Rock Music

Linkin Park, The Eagles, Disturbed, The Beatles, Evanescence, and Jimi Hendrix all have one thing in common. They are bands that play rock music. The only difference is that they are from different eras. What did these bands consider rock during their time? Is the rock different from then and now? How did rock change through the eras?

Rock music is a genre of popular music that entered the mainstream in the 1960s. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, rhythm and blues. The foundations of rock are in rock “n” roll.

The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. No one since Elvis Presley made a bigger impact on Rock and Roll than the Beatles. They were part of the British Invasion and stayed together for ten years. They had over 30 top-ten songs. Twenty of their songs made it to the number one spot on the charts, even more than Elvis Presley's 17 chart-toppers! They are considered the most important group in Rock and Roll history.

36 years after The Beatles were formed, Linkin Park made their debut. Both Hybrid Theory and Meteora combine the alternative metal, nu metal, and rap rock sound with influences and elements from hip-hop, alternative rock, and electronica, utilizing programming and synthesizers. The era The Beatles were in didn’t even have these types of sounds invented yet.

In those 36 years a lot of things have changed. From rock n roll to just plain rock. Not only the name change but the rhythm of the sound also changed. Rock n Roll was the combination of the popular black rhythm and blues with the sound of rock and roll. As it progressed through time many different sounds came out: The Motown sound, the Surfer sound, and the Folk Rock and Protest Songs became known to America.

Toward the end of the 1950's Rock and Roll lost many of its great artists. Elvis Presley was drafted into the Army; Little Richard quit Rock and Roll; Ritchie Valens, Buddy Holly, and the Big Bopper were killed in a plane crash. Rock and Roll lost its edge and became bland and safe.