The History Of Pop Music.

About Pop Music.

A term that originally derives from an abbreviation of "popular”.

The genre popular music originated in its modern form in the 1950s, deriving from rock and roll.

The term "pop song" is first recorded as being used in 1926

According to Grove Music Online, the term "pop music" "originated in Britain in the mid-
1950s as a description for rock and roll and the new youth music styles that it influenced

Chambers' Dictionary mentions the contemporary usage of the term "pop art"

Since the late 1950s, however, pop has had the special meaning of non-classical music.

Some of the most well known names in history such as; The Beatles, Michael Jackson, The
rolling Stones, ABBA etc…
 Early Pop Music.
Early British popular music, in the sense of commercial music enjoyed by the people,
can be seen to originate in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries with the arrival
of the broadside ballad as a result of the print revolution, which were sold cheaply
and in great numbers until the nineteenth century. Further technological, economic
and social changes led to new forms of music in the nineteenth century, including the
brass band, which produced a popular and communal form of classical music.
Similarly, the Music hall sprang up to cater for the entertainment of new urban
societies, adapting existing forms of music to produce popular songs and acts. In the
1930s, the influence of American Jazz led to the creation of British dance bands, who
provided a social and popular music that began to dominate social occasions and the
radio airwaves.

Parlour music" was popular music performed in the parlours of middle class homes by
amateur singers and pianists.

Broadside ballads were arguably the first form of commercial popular music in Britain.
They were a product of the development of cheap print from the sixteenth century.
 Origins Of Pop Music.
Pop music, which accounts for the majority of the music on
today's charts, is an a genre which includes a mix of many
different styles of music which vary from jazz to country; rock
and roll to rap; be-bop to hip-hop.

Sheet music was a big thing with pop music, as it literally

Written song notes, which would get families together and then
played on an instrument.

Publishers of sheet music set up companies to meet the

demand of those desiring their products, and would often scout
out new composers and have their music made available in
printed form for sale.
 Origins Of Pop Music Continued...
When pianos gave way to the phonograph around the beginning of
the 20th century, popular renditions of music followed with them.

By the mid 1920s, a new music called jazz with a new peculiar
rhythm.

Later African derived art form music called "blues", soon helped
transform the music that was heard.
 Features Of Pop Music.
The most significant feature of the pop music industry of the late
18th and early 19th centuries was the extent of its focus on the
commodity form of sheet music“.

Pop music is generally described as very commercial friendly,

marketable and memorable, with either vocals, lyrics,
instruments, or a combination of all three creating catchy
choruses or verses.

The goal is to automatically create visual content in responses to

the feature extracted from the music.

To give a visually coherent representation of the sound.

 The 50s !
1956: Elvis Presley emerges as one of the world's first rock stars. With so many hit songs,
he was referred to as 'the king of rock n roll'. He is one of the best-selling solo artist in the
history of popular music.

1957: John Lennon meets Paul McCartney. In March 1957 John Lennon formed a skiffle
group called The Quarrymen. McCartney met Lennon on 6 July 1957, and agreed to join
the group a few days later.

1957: The first official Quarry Men performance. The first "official" public, albeit
unsuccessful, performance by The Quarry Men - they failed to impress when they
auditioned before the promoter Carroll Levis.

Late 1950s: The English rock music group 'Beatles' was formed. John Lennon, Paul
McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr were the members of the group. Most lyrics and
music were written by Lennon and McCartney. The decade 1960-70 was dominated by the
Beatles.

In 1958: Michael Jackson and Madonna were born, these are 2 of the most well people in
the pop music industry.
 Notable Pop Artists in the 50s.

Bill Haley and His Comets

Elvis Presley

Danny & the Juniors

 The 60s !
1960: Pete Best joins the Beatles, The group invited Pete Best to
become their drummer on 12 August 1960. Four days after hiring
Best, the group left for Hamburg. The Beatles began a 48-night
residency in Hamburg at Bruno Koschmider's Indra Club.

1961: American country singer 'Patsy Cline' becomes a mainstream

pop music hit. Cline was the first female vocalist who adapted to the
change and became a successful pop singer.

Ziggy Marley is born: David Nesta "Ziggy" Marley (born October 17,
1968, Trenchtown, Jamaica) is a four-time Grammy-winning
Jamaican musician and leader of the band Ziggy Marley and the
Melody makers.
Notable Pop Artists of the 60s.

