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BATTLE OF THE DECADES: 1970s VERSUS 2000s - CHANGES IN THE BRITISH POP/ROCK CULTURE

PROFESOR INDRUMATOR: ABSOLVENT:

CLAUDIA MORAR CRISTINA CLAUDIA POPAN

2014

CONTENTS

1.PRÉCIS........................................................................................................................ 3

2.DEFINING A DECADE............................................................................................ 4

3.1970s-GREAT MUSIC............................................................................................... 9

4.2000s-VARIETY AND CHOICE............................................................................. 13

5.COMPARING THE DECADES-CHANGES AND RESEMBLANCE............... 17

6.CONCLUSIONS........................................................................................................ 18

7.BIBLIOGRAPHY....................................................................................................... 19

PRÉCIS

I have always loved British music, especially pop/rock, even if I was born in 1995.When I was little, my parents always listened to this kind of music and when I was 6, I began to like it too. Now, it is undoubtedly my favourite.

The reason why I have chosen to do this comparative analysis is to find out how the British pop/rock music has changed in 30 years, given the technological advances that contributed to the spread of this kind of music.

Many of the singers of the past wrote their own lyrics which were most of the time meaningful and they didn’t use things like auto tune or synthesizers because back then, using these was considered an insult. Some of the artists nowadays barely have talent, they don’t write their own songs anymore and they count on technology more and more everyday.

Instead of improving, british pop/rock music rather declined, so I want to compare these two decades because I think there’s a difference between music then and music now and not many artists and bands nowadays are worth listening to.

1.DEFINING A DECADE

The 1970s:

Popular music of the United Kingdom in the 1970s built upon the new forms of music developed from blues rock towards the end of the 1960s, including folk rock and psychedelic rock. Many important and influential sub-genres were created in Britain in this period, by pursuing the limitations of rock, including electric folk and glam rock, a process that reached its apogee in the development of progressive rock and one of the most enduring sub-genres in heavy metal music. Britain also began to be increasingly influenced by aspects of World music, including Jamaican and Indian music, resulting in new music scenes and sub-genres.

In the middle years of the decade, the influence of the pub rock and American punk rock movements led to the British intensification of punk, which chased away much of the existing landscape of popular music, replacing it with much more diverse new wave and post punk bands who mixed different forms of music and influences to dominate rock and pop music into the 1980s.

By the early 1970s, rock music had become more mainstream, and internationalised, with many British acts becoming massively successful in the United States and globally. Some of the most successful artists, such as Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Elton John, David Bowie, and Rod Stewart performed their own songs (and in some cases those written by others) in an eclectic variety of styles, in which the presentation of the performance itself became increasingly important.

Some well-known British bands that started their careers in the British Invasion, especially The Rolling Stones, The Who and The Kinks, also developed their own particular styles and expanded their international fan base during that time, but they would be joined by new acts in new styles and sub-genres1:

Electric folk:

Electric folk is the name given to the kind of folk rock pioneered in England at the end of the 1960s, particularly by the band Fairport Convention. Rather than mixing electric music with forms of American influenced progressive folk, it used traditional English music as its basis.2

Progressive rock:

Progressive or prog rock developed out of late 1960s blues-rock and psychedelic rock. Dominated by British bands, it was part of an attempt to raise rock music to new levels of artistic credibility. Progressive rock bands attempted to push the technical and compositional boundaries of rock by going beyond the standard verse-chorus-based song structures and it was a total success.3

Glam rock:Glam or glitter rock developed in the UK in the post-hippie early 1970s. It was characterised by "outrageous" clothes, makeup, hairstyles, and platform-soled boots. The flamboyant lyrics, costumes, and visual styles of glam performers were a campy, playing with categories of sexuality in a theatrical blend of nostalgic references to science fiction and old movies, all over a guitar-driven hard rock sound.4

Heavy metal:

With roots in blues-rock, psychedelic rock and garage rock the bands that created heavy metal developed a great, powerful sound, characterised by clear, rhythmic basslines, highly amplified distortion, extended guitar solos, emphatic beats, and overall loudness. Heavy metal lyrics and performance styles often incorporated elements of fantasy and science fiction, and are generally associated with masculinity and machismo.5

The early 1970s were probably the era when British pop music was most dependent on the group format, with pop acts, like rock bands, playing guitars and drums, with the occasional addition of keyboards or orchestration. Some of these groups were in some sense "manufactured", but many were competent musicians, playing on their own recordings and writing their own material. Some of the most impressive groups who enjoyed number one hits in the UK were 10cc, Status Quo and Mungo Jerry. Aiming much more for the teen market, partly a response to the Osmonds were The Rubettes and The Bay City Rollers.6

The 2000s:

There has been a massive growth in manufactured pop with boy-bands such as Westlife, Blue and 5ive providing plenty of screams of delight from teenage girls across the country. In fact, Westlife set a new record with their first 5 singles going in at No.1.

