Rock Exam 1 Flashcards
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125 Terms
What is AABA form?
A musical structure consisting of four sections (A-A-B-A). A sections contain the main musical idea, while B provides contrast.
What is Simple Verse form?
Every verse uses essentially the same music, while the lyrics change from verse to verse.
What is Simple Verse-Chorus form?
A structure where verses alternate with a recurring chorus (Verse-Chorus-Verse-Chorus). The chorus contains the most recognizable material.
What is Contrasting Verse-Chorus form?
A verse and chorus have different musical characteristics, creating a strong contrast between the two sections.
What was Tin Pan Alley?
A collection of music publishers and songwriters centered in New York City, especially around West 28th Street, producing popular songs.
Why is Tin Pan Alley important to rock history?
It helped establish the commercial popular-music industry that existed before rock and roll challenged its traditional structures.
What were 78s?
Early shellac records that generally played at 78 revolutions per minute and held only a few minutes of music.
What were 45s?
Generally used to release individual songs, which became extremely important for the rock-and-roll era.
What were LPs?
Generally played at 33 1/3 RPM, which could contain substantially more music than singles.
Why were 45s especially important for rock and roll?
They allowed individual hit songs to be cheaply distributed and purchased, helping rock-and-roll songs reach a mass audience.
What is the difference between regional and national radio?
Regional radio served a particular geographic area, while national exposure allowed music to reach audiences throughout the country.
How did television change radio?
Television became a major source of entertainment and forced radio to adapt by emphasizing music programming.
What is rhythm?
The organization of sounds and silences in time.
What is beat?
The underlying, regular pulse of music (e.g., 1-2-3-4).
What is meter?
The organization of beats into recurring patterns of strong and weak beats.
What is 2/4 meter?
Duple simple meter with 2 beats per measure, each divided into two. Common in country and rockabilly.
What is 4/4 meter?
Quadruple simple meter with four beats per measure, each divided into two. The most common meter in basic rock music.
What is 12/8 meter?
Quadruple compound meter with triple subdivision, often producing a shuffle or swing feel.
What does 'shuffle' mean?
A rhythmic feel in which beats are subdivided into uneven long-short groupings.
What does 'swing' mean?
A rhythmic feel based on unequal subdivisions of the beat, producing a long-short pattern.
Where did the blues originate?
In African American communities in the American South, drawing on work songs, spirituals, and field hollers.
What is a typical blues lyrical structure?
The classic AAB pattern where the first line is stated, repeated, and followed by a contrasting line.
What is the basic blues chord progression?
The 12-bar blues, built around the I, IV, and V chords.
Why is the 12-bar blues important to rock and roll?
Early rock musicians borrowed its chord progression, phrasing, rhythm, and vocal/instrumental characteristics.
Who was Bessie Smith?
One of the most important classic blues singers, known as the Empress of the Blues.
What song by Bessie Smith is on the exam?
Backwater Blues.
Who was Muddy Waters?
A major Chicago electric blues musician who helped establish an electric blues sound that strongly influenced rock.
What Muddy Waters song is on the exam?
Hoochie Coochie Man.
What is Chicago electric blues?
A style of blues using electric amplification, electric guitar, bass, drums, and amplified vocals.
How was electric Chicago blues different from rural blues?
Chicago blues was generally louder, amplified, and more ensemble-oriented.
When was the electric guitar developed?
Technology developed during the 1930s, with widespread commercial development in the 1930s-40s.
Why was the electric guitar important to rock and roll?
Amplification allowed guitarists to play louder and made the guitar a central instrument for rock.
Why is Chess Records important?
A major Chicago label associated with blues and R&B, recording artists like Muddy Waters and influencing rock development.
What is R&B?
A broad African American popular-music category incorporating blues, jazz, and gospel.
Why was R&B considered a 'danger' to the music business?
It challenged racial and commercial boundaries, attracted young audiences, and crossed into mainstream popular music.
What is doo-wop?
A vocal-group style characterized by close harmonies, repeated nonsense syllables, lead vocals, and backing vocals.
What kind of musicians sometimes interacted with doo-wop singers?
Jazz musicians, who could provide instrumental accompaniment to vocal groups.
What is a common doo-wop chord progression?
The I-vi-IV-V progression (e.g., C-Am-F-G in C).
Who was Louis Jordan?
An important jump-blues musician and saxophonist whose energetic style bridged blues, jazz, R&B, and early rock.
What is jump blues?
An upbeat, energetic form of blues featuring horns, strong rhythm, and dance-oriented rhythms.
Who was Joe Turner?
An important blues and R&B singer whose music influenced early rock and roll.
What was important about Big Joe Turner's lyrics?
They frequently dealt with sexual themes and adult relationships, establishing a more suggestive lyrical tradition.
Who were Jackie Brenston and Ike Turner?
Musicians associated with the early rock-and-roll/R&B recording Rocket 88.
Why is 'Rocket 88' historically important?
It is frequently cited as one of the first rock-and-roll records.
Who produced 'Rocket 88'?
Sam Phillips recorded the session at his Memphis Recording Service; it was released on Chess.
Who were Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller?
A hugely influential songwriting and production team who shaped early R&B and rock and roll.
