Regional Cultures in American Rock 'n' Roll increases students' understanding of various musical genres by looking at their cultural and geographical origins. Incorporating articles from writers, critics, and songwriters working in a broad range of musical styles, the book covers Rock 'n' Roll from its roots in the 1940s through classic rock, garage bands, and thrash metal.
Students will learn about the three major regional cultural centers that influenced the inception and development of Rock 'n' Roll, as well as how these influences were combined and recombined to create jump blues, rockabilly, and rhythm and blues.
The book is divided into five sections. Part I explores the roots of rock, and how electric music was developed. Part II examines how rock rose from American song traditions including the Blues, Folk, Country, and Popular Song. Part III looks at the splintering of styles, and the emergence of Classic Rock. Part IV discusses the role of the singer/songwriter in rediscovering the American voice. Part V addresses the return of Rock 'n' Roll to the garage.
Topics include:
Haight-Ashbury
Hotel California, New Kids in Town
Rebellion and Girldom
Defining Characteristics of Punk
Getting from Andres Segovia to Kurt Cobain
The Music of the Dispossessed
Regional Cultures in American Rock-n-Roll is an outstanding supplement to standard course textbooks for semester or quarter-length courses in the history of Rock 'n' Roll. The cultural and historical perspectives make this text equally appropriate for courses on popular American culture. The quality of the included writing selections not only gives students an engaging introduction to the subject, but exposure to music journalism and criticism as an important form of genre writing.