Historia del Rock, Parte 1

Universidad de Rochester
About this course

This course, part 1 of a 2-course sequence, examines the history of rock, primarily as it unfolded
in the United States, from the days before rock (pre-1955) to the end of the 1960s. This course
covers the music of Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Phil Spector, Bob Dylan, the Beatles, the
Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, Cream, and many more artists, with an emphasis both on cultural
context and on the music itself. We will also explore how developments in the music business
and in technology helped shape the ways in which styles developed. Rock emerged in the mid
1950s as a blending of mainstream pop, rhythm and blues, and country and western--styles that
previously had remained relatively separate. This new style became the music of the emerging
youth culture and was often associated with teen rebellion. We will follow the story of how this
rowdy first wave of rock and roll (1955-59) was tamed in the early 60s but came roaring back
with the Beatles and the Rolling Stones and then went psychedelic by the end of the decade.

Enseñado por: John Covach, Professor of Music and Director

Institute for Popular Music

Compromiso 12-24 horas de vídeos y cuestionarios.

English, Subtítulos: Serbian, Chinese (Simplified)
Idioma
Volunteer to translate subtitles for this course
Cómo aprobar Aprueba todas las tareas calificadas para completar el curso.
Calificaciones del usuario Average User Rating 4.8

Programa
SEMANA 1
1. Vídeo: Introduction
2. Leyendo: Welcome to the Course

Welcome to the course!

Welcome to History of Rock, Part 1! I hope you will enjoy the course. We've been working hard
to put it all together here on Coursera and we're excited to be offering it to you.

Some of you may want to consider buying the book for the course. It is not required and the
course is designed to be effective without it. The book offers more detail and spends more time
with the music. As you can probably imagine, copyright restrictions keep us from posting any
music here. That means I cannot really discuss songs in the kind of detail I might in a regular
classroom, though the new video Listening Guides (see below) get about as close as possible to
the in-person classroom experience. I encourage you to seek out as much of the music we discuss
as you can find, and you might also find the discussions in the book to be valuable in that regard.
But again, it's your choice.

(http://books.wwnorton.com/books/webad.aspx?id=4294985628)

Note that a cheaper e-book version is available (scroll down the textbook page); it doesn't matter
which format you choose. This book will also be used for Part 2 of the course.

New to the course are videos on Musical Fundamentals and a series of video Listening Guides.
Viewing the material contained in these videos is not required and the information provided there
will not be in the quizzes or final exams (except where it duplicates discussion in the regular
course videos). My hope is that you will find this extra material useful to you in your study. The
Listening Guide videos cover songs that have Listening Guides in my textbook, though not every
Listening Guide in the book has a video to go with it. The Musical Fundamentals videos are
intended to introduce you to some of the technical features of the music.

Please check out the discussion forums. I hope you will contribute to the conversations that will
unfold there. The only requirements are that we be considerate of one another, and that we try to
cast our remarks as scholars, not so much as fans. We all have opinions--and when it comes to
pop, these can be very strong opinions--but for the purposes of this class, I would ask you to be
as objective as you can as you think about this music. Offer reasoned arguments for your
position.

Please familiarize yourself with the General Overview, Syllabus, Grading and Logistics, and the
Course Schedule. And most of all, enjoy the study of rock's history!

--- John Covach

 3. Leyendo: General Overview

General Overview
This page is meant to provide a general overview of the course, with suggestions for how to use
the videos and other materials. You should also consult the Syllabus and Course Schedule for
more detailed information.

Video Lectures
You should view each video in the order listed, stopping to take notes. You may also slow the
video down to aid in comprehension or use the closed captioning. Each video concludes with an
in-line quiz. I have used these quizzes as a kind of summary of each video, so even if you make a
mistake in a particular quiz, the mistakes can help you spot the points you may have missed in
that video. These in-line quizzes do not count as part of your score for the course; they are meant
only to improve your comprehension of the material included in the videos.

Listening
I discuss a lot of music in the course and we can't post any of it, due to copyright laws and
licensing expenses. Fortunately, you'll be able to find most of this music on the web without too
much trouble. When I mention a song, the title comes up on the screen along with the date of the
recording. Please be careful to listen to the right version of each song; sometimes artists recorded
the same song later and such a later version could cause confusion. The dates help keep that
straight. Please make it a point to listen to all the music discussed, not just the music you like. I'll
bet if you listen to everything, you'll discover music you didn't know about and also end up
liking music you thought you wouldn't. Be brave--give music that is new to you a fresh listen!!

Reading (optional)
A textbook is not required for this course, and this is keeping with Coursera's goal to make all
courses available to all with no economic obstacles. The entire course (both parts 1 and 2) are,
however, based on my textbook, What's That Sound? An Introduction to Rock and Its History,
3rd ed. You may choose to use this book to enhance the experience of the course. The book deals
with the material discussed in the lectures in greater depth and provides discussion of several
songs per chapter. The listening guides in the book provide a chance to listen to the music in a
way we cannot in the videos (see Video Listening Guides below).

