HISTORY OF ROCK: FROM ITS ORIGINS TO THE PRESENT - HISTORY - 2025

The history of rock dates from the middle of the 20th century and its origin is closely related to the large number of different rhythms on which it was built. This musical genre has its roots mainly in rock and roll, but it draws on styles such as gospel, jazz, country music and, especially, blues.

The cultural phenomenon of rock has touched diverse groups; There is no society that has not been reached by this movement, which was consolidated as a milestone in modern cultural history and marked a before and after its emergence.

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Unquestionably, rock is a psychosocial differentiator that established distances and approximations between the different generations from the end of the Second World War and gave rise to a new social subject, whose expression outlined him as a transgressive and rebellious being that distanced himself from the adult morality.

This musical genre managed to evolve and produce a range of subgenres that later defined the groups or bands that emerged as exponents of hard rock, trash metal, alternative rock, symphonic rock and the so-called grunge, among others.

Part of the history of rock is told by the emblematic musical instruments of this genre, which from the beginning were the electric guitar, the bass, the drums and the very particular voice of the singers. Later, other elements such as the piano and the synthesizer were incorporated, the latter at the end of the 70s.

It is important to emphasize that rock determines an aesthetic, content whose themes and manifestations respond to jargon, clothing and behavior that define an identity and a notion of social movement to which the individual joins once he understands and relates to their symbols and ideas.

Rock history

Rock as a musical genre has been constantly redefined and reinvented from its inception to the present day.

Considered a tough style in which the electric guitar, bass and drums are the main instruments that represent it, in its evolution rock has had tendencies and influences that gave it different forms throughout its history.

Origins (1950)

In the late 1940s, the trendsetting styles were country music, rhythm and blues, jazz, pop, and folk. However, new artists like Chuck Berry - relying on the classical structures of the blues - transformed this sound into a constant rhythm with electric guitars.

Its initial form, known as rock and roll, also introduced other influences such as classical music and instruments such as the piano, organ, and keyboard.

Groups with a singer were formed and live concerts were common, which started a new counter-cultural trend.

In the late 1950s - also known as the golden age of rock or classic rock period - different subgenres of rock emerged, such as blues rock, folk rock, country rock and jazz rock fusion.

Elvis and other exponents

In this decade one of the main exponents of rock was Elvis Presley, considered the "king of rock and roll." His versatile voice, his physical attractiveness, his charisma and his dances marked an important trend on stage, generating the frenzy of his fans.

Other influential icons of so-called "black rock" at this time were Chuck Berry and Little Richard, and others - like Bill Haley - popularized rock and roll among the white population and on a large scale.

60's

In this decade rock came to the United Kingdom and bands emerged that gave it a significance that exceeded the mere notion of musical style, achieving a social and cultural dimension that was initially defined as a phenomenon of youth rebellion.

Exponents such as The Quarrymen (who later became The Beatles), Rolling Stones and The Everly Brothers led a series of emblematic bands that generated the so-called mod movement, a current that bet on modernist elements in music.

Surf rock

In the United States came the so-called surf rock, a genre starring The Beach Boys, with contagious melodies and lyrics whose central theme focused on the lives of young people from the middle classes of the United States, with very few worries.

Later, psychedelic rock was born in California, with exponents such as the Grateful Dead and The Doors, among others.

Innovative alongside the classics

Important bands such as Traffic, Pink Floyd, Soft machined and Jethro tull also emerged, which innovated in their creations and gave rise to the so-called progressive rock, with new instruments such as the synthesizer, the sitar and the mellotron.

The 1960s was a long time of musical development and creation. In this context also coexisted groups that maintained the more classic side of rock, such as Creedence Clearwater Revival and Buffalo Springfield.

Others promoted a more experimental and convulsed rock that revolutionized the way of playing the electric guitar. Representatives of this current were Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, George Harrison and Keith Richards.

Greater participation in the creative act

In 1967, rock artists were no longer just singers, but joined the creative act by composing their own melodies and lyrics.

They established themselves as singer-songwriters and became crooners, developing a concept in their style of singing and creating that was followed by many other performers.

