What kind of social environment was there in San Francisco of the 1960?s?
Describe the social and political history of the “city by the bay,” San Francisco, CA. What kind of social environment was there in San Francisco of the 1960?s?
2. Read Friedlander’s chapter about the San Francisco Bands and the San Francisco “sound”. List and describe some of the significant musical and cultural departures from mainstream pop/rock music that were actively present in the music of the San Francisco Bands.
3. Listen and describe the following recordings of rock bands from San Francisco:
a) Combination of the Two – Big Brother & the Holding Company
b) White Rabbit – Jefferson Airplane
c) The Ballad of You & Me &Pooneil – Jefferson Airplane
d) The Golden Road (to Unlimited Devotion) – The Grateful Dead
e) It’s No Secret – Jefferson Airplane Marty Balinvcls
f) Somebody To Love – Jefferson Airplane Grace Slick vcls
4. What role did the use of psychoactive drugs play in the socio/musical culture of the San Francisco Bay Area in the 1960?s?
5. As you listen to the music of Janis Joplin, describe her vocal style and list her musical influences:
a) Summertime – Janis/Big Brother & the Holding Company
b) Piece Of My Heart
c) Ball and Chain (excerpt)
6. Traditional Scottish, Irish, and German folk musicstransculturate via immigration and a new way of life in the southern Appalachian mountains of the United States. This cultural synthesis evolves into a post 1945 form of music known as Bluegrass. The standard instruments in Bluegrass music are the five-string banjo, fiddle (violin), mandolin, guitar, and string bass.
Listen to some Bluegrass by the “founder” of the style-Bill Monroe and briefly list/describe what makes this music attractive to listen to:
a) Why Did You Wander? – Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys This recording from 1946 features: Lester Flatt – lead vocal & guitar Bill Monroe – tenor (high) vocal & mandolin Earl Scruggs – banjo Chubby Wise – fiddle Howard Watts – bass
Note: Don’t forget to notice and comment on the function or role each instrument and voice part has in this unique music.
7. As you listen to the following selections by The Grateful Dead, listen for what Nathan Rubin refers to as “the joyful Weavers-influenced bluegrass, blues and gospel mixture played by the Dead.” Please list any of these styles you notice in the following songs:
a) St. Stephen
b) Sugar Magnolia
c) Truckin’ (excerpt)
d) One More Saturday Night
8. List some of the unique, innovative qualities (musical, lyrical, technological, etc.) that characterize the music of The Grateful Dead.
9. Another strong contributor to the diverse musical array in San Francisco is the wonderful music of the great Mexican-born guitarist Carlos Santana. His music is truly among the finest contributions to this most varied art form of rock and roll. As you listen to the following selections by Carlos and his band known as Santana, describe his music. What is different about it as compared to other bands from this era?
a) Shades Of Time
b) Savor (highlight) Make sure to read the detailed description of Carlos Santana’s guitar playing and his music from Friedlander. Also see Note below for insight from this writer.
Note: Listen for the latin percussion instruments-Timbales, Congas, Cow Bell, etc., coupled with the standard drum set. This combination gives the music a busy texture where several different rhythmic patterns are being played at the same time-polyrhythms. The great latin percussionists Mike Carrabello and Jose Chepito Areas are teamed with the solid Dave Brown on Bass, and the amazing Michael Shrieve on drum set. Above this is the penetrating sound of Gregg Rolie on the Hammond B-3 Organ, and the latin-jazz inspired, very lyrical, blues touched guitar work of Carlos Santana. The result is a most infectious latin-rock sound–one of the true listening pleasures in life.