My publisher, W.W. Norton, offers an online streaming version of the book at a discount price.
This is the least expensive option, though some may want to purchase the paper one. Here's the
link to the Norton site and the e-book version:

http://books.wwnorton.com/books/detail.aspx?Id=24604
Video Listening Guides (optional)
I have posted several videos dedicated to a detailed discussion of many of the songs that I
mention in the course. Strictly speaking, these videos are keyed to listening guides in my book,
but you can still use them if you do not have the book. These videos are optional and are
included simply to enhance your learning experience: no quiz or exam questions will be based on
these videos. Here's the link to a YouTube playlist containing these videos:

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeBbhpV63deUmTmUkYCGxhUjuXRjEYVdT

Discussion Forum
The course discussion forums are organized in several sections. For the discussion of the course
material, we will focus on the general forum and the weekly ones. The general forum is the place
for you to discuss the broader issues that come up in the course; the weekly forums are devoted
to that week's video and music. I will start thread on various discussion topics as we go, but other
ones are also possible.

There need to be a few ground rules about the discussion forums. First and foremost, we must
treat one another's views with respect. No flaming, please! Secondly, I want you to check your
"fan mentality" at the door for these discussions. We all love some of the music we'll be
discussing; and most likely there's also some we don't like nearly as much. That's natural and
positive. But as students of rock history, we need to be as objective as we can be (realizing that
total objective is probably impossible). Try to cast your comments in terms of a reasoned
statement or argument. It's not very useful to say "this band is awesome, the best ever!" or "these
guys suck." There are plenty of other forums for that kind of discussion. Here I want to keep it as
scholarly as we can.

I will pop in and contribute from time to time, but these forums are designed primarily for
students to discuss topics with one another.

Quizzes and Final Exam

There will be three quizzes throughout the course. The final exam will incorporate a for the final
module along with questions that draw from all previous modules. Bear in mind that the quiz
questions are mostly more demanding than those at the end of each video. I don't want you to be
surprised or angered by the fact that all of a sudden it seems like things got a lot harder, so please
be prepared for this. You will be able to retake each quiz, so if the level of difficulty catches you
by surprise, you can re-take the quiz.

Announcements and emails

Watch the Announcements page for additional information as the course unfolds. I will also send
out emails as the situation warrants.
 4. Leyendo: Syllabus

Modules and Themes:

View the video lectures listed for each module. Students have the option of using the textbook or
not; the video lectures are designed to be self-contained. The textbook provides increased depth,
context, and background, as well as dozens of listening guides. [Additional assignments for those
using the book are given in brackets below.] Consult the Course Schedule for information
regarding lectures, quizzes, and the final exam.

"The World Before Rock and Roll (1900-1955)"

The Role of Tin Pan Alley in mainstream pop, the formation of a national audience through radio
and the rise of television, the pre-rock pop of Frank Sinatra, Patti Page, and Les Paul and Mary
Ford; rhythm and blues in the years before rock and roll; country and western and the rise of
Nashville. [Read introduction and Chapter 1, along with the listening guides for each.]

"The Birth and First Flourishing of Rock and Roll (1955-

59)"
Chart crossover and cover versions, the first hits of Bill Haley, Chuck Berry, Fats Domino, and
Little Richard, the rise of Elvis Presley, the music of Jerry Lee Lewis and Buddy Holly, the rise
of American Bandstand, the payola scandal and the "death of rock and roll." [Read Chapter 2 and
work through the listening guides in that chapter.]

**Quiz for Modules 1 & 2**

"The Demise of Rock and the Promise of Soul (1959-63)"

Was this era the dark ages for rock music or was it a golden era cut short by the British invasion?
The music of teen idols, the folk revival, early surf music, sweet soul, rockabilly pop, and girl
groups. The Brill Building songwriters and the rise of the producer. Playlets and splatter platters.
[Read Chapter 3 and work through the listening guides for that chapter.]

"The Beatles and the British Invasion (1964-66)"

The Beatles transform the UK music scene and then invade America. Other Beatles-type British
bands. The London blues scene and the Rolling Stones. Other Stones-type bands. The Who and
the Kinks. [Read Chapter 4 and work through the listening guides for that chapter.]

**Quiz for Modules 3 & 4**

"American Responses (1965-67)"
Dylan, the Byrds and folk rock. Garage bands in the northwest. Sonny and Cher and the legacy
of Phil Spector. TV rock, Paul Revere and the Raiders, and the Monkees. Music in New York
and Los Angeles. [Read Chapter 5 and work through the listening guides for that chapter.]

