Rock and Roll - Art Garfunkel and Paul Simon - Assignment Example

Rock and Roll Elvis Presley According to some critics, the song “Hound Dog” by Elvis Presley precipitated the social, cultural, and generational upheaval in the 1950s and 1960s. The song was overly famous, selling over 4million copies and topping the Rhythm and Blues, Pop, and Country and Western charts (Bennett 14). The cultural phenomenon associated with the song is undeniable, but a close analysis of the music content exposes negligible evidence of explicit or revolutionary intents. The thrusting, shaking, and gyrating dance moves by Presley when performing this song were seen as fostering destructive and negative reactions to youths. The song has a twelve-bar blues, carefully structured to enhance dancing, particularly with the quick tempo. The song has a constant backbone thanks to the double bass present in the guitar solo and the chorus section. The drumming is just perfect. It is unadorned and simple; purposely and concisely striking on the song beats prior to blasting into machine-gun burst at every verse-end, revealing to the listener the beginning of a subsequent twelve bars. The lead guitar solo also encourages the listeners to dance due to its simple and rhythmic nature, and with the added advantage of not distracting the beat. The rhythm from the guitar is superb, as it provides a driving, compelling impetus. Moreover, the guitar rhythm plays at nine bars of the twelve bar pattern (Bennett 15). Simultaneously, strutting riff plays, adding the body and depth of the magnificent twelve bar pattern, and when its play stops, its absence reflects a certain conspicuous. Combine the rock and roll magic of these instruments with Presley’s voice, the driving force, perfect control, and power, and you get the most unique and popular song in the 1950s. 2. Art Garfunkel and Paul Simon Consumerist ideals dominated the 1960’s society, with Americans in upper and middle class struggling to attain a “model life”. The consumerist goals created a false sense of peace and security. The song “sound of silence” by Art Garfunkel and Paul Simon uses diction, clear metaphors, contrasting tones, and repetition to highlight the need for social changes. The 1960s had an awkward epoch where majority of the Americans dared not to question or criticize societal expectations (Perone 45). The song reflects the mixed emotions in the 1960s such as hopes of societal activists and submissive conformists for social change. Composed in the aftermath of President John F. Kennedy and the Vietnam War, the two artists reinforce the need for social change; condemn submissiveness, and ignorance using the term “silence”. The song uses various similes and metaphors to pass across the message. It highlights the American national well-being as a facade that most citizens are afraid to address. The lyrics to the song compares “cancer” to the disturbing the silence, highlighting the impossibility of changes in society at the time. Through such similes, Garfunkel and Simon highlight the complacency, stubbornness of upper and middle-class levels, especially with reference to nuclear family. The song may fall into the folk music category due to its style of writing. The song resembles storytelling, though it fuses with the popular genre of music during the 1960s, which was traditional folk music, thus the presence of electric bass, drums, and electric guitar (Perone 47). The use of rhythmic syncopations and those other instruments promote the essence of storytelling. This, combined with the audacity to question societal expectations at a time when it was considered a social crime, makes the song a great piece of rock and roll music. 3. John Lennon There was imminent danger of a possible lack of unity and peace in the world in the 1970s era. The revolutions that were taking place were a threat to world peace, and this perhaps triggered John Lennon of the Beatles to compose the song “Imagine”. The song is a strong, emotional, and though-provoking piece of music advocating for the world peace. Lennon uses questions to evoke emotions. He uses a straightforward and simple approach, leaving no room for deliberation or consideration. The song creates an aura of trust, highlighting his point of view without complexities (Urish and Bielen 72). The lyrics form the cong reflects him as a borderline and a radical socialist, emphasizing certain ethos, pathos, and logos. The song incorporates a light use of other instruments and a characteristic melodic piano to promote a personal feel, as though the singer is speaking to the immediate listener. The song is mellow and slow, encouraging the listener to relax and imagine. The soothing voice and tranquil melody makes the listener to sympathize the world. Lennon uses a laid-back approach to encourage people to change immediately (Urish and Bielen 73). Moreover, the use of passive approach encourages people to think about change rather than force it. Lennon establishes pathos by consistently repeating the term “Imagine” at the end of every verse. These words create feelings and thoughts, enabling people to visualize what it would be really like. He also effectively establishes artistic logos using common sense rather than any hard evidence or facts (Urish and Bielen 74). He intentionally uses basic knowledge to pass over his message. His lyrics incorporate ethos, pathos, and logos that encourage people to observe them years after their composition, thus a favorite among many music lovers. 4. Soft Cell The 1980s timeline had many events exhibiting hatred and lack of peace in the world, including an attempt on the life of the Pope and President Reagan, and terror attacks on US embassy in Beirut. Despite Soft Cell revival of the song from the 1964 version by Ed Cobb of the Four Prep band, the song “Tainted Love” became an instant hit in the 1980s (Songlexikon). The message from the song promotes peace and love, condemning “tainted love” characteristics of individuals. The sound effects of the song are very good. The lead voice receives some strengthening from background voices at certain verse-ends. The song permits the use of fuller bass sounds while simultaneously using a darker register. More interesting is the use of analogue synthesizer, which together with the floating chord pads turns the song into a synthetic, soft sound sphere where vocals and snare drums occur at the foreground and with more hall effect. What makes the song more popular is the opening triplets present in the synthesizer. The song opens with a bass-pattern of two-bars, similar to a crescendo fanfare. The recording of the song consistently syncopates the fourth measure last note, often phrasing it off the beat. Consequently, the bass produces intense rhythmic energy while simultaneously creates an essential on-beat counterbalance from the synthesizer on the second bar of each verse. The syncopated bass corresponds with an irregular ‘bink-bink’ sound, adding other offbeat notes in the middle of the ascents (Songlexikon). The ‘bink-bink’ occurs irregularly in three variations, maintaining a certain degree of tension. The sound of the song and its message are simply sweet. Works Cited Bennett, Andy. Cultures of Popular Music. Philadelphia: Open University Press, 2001. Print. Perone, James. Songs of the Vietnam Conflict. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2001. Print. Songlexikon. Tainted Love: Soft Cell. Web, March 9, 2012. Urish, Ben, and Bielen, Kenneth. The Words and Music of John Lennon. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2007. Print. Read More