Along with this has been the appearance of TV programmes, such as “Pop Idol”, producing artists such as Gareth Gates and Will Young. Pop Idol proved to be a huge British success that it then moved over the Atlantic to American success.

After the clubbing theme of the 90’s, dance conformists argued that rock had been killed for good. However, this has proved to be far from the case, with bands such as The Darkness becoming more popular as well as Coldplay, Radiohead, Travis and Stereophonics enjoying great success.

In the 2000s, new girl groups enjoyed great success, including the Sugababes and Girls Aloud, the most successful British product of the many Popstars format programmes, which began to have a major impact in the charts from the beginning of the 2000s.The Saturdays were the next girl group to sustain success in the late 2000s. The most successful solo winner, Leona Lewis,enjoyed a number one album in 2008 and her début single "Bleeding Love" was the first number one single in the U.S charts by a British solo female artist since Kim Wilde in 1987.The 2000s also saw the reunion of Take That, who went on to achieve new stardom by the end of the decade. In the early 2010s, the British boy and girl bands, The Wanted, One Direction, and Little Mix have experienced worldwide success, charting highly in Britain as well as North America.

With developments in computer technology and music software, it became possible to create high quality music using little more than a single laptop computer. This resulted in a massive increase in the amount of home-produced electronic music available to the general public via the expanding internet and new forms of performance such as laptronica and live coding.7

3.The 1970s-Great music:

The 1970s enjoyed a great variety of bands and artists that had a great influence on people. Their music was meaningful,they wrote their own lyrics and almost every song had a message that made the audience cry or laugh or scream for joy whenever listening to it.

Elton John: People under the age of 35 have probably always thought of Elton John as a bitchy old gay man who used to be popular. And I can’t say that I blame them. John has been coasting since at least 1985, showing up now and then on Disney soundtracks. If you think so too, you can’t possibly imagine how big Elton John was in the late 1960s and early 1970s. He’s sold over 250 million records, has had 56 Top 40 singles, had seven consecutive #1 albums in the US charts, and has won almost every music award you can think of. More important, I think, is that Elton John was perhaps the last “universal” pop star. In the 70s, Elton John’s music was everywhere. Teens liked him. Grandmothers liked him. Little kids liked him. Rock stations played his tunes while AOR stations played his ballads. There was a good chance you could find an Elton John song on the radio at any given moment. His music is simply amazing and his voice is indiscribable, possibly the best voice I have ever heard.8

The Beatles:

The Beatles were an English rock band that became undoubtedly the most successful band of the 20th century. They contributed to music, film, literature, art, and fashion, had a continuous impact on popular culture and the lifestyle of several generations.

The Beatles created over 240 songs, they recorded many singles and albums, made films and TV shows. Thousands of memorable pictures popularized their image. In their evolution from beginners to the leaders of entertainment, they learned from many world cultures, absorbed from various styles, and created their own. Unfortunately, since 1970 they are not a band anymore, but they followed solo careers and had great succes in the 1970s.9

John Lennon released seven albums between 1970 and 1980, the last one just three weeks before he was murdered, at age 40, outside his New York City apartment in December 1980. An additional album, Milk and Honey, was released (in 1984) after Lennon's death.

The Beatles disbanded in 1970, breaking fans' hearts worldwide. However, Paul McCartney had no intention of dropping out of the public eye. He was the first of the Beatles to release a solo album (McCartney, 1970), and though critics' reactions were mixed, the album was a hit with the public. Encouraged, McCartney went on to form Wings, a band that would remain popular throughout the '70s, winning two Grammy Awards and churning out multiple hit singles.10

The Rolling Stones:

The Rolling Stones are the legendary British rock band known for many popular hits, such as Paint it Black, Lady Jane, Ruby Tuesday, and (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction. Almost everyone who attended their shows is quick to comment on their ability to start you up and shake your hips.

In 1966, after The Beatles stopped giving live performances, The Rolling Stones took over as the unofficial "biggest touring band in the world" for the next few years.

