The Death of Rock and Roll
There’s a question that’s been playing on my mind for quite some time now… Where have all the rockstars gone? This post aims to investigate, deliberate and hopefully answer that question. Rock music, a genre that defined the late 60s and 70s and arguably gave birth to music as we know it today, seems to have vanished, at least from the mainstream, and I can’t help but wonder why.
Naturally, in order to discuss the death of Rock and Roll, we must first look back to the birth of Rock and Roll, which originated in the late 1940s and 1950s with origins in Rhythm and Soul. Now, let me clarify, when I say ‘Rock and Roll’ I don’t just mean the genre, I mean the era, the culture, the fashion, the lifestyle. Rock and Roll itself is a sound defined by artists like Chuck Berry and Elvis Presley, who paved the way for the genre that would go on to have a myriad of offshoots and sub-genres such as classic rock, progressive rock, psychedelic rock and eventually metal and grunge.
Once we get into the late 60s, this is where Rock music as we imagine it today truly begins, with Helter Skelter off The Beatles ‘white album’, released in 1968 often being cited as the first true hard rock song. Led Zeppelin, with their debut self titled album released in 1969 took those raw vocals and dirty electric guitar and brought it to new heights, songs like Dazed and Confused and Communication Breakdown pioneering a completely new sound now being introduced to popular music. Emerging at the same time were artists like Jimi Hendrix, The Doors, The Velvet Underground, all coming out of the late 60s. Coming into the 70s we get Pink Floyd, a band who drastically shifted the direction of rock music, heavily inspired by the psychedelic sounds and themes of The Beatles they pushed the notion of the ‘concept album’ and went on to become one of the most successful and critically acclaimed bands of all time. Other big bands of the 70s include Black Sabbath and AC/DC, and of course countless more who all, in their own unique way, helped to give rock music the gravitas it holds to this day.
I could go on and on about the history of rock music but that’s not the purpose of today’s post. Today, we are here to talk about the current state of rock music, or rather, the distinct lack of it. Now, I'm not saying rock no longer exists as a genre or that artists aren’t still producing it, but in terms of mainstream success, it’s pretty hard to come by.
Social media has to be held at least partially responsible for the death of the rockstar image. With mainstream success comes celebrity status, and with celebrity status comes enormous scrutiny. Back in the day, artists could get up to all sorts and a lot of it flew under the radar, and that which didn’t, just wasn’t a big deal at the time; in fact much of it was oddly valorised. Bands having relationships with underage groupies, Ozzy Osbourne biting a bat’s head off on stage, the alleged ‘mud shark incident’ with Led Zeppelin and Vanilla Fudge in 1969 (that’s one we don’t need to go any further into), it was madness. Thanks to cancel culture, however, ‘sex, drugs, and rock and roll’ is a mantra on its death bed.
The 60s leading into the 70s was an era of liberation and rebellion; people wanted to hear music that went against the grain, and in turn were drawn to artists who reflected that ethos in their image and lifestyle. New social freedoms, civil rights, the feminist movement, the rise of psychedelic drugs; there was an atmosphere in the air that rock music encapsulated with its abrasive sound and disregard of propriety.
Pop music now has become more about selling records and less about creating art. Don’t get me wrong, there are some incredibly talented and influential artists about today, but speaking holistically, the way we listen to music, purchase music, and experience music has changed in so many ways since the golden age of rock, and other genres that garner more commercial success are favoured by the masses.
Will we ever return to this golden age? That’s the question I’ll leave you with.
Thanks for reading,
xoxo, Scarlett.