popular music-Mid term

Minstrelsy

19th-century stage entertainment featuring exaggerated Black stereotypes; roots of American popular music.

Parlor Song

Simple sentimental songs performed in homes; Stephen Foster was a key composer.

Stephen Foster

Early American songwriter; “Oh! Susanna,” “Camptown Races.”

Syncopation

Emphasis on weak/off beats, common in ragtime and jazz.

Tin Pan Alley

NYC songwriting and publishing district (1890s–1930s) known for catchy sheet music hits.

Irving Berlin

Tin Pan Alley composer; “White Christmas,” “God Bless America.”

George Gershwin

Composer blending jazz and classical; “Rhapsody in Blue.”

Scott Joplin

“King of Ragtime”; wrote “Maple Leaf Rag.”

Ragtime

Piano style with syncopated melodies and steady bass rhythm.

Blues

African-American music style with 12-bar form, blue notes, call-and-response

Robert Johnson

Delta blues guitarist/singer; “Cross Road Blues.”

Bessie Smith

“Empress of the Blues”; powerful urban blues vocalist.

12-Bar Blues

Common chord progression in blues and rock music.

Call-and-Response

Alternating musical phrases between leader and group

New Orleans Jazz

Early jazz style featuring collective improvisation.

Louis Armstrong

Jazz trumpeter and vocalist; pioneered solo improvisation

Jelly Roll Morton

Early jazz pianist and bandleader.

Swing

Big band jazz style popular in the 1930s–40s; danceable rhythm

Duke Ellington

Composer/bandleader; elevated jazz as art form

Count Basie

Swing bandleader known for rhythm section groove.

Benny Goodman

“King of Swing”; integrated bands

Broadway Musical

Stage musical integrating story and song.

Rodgers and Hammerstein

Broadway composers of Oklahoma! (1943)

Hillbilly Music

Early term for country; rural folk roots.

The Carter Family

Early country vocal group; preserved folk songs.

Jimmie Rodgers

“Father of Country Music”; known for yodeling.

Western Swing

Danceable country style blending jazz and swing.

Hank Williams

Honky-tonk pioneer; emotional songwriting

Crooner

Smooth male pop singer using microphone intimacy.

Frank Sinatra

Iconic 1940s–50s crooner; “Fly Me to the Moon.”

Nat King Cole

Pop and jazz singer/pianist; “Unforgettable.”

Doo-Wop

Vocal harmony R&B; style of 1950s; simple beats, nonsense syllables

The Platters

Popular doo-wop group; “Only You.”

Ray Charles

Combined gospel and R&B; into soul music.

Ruth Brown

Early R&B; singer; “Mama, He Treats Your Daughter Mean.”

Rock and Roll

1950s genre blending R&B;, country, and pop; youth-focused

Elvis Presley

“King of Rock and Roll”; rockabilly pioneer

Chuck Berry

Guitar-driven rock innovator; “Johnny B. Goode.”

Little Richard

Wild, energetic rock performer; “Tutti Frutti.”

Rockabilly

Early rock style combining country and R&B.

Carl Perkins

Rockabilly artist; “Blue Suede Shoes.”

Jerry Lee Lewis

Piano-driven rockabilly star; “Great Balls of Fire.”

Payola

Scandal involving bribes to DJs to play certain songs.

American Bandstand

Teen dance TV show hosted by Dick Clark.

Teen Idol

Safe, clean-cut pop star marketed to youth (Pat Boone, Fabian).

Brill Building

NYC songwriting center; Carole King, Neil Sedaka.

Phil Spector

Record producer; created “Wall of Sound.”

Surf Rock

Guitar-based, reverb-heavy style (Beach Boys, Dick Dale).

The Beach Boys

Surf rock group with intricate harmonies

Dick Dale

“King of Surf Guitar.”

Soul

Fusion of gospel and R&B; emotional, expressive vocals.

Aretha Franklin

“Queen of Soul”; “Respect.”

Otis Redding

Soul singer; “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay.”

Motown Records

Detroit label founded by Berry Gordy; polished soul sound.

Stax Records

Memphis soul label; rawer Southern sound.

British Invasion

Mid-1960s wave of UK bands in the US.

The Beatles

British band revolutionizing pop/rock; Sgt. Pepper.

The Rolling Stones

British R&B-influenced; rock band.

The Who

British rock band; aggressive style and concept albums.

Folk Rock

Blend of folk lyrics and rock instrumentation.

Bob Dylan

Folk and rock songwriter; poetic and political lyrics.

The Byrds

Folk rock band; jangly guitars

Bluegrass

Virtuosic acoustic country style; banjo, fiddle, mandolin.

Bill Monroe

“Father of Bluegrass.”

Flatt & Scruggs

Bluegrass duo; “Foggy Mountain Breakdown.”

Joan Baez

Folk singer and activist.

Simon & Garfunkel

Folk rock duo; “The Sound of Silence.”

Psychedelic Rock

Experimental rock tied to 1960s counterculture.

Jimi Hendrix

Guitar innovator; distortion and feedback pioneer.

Janis Joplin

Blues-rock singer; powerful, raw voice.

The Doors

Psychedelic rock band; dark lyrics and organ sound.

Concept Album

Album organized around a unified idea or story