During the 1970s The Rolling Stones remained the biggest band in the world, although they were rivaled by the Led Zeppelin.The Stones made thousands of live performances and multi-

million record sales with hits like "Angie" (1973), "It's Only Rock and Roll" (1974), "Hot Stuff" (1976) and "Respectable" (1978).11

Rod Stewart:

Roderick David "Rod" Stewart is a British rock singer-songwriter. Born and raised in London, he is of Scottish and English ancestry. Stewart is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, having sold over 100 million records worldwide.

With his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart came to prominence in the late 1960s and early 1970s with The Jeff Beck Group and then with the Faces. He launched his solo career in 1969 with his début album An Old Raincoat Won't Ever Let You Down. His early albums were a fusion of rock, folk music, soul music and R&B. His aggressive blues work with The Jeff Beck Group and the Faces influenced heavy metal genres.From the late 1970s through the 1990s, Stewart's music often took on a New Wave or soft rock/MOR quality and in the early 2000s he released a series of successful albums interpreting the Great American Songbook.12

QUEEN:

Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971 and are one of the most commercially successful musical acts of all time. The band members were Freddie Mercury (vocals), Brian May (guitar), John Deacon (bass), and Roger Taylor (drums).

You can’t think of 1970s music without thinking of Queen. The band were gigantic in their day. They’ve sold 300 million records worldwide, had eighteen #1 singles and eighteen #1 albums, currently holding the UK record for the top-selling album of all-time, Queen’s Greatest Hits and have spent a grand total of 1,322 weeks in the UK charts, another record. They’re also the only band in which each member wrote a #1 single.

Queen have been recognised as having made significant contributions to such genres as hard rock, and heavy metal,amongst others. Also, the band have been cited as an influence by many other musicians. Moreover, like their music, the bands and artists that have claimed to be influenced by Queen are diverse and span different generations, countries, and genres.13

4.The 2000s: Variety and choice

In the 2000s, there were also many bands and artists that had a great influence on people, although they cannot be compared to those from the 70s.

Westlife:

In my opinion,Westlife are one of the most influencial bands in the 2000s,and one of the few bands that still make real music.

In 2000, they released Coast to Coast, which was one of the many No. 1 UK albums, beating the Spice Girls' Forever album. It became the country's 4th biggest selling album of 2000. The album was preceded by a duet with Mariah Carey singing the Phil Collins' classic "Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)" and the original song "My Love" (their second Record of the Year award).14

Will Young:

William Robert "Will is an English singer-songwriter and actor who achieved fame after winning the 2002 inaugural series of the British music contest Pop Idol, making him the first winner of the worldwide Idol franchise. His debut single ‚’Anything Is Possible’ was released

two weeks after the show's finale and became the fastest-selling debut single in the UK. Young also came in fifth place in World Idol performing his single‚’Light My Fire’.He had a pretty big influence especially on the teenagers and his music was meaningful to most of them.15

Coldplay:

Before performing under the name "Coldplay", the band's name was "Starfish".They were a British rock band formed in 1996 and achieved great success during their career, especially in the 2000s. In December 2009, Rolling Stone readers voted the group the fourth-best artist of the 2000s which means people really liked their music. The group have also performed at various charity projects such as Band Aid 20, Live 8, Sound Relief, Hope for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake Relief, The Secret Policeman's Ball, Sport Relief and the Teenage Cancer Trust.16

Sugababes:

The Sugababes are an English pop girl group, formed in 1998 with founding members Siobhán Donaghy, Mutya Buena and Keisha Buchanan. Their debut album, One Touch, was released in the UK through London Records on 27 November 2000. The album achieved moderate success, peaking at number 26 in April 2001 and eventually being certified Gold. In

2006, British Hit Singles & Albums named the Sugababes as the most successful female act of the 21st century with six UK number one singles and eighteen UK top ten hits.17

Leona Lewis:

Leona Louise Lewis is a British singer-songwriter.

Lewis achieved national recognition when she won the third series of The X Factor in 2006, winning a £1 million recording contract with Simon Cowell's record label, Syco Music. Her winners single, a cover of Kelly Clarkson's "A Moment Like This", peaked at number one for four weeks on the UK Singles Chart and broke a world record for being digitally downloaded more than 50,000 times in 30 minutes. In February 2007, Lewis signed a five-album contract in the United States with Clive Davis's record label, J Records.18

Jessie J:

A more recent singer, Jessie J has began her career in 2005, with her debut single‚ ’Do It Like A Dude’, which had great success,especially among teenagers.