"Motown Pop and Southern Soul (1960-69)"

Berry Gordy and the rise and first flourishing of Motown. Atlantic, Stax, and southern soul
(Memphis, Muscle Shoals, New York). Parallels between Motown and Stax. James Brown and
the roots of funk. [Read Chapter 6 and work through the listening guides for that chapter.]

**Quiz for Modules 5 and 6**

"Psychedelia (1966-69)"
How can music be psychedelic? Underground psychedelic scenes in San Francisco and London.
Psychedelia in LA. The Summer of Love and the rise of hippie culture. The birth of FM rock and
rock magazines. Woodstock and Altamont. [Read Chapter 7 and work through the listening
guides for that chapter.]

**Final exam**

5. Leyendo: Grading and Logistics

Grading scheme for this course

There will be 3 quizzes and a final exam for the course, each of these worth 25% each:

 Quiz for Modules 1 and 2, 25%

 Quiz for Modules 3 and 4, 25%
 Quiz for Modules 5 and 6, 25%
 Final Exam (includes quiz for Module 7 as well as questions drawn from weeks 1-6), 25%

To successfully complete the course, you will need a grade of 70 or higher.

Please note that the quiz and final exam questions are more demanding than the in-line quizzes
that appear at the end of each video and that the in-line quizzes do not count towards your score
for the course. Since use of the textbook, video listening guides, and listening is optional (though
encouraged), the quizzes and final will only cover material presented in the video lectures.
 6. Leyendo: Music Fundamentals

Music Fundamentals (3 videos)

These three videos were originally produced several years ago to accompany the first edition of
my college textbook, What's That Sound? An Introduction to Rock and Its History (W.W.
Norton). They cover elements of music theory from a rock perspective and are meant for
students with no previous musical training. Here's the link to playlist on my YouTube channel:

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeBbhpV63deV6JSk_bFLmqM8k6lbKIGDk

7. Leyendo: Listening Guides (19 videos)

Listening Guides (19 videos)

The link below leads to a YouTube playlist of 19 Listening Guide videos. Each of these video
guides corresponds to a Listening Guide in my textbook, What's That Sound? These Listening
Guides are not required for the course, though I hope they will enrich your study. No previous
knowledge of music theory is required to understand the content of these videos.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeBbhpV63deUmTmUkYCGxhUjuXRjEYVdT

8. Leyendo: About the Professor

About the Professor

John Covach is Professor and Chair of Music at the University of Rochester, Director of the
University of Rochester Institute for Popular Music, Mercer Brugler Distinguished Teaching
Professor, and Professor of Theory at the Eastman School of Music. Professor Covach teaches
classes in traditional music theory as well as the history and analysis of popular music. He has
published dozens of articles on topics dealing with popular music, twelve-tone music, and the
philosophy and aesthetics of music. He is the author of the college textbook What's That Sound?
An Introduction to Rock Music, recently published by W. W. Norton in a third edition, and has
co-edited Understanding Rock (Oxford University Press), American Rock and the Classical
Tradition, and Traditions, Institutions, and American Popular Music (both with Routledge), as
well the recently published volume, Sounding Out Pop (Michigan). He is one of the founding
editors for the University of Michigan Press series called Tracking Pop, which is devoted to
scholarly monographs on popular music.
As a guitarist, Covach has performed widely on electric and classical guitar in both the US and
Europe and recorded with the progressive rock band, Land of Chocolate. He currently performs
with several Rochester based bands, including Going for the One.

The following is a sample of some of Professor Covach's recordings; these links point to
CDBaby, which features extended free samples:

http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/johncovach3 (mostly solo acoustic guitar), and

http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/landofchoc2 (angular prog rock).

And video can found at:

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeBbhpV63deUMGycSRdeD13X_gDJNhsti (the "guitar

cam" videos).

The World Before Rock and Roll (1900-1955)

The Role of Tin Pan Alley in mainstream pop, the formation of a national audience through radio
and the rise of television, the pre-rock pop of Frank Sinatra, Patti Page, and Les Paul and Mary
Ford; rhythm and blues in the years before rock and roll; country and western and the rise of
Nashville.
11 videos

1. Vídeo: The Music Business in the First Half of the 20th Century
2. Vídeo: Radio and Regional vs National Audiences
3. Vídeo: The Stars of Pop Music Before Rock and Roll
4. Vídeo: Les Paul, Inventor - The Role of Technology
5. Vídeo: Origins of Country & Western (pre WWII)
6. Vídeo: The Rise of Nashville
7. Vídeo: Rhythm and Blues (Pre 1945)
8. Vídeo: Rhythm & Blues (Post 1945)
9. Vídeo: Regional R&B Radio in the 1950s
10. Vídeo: Doo Wop and Gospel
11. Vídeo: Hokum Blues and Sexual Lyrics
SEMANA 2
The Birth and First Flourishing of Rock and Roll (1955-59)
Chart crossover and cover versions, the first hits of Bill Haley, Chuck Berry, Fats Domino, and
Little Richard, the rise of Elvis Presley, the music of Jerry Lee Lewis and Buddy Holly, the rise
of American Bandstand, the payola scandal and the "death of rock and roll."
8 videos

