EDWARD'S LECTURE NOTES:
More notes at http://tanguay.info/learntracker
C O U R S E
History of Rock, 1970-Present
John Covach, University of Rochester
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C O U R S E L E C T U R E 1980's Heavy Metal Notes taken on September 10, 2016 by Edward Tanguay |
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because heavy metal became so popular by the end of the 80s
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we tend to look back to the late 60s and early 70s and call a lot of that music heavy metal
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because it seems to share many of the characteristics
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but heavy metal music didn't begin to separate itself out from other blues-based rock music until the end of the 1970s and the early 1980s
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at the time when rock music was changing under the influence of corporate rock
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heavy metal wanted its own kind of distinctiveness
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the term "heavy metal"
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Ozzie Osborne has criticized it as not a very interesting or flattering term
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Steppenwolf "Born to be Wild"
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"...heavy metal thunder..."
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but here they were talking more about motorcycles
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prototypes
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1968 Iron Butterfly, "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida"
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MC5
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Iggy Pop
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roots of Heavy Metal
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Black Sabbath
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Ozzie Osborne
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at end of 70s, both Ozzie and Black Sabbath attained importance in the growth of Heavy Metal
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where grouped in with Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin
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Gothic, horror themes
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dark sound
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Iron Man
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all players are making the same sees
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dark, Gothic theme
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Deep Purple
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Jon Lord
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Baroque influences
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Ian Gillan
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typical and original high scream
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Led Zeppelin
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when they were heavy they were very heavy
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Kashmir
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a hard-driving piece
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Kiss and Alice Cooper
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theatrical performances
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into the bigger venues, e.g. stadiums
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the image of Heavy Metal
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back in the day and into the 90s
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Heavy Metal musicians and fans did not get much respect
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the music was thought of as being very simple-minded
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the people who listened to it were thought of as being not particularly sophisticated
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the music was marked as blue collar, working class
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people prone to violence
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called headbangers
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but as music consumers who were not very sophisticated, they were happy to be called head bangers
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positive stereotypes: Wayne's World
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honesty, loyalty and unselfish devotion to partying
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they are the lovable Heavy Metal fans
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not the sharpest knife in the drawer
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but likable guys
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negative stereotypes: Beavis and Butt-head
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ignorant, vulgar, and lazy
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these stereotypes can still be used today to indicate a certain personality and place in the culture
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the rise of Heavy Metal
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in two places
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1. the United States centered around Los Angeles
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if you were an American kid wanted to play guitar in the popular music business at the end of the 70s, you probably ended up going to Los Angeles
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it was like every guitar player was in Los Angeles
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Van Halen
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1978 Van Halen
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David Lee Roth on lead vocals
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1984 "1984"
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David Lee Roth leaves
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1986 "5150"
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Sammy Hagar
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"Why Can't This Be Love"
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Quiet Riot
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1983 Metal Health
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"Come On Feel the Noize"
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2. the UK centered around London and the north of England
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The New Wave of British Heavy Metal
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Black Sabbath
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1968 formed
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1977 Ozzy leaves
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replaced him with Ronni James Dio
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1980 Heaven and Hell
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1981 Mob Rules
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Ozzy Osbourne
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1977 recruits Randy Rhoads as guitarist
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1980 Blizzard of Ozz
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1981 Diary of a Madman
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both Black Sabbath and Ozzy leading the way
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other bands getting down to the core of what Heavy Metal really was
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Judas Priest
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1968 formed in Birmingham
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1979 Hell Bent for Leather
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1980 British Steel
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Breaking the Law
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Living After Midnight
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Iron Maiden
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1975 formed in East London
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1982 Number of the Beast
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Def Leppard
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1977 formed in Sheffeld, central England
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1981 High 'n' Dry
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1983 Pyromania
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Photograph
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Motörhead
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1975 formed in London
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never had the success the other bands had
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Lemmy Kilmister, vocalist
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1980 Ace of Spades
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shared characteristics
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virtuosic guitar solos
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à la Ritchie Blackmore, of Deep Purple
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and their American cousin Eddie Van Halen
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the guitar solos often the showcases of these tracks
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unrelentingly heavy drum beats
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Los Angeles Metal
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if you were an American kid wanting to play guitar in the popular music business at the end of the 70s, you ended up going to Los Angeles
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it used to be New York
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fighting to get into groups
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provided a fertile ground for groups that rose up
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Van Halen
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1978 Van Halen
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1984 1984
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Sammy Hagar comes in
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1986 5150
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Why Can't This Be Love
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Quiet Riot
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1983 Metal Health
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Come On Feel the Noize
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originally done by Slade in the 1970s
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Ratt
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1984 Out of the Cellar
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"Round and Round"
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Mötley Crüe
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Vince Neil
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Tommy Lee, drummer
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1983 Shout at the Devil
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1989 Dr. Feelgood
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Los Angeles Metal
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high screaming vocals
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imitating singers such as Robert Plant or Ian Gillan
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loud, assertive drumming
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big beats
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like an airline cockpit
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a unison with anthem-like vocals
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setting the stage for stadium sing-alongs
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everyone raising their fist and singing along