70's

Rock was taking over the spaces of popular music. The strength of the predecessors allowed the new bands to expand, building territories for the musical sound that defined them.

New subgenres

For example, the group Led Zepellin gave an acoustic twist to the tone, making it high-sounding, dark and with a dense score. This established a new format of the genre: heavy metal or hard rock.

Likewise, in this decade Pink Floyd incorporated the conceptual into creations with complex musical arrangements, giving way to musical works oriented to a single idea around which the themes revolved, with psychedelic elements that were offered in a single session. His album The dark side of the moon spawned the progressive rock movement.

Other pioneering bands of heavy metal in this decade were the Australian AC / DC, the American Aerosmith and the English Queen. The latter stood out for its musical diversity, its vocal harmonies and the incorporation of elements from glam rock, progressive rock, folk, blues and pop.

Birth of punk

At the end of the 70s groups like Sex Pistols and Clash settled for a basic rock, simple, strident, fiery and vulgar. Thus was born punk and, with it, the emo and goth subcultures.

In this decade the influence of soul, funk and Latin sounds was also incorporated into the compositions of the genre, giving it turns of these rhythms.

80's

In this decade, rock seemed to lose commercial strength and the subgenres began to gain strength, including styles such as new wave, new romantic, glam rock, synth pop, hardcore punk, alternative rock, thrash metal and speed. metal.

The glam metal of the 80s stands out with a large number of groups such as Bon Jovi, Cinderella, Europe, LA Guns, Kiss, Poison, Tesla, White Lion and Whitesnake.

For its part, thrash metal had as representatives the groups Megadeth, Venom, Celtic Frost, Metallica, Testament, Anthrax, Sepultura, Suicidal tendencies and Pantera.

Neo-progressive rock and pop rock

In this decade, neo-progressive rock also reached its peak, characterized by dark lyrics compositions and magnificent theatricality on stage. Marillion stands out as the iconic representative.

On the other hand, pop rock had its most important representation in groups such as Tears for fears, Duran Duran, INXS, The cars and Billy Idol, who make up the set of the most successful exponents of the subgenre.

Soft rock and alternative

A melodic rock emerged, also called soft rock, which was characterized by elaborate guitar solos and the prominence of keyboards in the melody. Among the main representatives of this style are groups such as Toto, Journey, Boston and Foreigner.

In the same context, a somewhat more commercial rock was represented by artists such as Madonna, Prince and Michael Jackson.

For its part, the so-called alternative rock or indie rock emerged as a lucrative element for bands that signed with independent labels. The groups that marked the foundations of this genre, both in the United Kingdom and in the United States, were Siouxsie & the Banshees, The Cure, U2, Red Hot Chili Peppers and REM

90's

Metallic rock was infused with alternative rock, becoming the dominant music. Likewise, there was a movement that merged hard rock and punk called grunge.

Nirvana was presented in this decade as one of the most emblematic bands of alternative rock, while Metálica remained as a leader in heavy metal. Likewise, the Oasis group was established as a representative of the so-called black metal and britpop.

Other genres were created in hybrid attempts, such as Limp Bizkit, who fused hard rock and rap creating rap rock. To this was added the rise of industrial rock and industrial metal, with bands like Nine Inch Nails and Marilyn Manson.

The rock of the new millennium

After several decades of fusion, in the new millennium rock returns to its most basic concept. The new bands take up hard rock and heavy metal with some alternative approaches.

Groups such as The Strokes, The Killers and The Bravery have emerged, framed in indie rock, post punk revival and other branches of the new wave (post punk).

This phenomenon of going back to the roots can be reflected in the fact that some of the most popular rock bands of the 20th century returned in the present day, mostly as soloists or in brief attempts to reunite in special concerts.

References

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3. "Rock" (February 25, 2017) Retrieved on January 25, 2019 from Wikipedia: es.wikipedia.org
4. Grierson, Tim. "The Origins and History of Rock Music" (Updated November 30, 2018). Retrieved on January 25, 2019 from Arts, Music, and Recreation, ThoughCo: thoughtco.com
5. "The greats of Rock." (2011, August 19). Retrieved on January 25, 2019 from 20 minutes: lists.20minutos.es