She also found success as a songwriter, gaining a Sony ATV publishing contract.She wrote songs for many artists,including Miley Cyrus and Chris Brown.

Jessie J is recognised for an unconventional musical and performance style that mixes soul vocals with contemporary R&B, pop, electropop,and hip-hop beats. Jessie J has garnered various awards and nominations for contributions to the music industry, including the 2011 Critics' Choice BRIT Award and the BBC's Sound of 2011. As of April 2012, Jessie J had sold over 11 million singles.

6.Comparing the decades: changes and resemblance

There have been changes in these 30 years in the British pop/rock culture,especially due to the technological development. Singers in the past did not use computers to modify their songs in order to sound better,not only because they did not have the necessary technology to do that,but also because it was considered an offense back then,because everyone thought music sounded better the way it was at first.

I think there’s also a difference between generations. People nowadays listen to the kind of music they hear on the radion, which is the new music and forget about the older songs and artists that had a great influence back a few decades. There is a difference in music too,mostly because of the technology. Back then,artists used to play instruments but now music is made on computers so they don’t even need instruments anymore.It may sound better in some cases, but I think nothing compares to the natural sound of a guitar or a piano playing .

Singers nowadays are also more popular now because of social media and websites like Facebook, Twitter and Youtube, where people can catch up on their newest work and sometimes cand also live chat with them.In the past they could only dream of that.

Well, even with these changes,no matter how difficult it can be for musicians to keep on top of all the changes and challenges taking place in today's music industry, if they want to grow their career and gain success and fame,keeping up on new technologies in music business is a necessity for one and all

Challenges and change are here to stay for the independent musician, however, any dedicated musician can benefit from the amount of ideas and new opportunities being introduced almost every day. No one ever said being a successful musician would be easy. With every bad news that comes along regarding the control of the media and the exposure of music, there is some good news for those curious enough to explore where few have gone before. So, what unique ideas can you think of to get your music in front of a potential fan?

7.Conclusions

I think that,even if there have been some major changes in music over the last 30 years, it has always played and important part in people’s lives.It meant, for many of them, a refuge from the daily problems and a way of expressing their feelings.

8.Bibliography

1. J. M. Curtis, Rock eras: interpretations of music and society, 1954–1984 (Popular Press, 1987), p. 236.

2. L. D. Smith, Elvis Costello, Joni Mitchell, and the Torch Song Tradition (Greenwood, 2004), p. 132.

3. P. Buckley, The Rough Guide to Rock (Rough Guides, 3rd edn., 2003), p. 374

4.’’ Glam rock", All music guides, http://www.allmusic.com/explore/style/d388 retrieved 26 June 2009

5. D., Weinstein, Heavy Metal: The Music and its Culture (Da Capo, 2000). p. 14

6. A. Blake, The land without music: music, culture and society in twentieth-century Britain (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1997), p. 149.

7. J. Harris, Britpop!: Cool Britannia and the Spectacular Demise of English Rock (Da Capo Press, 2004), ISBN 0-306-81367-X, pp. 369–70.

8. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Artist Biography [Elton John]". AllMusic.com. Retrieved 2014-03-31.

9. The Beatles 2000, p. 248

The Beatles 2000, p. 236.

10. Harry 2002, pp. 388–389: "most successful composer and recording artist of all time", 60 gold discs, 100 million albums and 100 million singles sold; Glenday 2008, p. 168: "the most successful songwriter" in UK chart history.

11. "The 25 Boldest Career Moves in Rock History: 20) Mick Jagger Tours Solo With Joe Satriani". Rolling Stone. 18 March 2011. Retrieved 4 December 2011.

12. "Stewart show backed by public cash" BBC News. Retrieved 28 March 2011

13. "Queen Biography for 1970". Queen Zone.

14. Sexton, Paul (10 January 2000). "Westlife Tops UK Singles Chart For 4th Week". Billboard. Nielsen

15. "Will Young (I)". IMDb.com. Retrieved 2012-12-12.

16. Deusner, Stephen M. (1 June 2009). "Coldplay: LeftRightLeftRightLeft | Album Reviews". Pitchfork. Retrieved 11 September 2011.

17. Music Week, 1 November 2008; CHARTS ANALYSIS: AC/DC don't mind the gap after twenty eight years. Alan Jones. Pg. 37

18. Lewis, Leona (2009). Dreams. Hodder & Stoughton. p. 15. ISBN 978-0-340-91899-9.