The Beach Boys

The Beatles The Rolling Stones
 The 70s !
1972: Michael Jackson's first solo hit "Ben" reaches No. 1"Ben" is a number-one
hit song recorded by the teenager Michael Jackson for the Motown label in
1972. The song, theme of a 1972 film of the same name, spent one week at the
top of the U.S. pop chart. It also reached number-one on the Australian pop
chart, spending eight weeks at the top spot.

1974: Michael Jackson introduces "The Robot“. In 1974, during a performance

on "Soul Train," Jackson introduced a dance called the robot.

1975-83: Popularity of disco and hip-hop lead to the popularity of pop. The
movie Saturday Night Fever was released. 'Disco music' gained popularity. 'Hip-
hop' emerged as a blend of rock, jazz, and soul with African drumming in the
New York City. Nonstop music videos were released by MTV. Cats began its
journey. The debut album of Madonna "Holiday" becomes a hit.
Notable Pop Artists of the 70s.

Queen
Abba
Jackson Five
 The 80s !
1983: The red hot chilli peppers were formed.

1983: Michael Jackson popularizes the moonwalk. The moonwalk or backslide

is a dance technique that presents the illusion that the dancer is stepping
forward while actually moving backward.

1985: Michael Jackson releases "Thriller“. The video becomes a classic, and is
still one of the most notable videos to date now.

1985: Britney Spears emerges as a star of the music world. At age 8, she made
her musical television debut on Star Search. In 1999, about 1,319,193 copies
of "...Baby One More Time" were sold in the first week after release.

1989: Taylor Allison Swift Is Born. Swift was born in the city of Wyomissing,
Pennsylvania.
 Notable Pop Artists of the 80s.

Bon Jovi

U2

Genesis
 The 90s !

1990s: Various famous groups made pop music more popular.

Grunge rock was formed in Seattle, Backstreet Boys and Blackstreet
were formed, the movie "Titanic" and the song "My Heart Will Go
On," became popular.

1992: Radiohead releases their first single, "Creep“.

1998: "Coldplay" formed. The band finally settled on the name

"Coldplay" which was suggested by Tim Crompton, a local student
who had been using the name for his group.
 Notable Pop Artists of the 90s.
Spice Girls

Boys II Men
Backstreet Boys
 The 2000s
2001: Keane releases second single "Wolf at the Door""Wolf at the Door" is a song
performed and composed by English alternative rock band Keane and happened to be their
second single release ever.

2002: Increased impact of television shows, Kelly Clarkson becomes the first American Idol.

2003: Marshall Mathers, known as Eminem, rapper of the evergreen "The Slim Shady LP"
gained popularity. Eminem was a radio and video superstar. In 2003, he won an Oscar for
the song "Lose Yourself," from "8 Mile". He was the first rapper to win an Oscar.

2009 June 25: Death of Michael Jackson. American singer Michael Jackson died after he
suffered cardiac arrest at his home in the Holmby Hills neighbourhood in Los Angeles.
 Notable Pop Artists of the 2000s.
Black Eyed Peas

Gorillaz

Coldplay
OutKast
 Instruments used.
The instruments used to produce pop music are guitar, bass, piano, drums, amplifiers,
cymbals, electric organs, electric pianos, electric keyboard and polyphonic tape playback
keyboard.

Guitars are common in pop music. Types of guitars used in this type of music include bass
guitars, acoustic guitars and electric guitars.

Drums in pop music can be played by a drummer on a drum kit or they can be produced
electronically by a computer. Computer drums have a more digital sound that can feel robotic
and less natural than drums played by a person.

Vocals are the leading force of pop music. Music is often structured to fit around the lyrics
written by the vocalist. Types of vocals can include singing, screaming, rapping or spoken
word.

Wind instruments such as saxophones, trumpets and flutes help give pop music a realistic and
full sound.

Orchestral string instruments such as the violin, viola and cello are occasionally featured in
pop music.
 Random facts of Pop Music.
• Creed has sold more records in the US than Jimi Hendrix.
• Led Zeppelin, REM, and Depeche Mode have never had a number one
single, Rihanna has 10.
• Ke$ha's “Tik-Tok” sold more copies than ANY Beatles single.
• Flo Rida's “Low” has sold 8 million copies – the same as The Beatles' “Hey
Jude”.
• The Black Eyed Peas' “I Gotta Feeling” is more popular than any Elvis or
Simon & Garfunkel song.
• Celine Dion's “Falling Into You” sold more copies than any Queen, Nirvana,
or Bruce Springsteen record.
• Katy Perry holds the same record as Michael Jackson for most number one
singles from an album.
• The cast of “Glee” has had more songs chart than the Beatles