Culture in the 1960’s
Many new styles of music:
1. Motown:
a mix of jazz, rhythm and blues, gospel, and rock: the Motown sound
first recording studio owned and operated by African-Americans: Berry
Gordy Jr.
67% of their released singles hit the charts (industry average is 10%)
vocal groups with background singers
virtually anonymous instrumental band (often the same in-house
musicians)
simple pop lyrics, harmonies, and melodies which increased in
complexity later in the decade
Artists:
Diana Ross and the Supremes
The Four Tops
The Temptations
Stevie Wonder
Marvin Gaye
Smokey Robinson and the Miracles
Later 60’s a substyle SOUL developed
More use of call and response and horns
Artists:
Ray Charles
James Brown
Aretha Franklin
Otis Redding
2. Folk Rock
music of the “common people”
vocals usually dominated, especially the lyrics
lyrics made important social commentary: musician poets
topics included Vietnam War, civil rights, environmental issues
became popular on college campuses
mostly acoustic guitar based
Artists:
Peter Paul and Mary
Bob Dylan (with no pop overtone in his singing style, he was often
considered a social prophet by fans)
Joan Baez
Pete Seeger
Substyle developed: Electric folk which used electric instruments
Artists:
Simon and Garfunkel
The Byrds
The Mamas and the Papas
Lovin’ Spoonful
3.
liberal, artistic (sometimes snobbish) ideas
Free Speech Movement centered at Berkeley was an influence
Counterculture was centered here including:
Drug experimentation, social and sexual freedoms, anti-war
Movement
Style included both music and the lifestyle
At first money and fame weren’t important to artists (many gave
free concerts)
Concerts became a “total experience” using lights, aromas, making
the audience part of “the happening”
Artists:
The Mamas and the Papas (see also electric folk)
Grateful Dead
Moby Grape
Country Joe and the Fish
An offshoot of this sound was “Acid Rock” or Psychedelia (extends into early 70’s)
Lots of electronic amplifiers
Guitar feedback
Theatrical stage shows
Drug oriented lyrics
Simples chords, melodies, and rhythms
Artists:
Iron Butterfly
Jimi Hendrix: a major pioneer in technical and recording
advances
Frank Zappa (LA based sound)
Other Acid Rock groups:
Steppenwolf
Cream
Vanilla Fudge
Jethro Tull
The Doors
4. Jazz:
new developments included “Third Stream” a blend of
classical and jazz (Hubert Laws)
in the 80’s this became known as “New Age” jazz
Experimenters in “free form” jazz: Ornette Coleman, Joe
Harriot
John Coltrane experimented with higher ranges of saxophone
and improvisations around chord extensions
Dave Brubeck: jazz pianist
Big Band experienced a minor resurgence too:
Woody Herman
Stan Kenton
Buddy Rich
Maynard Ferguson
Don Ellis
5. British Invasion:
The Beatles:
Influenced by American 50’s artists (Buddy Holly, Gene
Vincent, Elvis)
3 “Phases” of the Beatles' career
1960-1964: American rock rehashed
simple bass lines, rhythms
innocent carefree lyrics
titles: Can’t Buy Me Love, Love Me Do, Please
Please Me, She Loves You
1965-1966: Experimental Phase
increasing influence of George Martin (5th Beatle)
more folk rock influenced
complex background music, instruments, and
techniques
more poetic and complicated lyrics
complex harmonies and melodies
use of non-traditional instruments
titles: Norwegian Wood, Hard Day’s Night, Eleanor Rigby, Yesterday
1967-1970: The “Mature” Period
symphonic layering and complexity
music developed as an art form
1st “concept album” Sgt. Pepper
titles: Sgt. Pepper, Lucy in the Sky With
Diamonds, Let It Be, Hey Jude
The Rolling Stones:
their manager Andrew Oldham encouraged them to
become the “bad boys” of rock and roll
(audiences responded better to them this way)
they began purposely flaunting this persona and
became the “anti-heroes” of rock music
Other rock artists:
The Who
The Kinks
The Animals
The Yardbirds
Dave Clark Five
Donovan
A subcategory developed later: Symphonic Rock
The Moody Blues
Pink Floyd
6.
categorized as “surf music” which
reflects the
lifestyle
non-controversial topics: girls, cars, surfing, the beach
simple lyrics and instrumental backgrounds
Artists:
The Beach Boys
Jan and Dean
The Hondas
The Surfaris
7. Other artists included: Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Barbara Streisand
Music Festivals:
The First International Pop Festival
held in
1967
Planned for up to 200,000 people, 4 to 500,000 showed up
Wound up being a free concert
Inadequate food, water, and sanitary facilities
Artists ended up being flown in by helicopter
December 1969:
In the Art World:
Minimalism:
objects are stripped down to their elemental, geometric form and presented in an impersonal manner, sometimes sculptures or installations
Pop Art:
showed rebellion against accepted art styles
used material realities of everyday life and pop culture
mass produced was given the same significance as the unique
reduced the gap between “high art” and “low art”
Artists included Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein
Op Art:
Abstract art that uses repetition of simple forms to create visual effects
In Literature:
Herman Hesse: Siddartha
Norman Mailer
Kurt Vonnegut: Slaughterhouse Five
Joseph Heller: Catch 22
Truman Capote In Cold Blood
Dr. Seuss Green Eggs and Ham The Grinch That Stole Christmas
Ken Kesey: One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
Harper Lee: To Kill A Mockingbird
Charles Schultz: Peanuts
Ralph Nader: Unsafe at Any Speed
On Television:
Candid Camera
The Price Is Right
The Jack Benny Show
Andy Griffith Show
Johnny Carson
1st Satellite T.V. Broadcasts
Public Broadcasting System created
In Sports:
Football begins replacing baseball as a national pastime
1967: first Super Bowl won by the Green Bay Packers
NBA expanded from 8 to 17 teams
Jack Nicklaus wins several golf
championships
Bobby Fischer wins Chess championship
New Dances:
The Twist
The Watusi
Mashed Potato
The Jerk
Other Items of Note:
Erik Erikson and B.F. Skinner make advances in psychology
Charles Manson murders occur
Yo-yo’s
Superballs
Coloring books
Barbie Doll
Surfing
T.P. ing
The pill and the sexual revolution
Ist Man on the Moon: Neil Armstrong
In Fashion:
Beatlemania
“less fabric, more woman”
mini skirts
bob and beehive hairdo
