Rock and Roll has evolved and split into a variety of sub-genres. The music has always been focused on youth culture and excitement. Themes of rebellion and defiance have shaped its vision and sound, enflaming its tempo and inspiring the manifestos in its lyrical zeitgeist. The myth and realities of what make this genre so inspiring and prolific can be seen in how it has been embraced by adolescents and adults with its unique form of flamboyant gravitas. Here facts about what this music really is:
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Little Richard | Source: Wikipedia
Little Richard, who has been covered by both Elvis Presley and the Beatles, played a major role in the career of significant Rock & Roll artists. He hired and brought in both Jimi Hendrix and Billy Preston as backing musicians for his band before they became stars. He pioneered the use of theatrics in rock performances with his pompadour hairdos and makeup, and outrageous stage antics as he pounded out on the piano his prolific Rock opuses.
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Chuck Berry | Source: Wikipedia
Chuck Berry was one of Rock & Roll’s first singer-songwriters. He also was one of the first Rock artists to make major contributions towards favoring the guitar as the primary instrument of the genre. He influenced many bands and artists with his famous Rhythm & Blues guitar Rock songs, most notably The Rolling Stones.
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Buddy Holly | Source: Wikipedia
Buddy Holly, another pioneering singer-songwriter in the dawn of Rock & Roll, has been an profound inspiration for many artists. He also inspired the Beatles to choose their name. They originally were considering the Crickets, which was the name of Holly’s band, but decided on Beatles as pun on beat and beetles. He also has been credited with discovering Waylon Jennings. Most memorably, Holly’s thick, black glasses has set fashion standards over the years for many artist such as Elvis Costello.
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The Beatles | Source: Wikipedia
The inspiration for the Beatles song “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” came from John Lennon’s three-year-old son Julian, who showed his father one day after school a picture he drew of the imaginative character. But many fans consider another possibility. The beginning letters of the three nouns in the song title come out come out to “LSD.”
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Mick Jagger, the ultimate hedonist rock singer who also is known as an avid reader and intellectual, has claimed “Sympathy for the Devil” was inspired by reading the poems of French poet, Baudelaire. Many fans of The Rolling Stones have pointed out that the song makes allusions to Russian novelist Mikhail Bulgakov’s classic allegorical novel of good and evil, “The Master and Margarita.”
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The song “Ooh La La” by The Faces was the only hit by the band that did not feature Rod Stewart in the lead vocals. It was Ron Wood, who would become guitarist for the Rolling Stones alongside Keith Richards, who would do the vocals. It is one of the few times Woods would ever sing on a recording.
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Led Zeppelin | Source: Wikipedia
Led Zeppelin’s album “Houses of the Holy” is not only one of the most diverse and musically adventurous rock records ever made but also sports one of the most striking and mysterious album covers ever seen. It has been reported that the group that was involved in designing the cover art got their inspiration from the ending of Arthur C. Clarke’s sci-fi masterpiece “Childhood’s End”.
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Stevie Nicks | Source: Wikipedia
Stevie Nicks song “Landslide,” which was recorded by Fleetwood Mac, has delighted and enchanted fans for decades. It has been countlessly covered , including by the Smashing Pumpkins. The origins of the song go back to a time before Fleetwood Mac, when Nicks and then boyfriend Lindsey Buckingham had lost a record deal. Nick’s had to decide whether to continue with music or find a different career path. Nick’s in an interview had said that the song was a reflection of her personal decision to continue with her music career.
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Bruce Springsteen | Source: Wikipedia
Bruce Springsteen’s album “Born in the USA” is considered to be a major pop music release of the 80s. But what many people don’t realize is it a majority the tracks on the album were originally conceived for the previous album “Nebraska,” which is considered to be Springsteen’s most dark and serious recordings.
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Van Halen | Source: Wikimedia
Van Halen has energized audiences with its hair band Metal mysticism that demonstrates the orgasmic party energy of Southern California during the 1980s. Though the band formed in Pasadena, California; the Van Halen brothers, who form the heart of the group, are actually immigrants from the Netherlands. Their father, who is a saxophone player, supported the family both there and in California, while providing classical and formal training for both brothers.
Spotify Playlist
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