Rock

Description

A vast genre generally based around a prominent electric guitar sound with a bass guitar and drums providing rhythm. Often, but not always, in verse-chorus form and 4/4 signature.

History

Early history

Initially evolved in the Southern US in the late 1940s through recordings that combined Jump Blues and Swing and gave prominence to role of the electric guitar, inspired by Chicago Blues

This original form typically used a verse-chorus structure with a backbeat rhythm, and had the electric guitar heavier and/or faster than its predecessor genres

The two dominant early forms of Rock in the 1950s were Rock & Roll and Rockabilly

Rock & Roll was an evolution of Rhythm & Blues (prototypical) - played faster and with new instrumentation such as the electric guitar and amplifier
- Mostly used to describe black musicians such as Little Richard
Rockabilly had mostly Swing influences - Western Swing performers incorporating fast-paced Rhythm & Blues (prototypical) with Country influences
- Popularised by the early recordings of Elvis Presley

Subsequent development

As Pop gained popularity in the 1950s, these two forms declined in popularity, though more subgenres such as Surf Rock and Garage Rock developed. Rock music in the UK evolved from Skiffle (a genre itself derived from Jazz and Folk

1960s

The 1960s saw the revival of mainstream interest in Rock through the “British Invasion” of bands such as The Rolling Stones and The Beatles that fuused elements of American Blues, Rock & Roll with UK Beat Music and Mod.

Rock began to involve unconventional aspects like distortion, experimentation and instrumentation - spawning scenes like Progressive Rock, all the meanwhile having a more accessible Pop Rock fork.

Anti-war movements led Folk Rock to become hugely popular, subsequently leading to the rise of Psychedelic Rock amidst the popularity of hallucinogens.

1970s

The 1970s saw the rise of by Hard Rock, laying the foundations for the even more intense genre of Metal. Glam Rock saw immense popularity in the early 1970s.

Punk Rock (developing into the wider Punk genre) took off in the mid-1970s.

1980s onwards

The influence of Punk on culture gave rise to New Wave and Post-Punk, which ultimately culminated in the development of modern day Alternative Rock and its child Indie Rock.

There have been multiple genre revival movements, and though rock no longer stands as the pre-eminent mainstream genre, it remains a heavily active scene.