Why were Leiber and Stoller important?
They helped bring R&B sounds and themes into mainstream popular music through songwriting and production.
What song on the exam is associated with Leiber and Stoller?
Leader of the Pack by The Shangri-Las.
What other artists/groups are associated with Leiber and Stoller?
The Coasters, The Drifters, Elvis Presley recordings, and The Shangri-Las.
Who was Alan Freed?
A famous radio DJ and promoter who popularized the term 'rock and roll' and brought R&B to a white teenage audience.
Why is Alan Freed important in rock history?
He helped popularize rock and roll through radio, concerts, and promotion.
Who was Chuck Berry?
A central figure in early rock known for electric guitar playing, songwriting, stage performance, and teenage-oriented lyrics.
How did Chuck Berry get his break?
His recording of Maybellene became a major hit after being recorded through Chess Records.
What instrument is Chuck Berry especially associated with?
Electric guitar.
What Chuck Berry song is on your exam?
Maybellene.
What made Chuck Berry's music important to rock?
He combined R&B/blues influences, electric guitar, energetic rhythms, and lyrics about teenage life.
Who was Little Richard?
A foundational figure of rock and roll famous for high-energy performances, powerful vocals, and piano playing.
What instrument did Little Richard play?
Piano
What was distinctive about Little Richard's performing style?
Extremely energetic, flamboyant, theatrical, and sexually suggestive.
What Little Richard songs are on the exam?
Tutti Frutti and Slippin' and Slidin'.
Why was sexuality important to Little Richard's performance style?
His flamboyant performance and suggestive lyrics challenged conventional ideas of male performer behavior.
Where was Elvis Presley born?
Tupelo, Mississippi.
Where did Elvis make his early recordings?
Sun Records in Memphis, Tennessee, with Sam Phillips.
Why did Elvis become popular?
He combined African American blues/R&B, country, and gospel with an energetic and provocative performance style.
What is rockabilly?
An early rock style combining country/hillbilly music with blues/R&B influences.
Who is strongly associated with early rockabilly?
Elvis Presley, Bill Haley, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis, and others.
What Elvis songs are on the exam?
That's All Right and Blue Suede Shoes.
Who originally recorded 'Blue Suede Shoes'?
Carl Perkins (Elvis's version became extremely famous).
What is Bill Haley associated with?
Early rock and roll and rockabilly/country-influenced rock.
What is special about 'Rock Around the Clock'?
It became an important early mainstream rock hit and helped introduce rock to a massive teenage audience.
What was Buddy Holly's band called?
The Crickets.
What happened on February 3, 1959?
Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J.P. 'The Big Bopper' Richardson died in a plane crash, known as 'The Day the Music Died'.
What Buddy Holly song is on the exam?
That'll Be the Day.
What was distinctive about Buddy Holly's music?
He helped establish the rock-band format centered around vocals, electric guitars, bass, and drums.
What is payola?
The practice of paying radio personnel to get a song played without properly disclosing the arrangement.
Why was payola controversial?
It allowed record companies to buy radio exposure, improperly influencing hit songs.
Who was strongly associated with the payola scandal?
Alan Freed was one of the major figures affected.
What happened to Alan Freed because of payola?
The scandal severely damaged his career and he lost his radio positions.
Who was Dick Dale?
A pioneering electric guitarist associated with surf rock, nicknamed 'The King of Surf Guitar'.
What song by Dick Dale is on the exam?
Misirlou.
What made Dick Dale's music distinctive?
His powerful amplified guitar sound and incorporation of Middle Eastern/Mediterranean musical influences.
What was the Brill Building?
A famous New York City center associated with professional songwriters, composers, and music publishers.
Why is the Brill Building important?
It was central to the creation of many commercially successful pop songs during the early 1960s.
What girl groups are listed on your exam sheet?
The Shirelles, The Crystals, and The Ronettes.
What Ronettes song is on the exam?
Be My Baby.
Who produced 'Be My Baby'?
Phil Spector.
Who was Phil Spector?
A highly influential record producer associated with early-1960s pop music and the Wall of Sound.
What was the 'Wall of Sound'?
A production technique involving large ensembles, layered instruments, and dense arrangements to create a huge sound.
Who were the members of the Beatles?
John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr.
Where were the Beatles from?
Liverpool, England.
Where did the Beatles gain important early experience?
In Liverpool and Hamburg, Germany.
When did the Beatles first come to the United States?
February 1964, highlighted by their appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show.
Who was the Beatles' producer?
George Martin.
How did Beatles studio sessions change as their career progressed?
They increasingly experimented with studio technology, recording techniques, and arrangements.
What Beatles songs are on the exam?
Love Me Do and Penny Lane.
Who are the two main Rolling Stones members emphasized on the study sheet?
Mick Jagger and Keith Richards.
What style strongly influenced the Rolling Stones?
American blues and R&B.
Where does the name 'Rolling Stones' come from?
Muddy Waters' song 'Rollin' Stone'.
What Rolling Stones song is on the exam?
(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction.
How did the Rolling Stones compare to the Beatles?
Both were British bands, but the Stones were especially associated with a blues/R&B-based, harder-edged rock sound.