1. Vídeo: The Rise of Youth Culture in the 1950s

2. Vídeo: Radio and Records
3. Vídeo: Crossovers and Covers
4. Vídeo: The First Rock and Rollers Cross Over
5. Vídeo: The Rise of Elvis Presley
6. Vídeo: Sam Phillips Selling Elvis Contract
7. Vídeo: Rockabilly in the Wake of Elvis
8. Vídeo: The Day the Music Died

Calificado: The World Before Rock and Roll and The Birth and First Flourishing of Rock and
Roll

SEMANA 3
The Demise of Rock and the Promise of Soul (1959-63)
Was this era the dark ages for rock music or was it a golden era cut short by the British invasion?
The music of teen idols, the folk revival, early surf music, sweet soul, rockabilly pop, and girl
groups. The Brill Building songwriters and the rise of the producer. Playlets and splatter platters.
9 videos

1. Vídeo: Audiences and Marketing - The Search for the Next Elvis
2. Vídeo: The Brill Building Approach to Pop
3. Vídeo: Teen Idols
4. Vídeo: Producers and Girl Groups
5. Vídeo: Sweet Soul
6. Vídeo: TV, Movies, and Dance Crazes
7. Vídeo: The Folk Revival
8. Vídeo: Rockabilly Popsters
9. Vídeo: Surf Music
SEMANA 4
The Beatles and the British Invasion (1964-66)
The Beatles transform the UK music scene and then invade America. Other Beatles-type British
bands. The London blues scene and the Rolling Stones. Other Stones-type bands. The Who and
the Kinks.
10 videos

1. Vídeo: Introduction
2. Vídeo: The Early 1960s in the US & UK
3. Vídeo: The Rise of the Beatles
4. Vídeo: Beatles as Students of American Pop Music
5. Vídeo: Beatles From Craftsmen to Artists
6. Vídeo: Blues in the UK
7. Vídeo: The Rolling Stones Emerge
8. Vídeo: The Stones in The States
9. Vídeo: Other British Bands
10. Vídeo: The Kinks and the Who

Calificado: The Demise of Rock and the Promise of Soul (1959-63) and The Beatles and the
British Invasion (16964-66)

SEMANA 5
American Responses (1965-67)
Dylan, the Byrds and folk rock. Garage bands in the northwest. Sonny and Cher and the legacy
of Phil Spector. TV rock, Paul Revere and the Raiders, and the Monkees. Music in New York
and Los Angeles.
7 videos

1. Vídeo: Dylan as the New American Songwriter

2. Vídeo: Dylan Goes Electric
3. Vídeo: Folk Rock and the Byrds
4. Vídeo: The Phil Spector Legacy
5. Vídeo: Meanwhile, Back East
6. Vídeo: Garage Bands
7. Vídeo: TV Rock
SEMANA 6
Motown Pop and Southern Soul (1960-69)
Berry Gordy and the rise and first flourishing of Motown. Atlantic, Stax, and southern soul
(Memphis, Muscle Shoals, New York). Parallels between Motown and Stax. James Brown and
the roots of funk.
7 videos

1. Vídeo: Preamble
2. Vídeo: Hitsville, USA: Motown
3. Vídeo: The Motown Performers
4. Vídeo: Soulsville, USA: Stax and Southern Soul (7:25)
5. Vídeo: The Stax Performers (12:06)
6. Vídeo: Motown, Stax, the British Invasion, and the American Response (6:37)
7. Vídeo: James Brown (12:44)

Calificado: American Responses and Motown Pop and Southern Soul

SEMANA 7
Psychedelia (1966-69)
How can music be psychedelic? Underground psychedelic scenes in San Francisco and London.
Psychedelia in LA. The Summer of Love and the rise of hippie culture. The birth of FM rock and
rock magazines. Woodstock and Altamont.
9 videos

1. Vídeo: LSD, Music, and the Trip

2. Vídeo: The Beginnings of the Hippie Aesthetic
3. Vídeo: Pushing the Envelope Beatles and Beach Boys
4. Vídeo: Psychedelia in San Francisco - Subculture
5. Vídeo: Psychedelia in San Francisco – Important Groups
6. Vídeo: Psychedelia in London and Underground Favs
7. Vídeo: Psychedelia in London – Mainstream Stars
8. Vídeo: Los Angeles and Elsewhere
9. Vídeo: A Hippie Nation

SEMANA 8
Final Exam
Final exam for this course.
Calificado: Final Exam