae party” by Bob Marley is revolutionary songs the lyrics of which clearly
justifies the punk movement and are similar to that of the songs of Sex Pistols (Laing, 2015). The
songs by Marley and Sex Pistols convey a form of social commentary. Even though the song
does not have a rock approach, it can be classified as a punk song easily due to the lyrics and
presentation of the song.
Response to Part 3:
The song “Last Dance” by Donna Summers starts off in a “softer and mellower” tone
than the traditional disco genre. The song picks up the upbeat tempo only after playing for a
minute and twenty seconds. The song “You make me feel brand new” by The Stylistics and the
mentioned song by Donna Summers have similar approaches in the beginning. In addition, the
only similarity present in the songs by Donna Summer and “Stop! In the name of love” by The
Supremes and “Respect” by Aretha Franklin is the progression of the three (Pons Albà, 2017).

3HISTORY AND ANALYSIS OF ROCK AND ROLL
The songs by The Supremes and Aretha Franklin have a more aggressive approach in the
beginning of the songs than the song by Donna Summers. The song by Donna Summers portrays
a change in the lyrics from romantic to happy and ecstatic, where she seems to promote her role
as a woman in the relationship. The songs are similar in nature and “disco” can be considered as
a new genre altogether. In conclusion, the song “Last Dance” by Donna Summers is not only the
evolution of the songs by the rest of the three artists, but a “fusion” of all three.

4HISTORY AND ANALYSIS OF ROCK AND ROLL
Reference:
Goodyer, I. (2013). Crisis music: the cultural politics of rock against racism.
Laing, D. (2015). One chord wonders: Power and meaning in punk rock. Pm Press.
Neal, M. A. (2014). Songs in the key of black life: a rhythm and blues nation. Routledge.
Pons Albà, A. (2017). Measuring the evolution of timbre in Billboard Hot 100 (Bachelor's thesis,
Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya).