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Folk Music; Yesterday & Today
The American folk music revival kicked off in the 1940s and really took off in the 1960s. Some of the early performers included Woody Guthrie, Lead Belly, Pete Seeger, and others like Richard Dyer-Bennet, Oscar Brand, and Jean Ritchie. Lead Belly was known for recording songs like "Cotton Fields" and "Goodnight, Irene". Another folk singer, Odetta, also released some albums.
In the 1960s and 1970s, new musicians like Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, and Joni Mitchell started recording folk songs and their own compositions. Others like Judy Collins, Phil Ochs, and Peter, Paul & Mary
also got in on the action. This revival helped bring back older styles of American folk music that had influenced country, bluegrass, blues, and rock and roll. It was a pretty exciting time for folk music, with lots of different strains coming together.
“A folk song is what’s wrong and how to fix it, or it could be who’s hungry and where their mouth is, or who’s out of work and where the job is, or who’s broke and where the money is, or who’s carrying a gun and where the peace is.” –a quote from prominent folk musicians Woody Guthrie.
Cosmic American Music. The Condensed Version
I condensed all three cosmic American Music volumes into one book. My new book saves $50 by buying it instead of the original Volumes One, Two and Three.
There's a unique sound out there in the far reaches of country and western music – it's powerful, dreamy, and a bit mysterious. And if you're trying to wrap your head around it, keep in mind that the waters are intentionally murky. Today, we're diving into Cosmic Country – in a major way. Most of us can identify this style when we hear it. It's more of a vibe than a sound. Country music has soul, RnB, rock, and psychedelia infused into it. Imagine tripping out in a honky tonk or cruising the desert highway with AM radio and static filling the air. It's country gospel played from somewhere out in the atmosphere.
Back in the late '60s, country music wasn't cool or hip, but Gram Parsons and a few others started to blend it with rock 'n' roll. When asked what kind of music he was playing, Gram called it "Cosmic American Music." And from that moment, everything changed. A whole new genre was born, and its influence is still evident today. We call it Alt-Country, Americana, or something else, but it all shares a deep respect for the music that came before. It's the connection between Gram and The Byrds, Whiskeytown, The Band, Uncle Tupelo, Merle Haggard, and Emmylou Harris – and all the best of that Cosmic American Music.
Power Pop
Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines Power Pop Music as "a more aggressive form of pop rock based on catchy melodic hooks with an energetic beat".
The All Music Guide describes Power Pop as "a cross between the crunching hard rock of the Who and the sweet melodicism of the Beatles and The Beach Boys, with the ringing guitars of the Byrds".
Power pop, born at the intersection of 1960s and 1970s rock music, has undergone significant changes over
the years. Although its roots date back to the 1960s and 1970s, the term "power pop" is often linked to bands that emerged in the late 1970s.
This "quintessential second-generation stuff" refers to the fact that power pop bands of the 1970s and 1980s drew inspiration from the British Invasion and American rock music of the 1960s. Bands like Tom Petty, The Cars, Blondie, and The Bangles exemplified this sound, often blending punk, new wave, and other rock styles...