ROCKING THE WORLD

Do The University Course

Click On Guitar To Go To The Actual University Course

Welcome To:

RM's Educational

Dimension Known

As

'Rocking The World'.

RM Radio
Coming Soon

Come and explore Pop Music's history, evolution, and politics. Also see the social,

cultural and political impact Western Pop has had not just on Western, but also Global

Society. You will find it absolutely stunning. See below for a summary of what lies

within (to gain access to RM's academic course based on this section, you need to

Join the RM Club.)

Status Quo - Rocking The World

Rocking The World - Part One:

Segment One: Popular Music as History, Power and Politics

In this first segment, we

investigate the notion

that music as a form of

communication has

inherent power; and in

having power music

itself can function as a

political tool. We also

overview how certain

forms of music in the

West, via the onset of

industrial capitalism and

the market economy,

Let's set the scene by listening to Cream and 'Politician'

Cream - Politician

Go To Segment One

became an actual object of 'commodification'. In other words, music itself became a

commodity to be marketed in a mass industry that saw the birth of Western Popular

Music and the emergence of `Rock n Roll’.

Segment Two: The Politics Within - The Politics Without: The

Commodification And Evolution Of Popular Music.

Western Popular Music

has proven a powerful

force spreading `Western

Cultural imperialism’ or

Western values globally. It

has been a powerful

political tool socialising

political cultures. The most

powerful Popular Music

since the 1950s, arguably,

has been Rock n Roll.

Elvis - I Got A Woman

Go To Segment Two

In this segment the political nature of popular music in terms of its ‘commodification’,

and emergence, as both an explicit and implicit form of political process and thus tool

of political, cultural and social change is investigated. Through its commodification,

Popular Music by its very existence reflects Western culture and as such has power

(cultural imperialism). It also acts as a subliminal tool for Westernisation / globalisation

ie. music acts to `sell’ the West to the rest of the world. It has also been a tool of

explicit political action where various artists have pursued their own political agendas

and attempted to influence change and in some cases succeeded in doing so. In both

Popular Music’s explicit and implicit political forms, it is possible to identify various

themes many of which we overview.

In this particular segment we overview the commodification and political processes

inherent in the evolution of Popular music up until the 1950s, when `Pop music’ - i.e.

modern Pop Music, in the form of Rock `n’ Roll, emerged and where the Rock n Roll

artists themselves acquired more power.

Segment Three: The Implicit Politics of Rock N Roll In The

1950s - Conservative or Counter-Generational?

In Segment Three we

examine the emergence

of Rock and Roll in the

1950s. It was a major

form of popular music

and a challenge to both

the music and value

systems that went

before it. The 1950s

were in fact a

watershed in the

evolution of popular

music in the West.

Eddie Cochran - Summertime Blues

Senator Eugene McCarthy

Go To Segment Three

Rock produced somewhat of a social youth revolution in Western society, and elements

and variants of Rock remained dominant in Western music right up until the 1990s. But

what was Rock saying- what was its emergence reflecting about Western Society?

Exactly what was it challenging - was it challenging a generation or the system itself?

Indeed, was Rock in the 1950s - politically conservative or radical?

Segment Four: The Sixties - Progressive Rock - Cold War -

Hot Music!

The Beatles - Revolution

In the 1960s there was a

broad change in the nature

of western mainstream

popular music. There was a

transformation of early Rock

n Roll to what became

known simply as Rock – or

'Progressive Rock’. The

Beatles were a major force

behind this change.

Go To Segment Four

As such the 1960s represented a tumultuous era in the evolution of popular music. It

was also a tumultuous era in the international politics and domestic politics of the

major Western powers. We shall look at the emergence of Progressive Rock and try

and draw out some political connections with this form of music.

Segment Five: Rock Revolution - Political Revolution, From

Woodstock To Watergate

1968 was a watershed

year in the West. It

heralded both political

revolution and one could

argue a rock revolution.

In 1968, the US position

in Vietnam began to

collapse and it began to

retreat from Asia.

America was torn by

social upheaval and

Crosby, Stills & Nash - Woodstock

Go To Segment Five

international condemnation as, to a lesser extent, was Australia. Western political and

social culture was challenged by the growth of a radical youth counterculture spurred

on by and reflected in popular music at the time and the emergence of the hippie

movement. In this segment we examine the `Woodstock Generation’ from 1968 to

1974, the political and social implications of the music, and the musical implications

from the politics and changing culture.

Segment Six: The 1970s - Glam Rock-Punk Rock: The West

Falters - Living the Nightmare!

The 1970s saw the

Western world in 'retreat'.

The US was defeated in

Vietnam and shaken by

Watergate. The Soviet

Union continued to spread

its influence and the Third

World was swept by a

wave of revolutions. The

counterculture had lost its

way.

T Rex - Children Of The Revolution

John Lennon assassinated

Go To Segment Six

An entire generation was disillusioned. The coup de grace was the assassination of

John Lennon at the end of the decade- many would argue the conscience of

Western youth expressed in popular music. The nature of mainstream popular music

also changed quite dramatically during this time as well with the evolution of `Glam -

Rock’ and then its backlash with the emergence of `Punk Rock’. In this segment we

explore the changes in popular music and try and identify the links between its implicit

political messages and the overt politics of the era both domestically and

internationally.

Segment Seven: The 1980s - 2000- > : The Triumph Of The

West - But the Death of Rock?

The 1980s through to the

21st Century was an

era of massive global

political change. Most

prominently the Cold

War ended and the Soviet

Union collapsed. In short

the West triumphed. But

what sort of West was it?

Billy Joel - We Didn't Start The Fire

Go To Segment Seven

Was it a West where social consciousness diluted in the face of an onslaught of cold

economic rationalism and the cynical pursuit of individualism? And what about

Western popular music? How did it change during this era? Did the new forms that

emerged - grunge, rap, techno, etc, reflect a society and culture in triumph, or did they

reflect class, ethnicity and other forms of mass protest? Was there a harking back to

other eras? And what about Rock - was is it finally in its death throes? At the time of

writing - is it now officially dead - replaced by mass produced, sanitized, commodified,

commercialised 'Muzac' - the music of the mass capitalist machine? In this segment we

investigate these questions.

Rocking The World - Part Two:

Political Themes In Popular Music

In Part Two of Rocking The World we explore

a number of important political themes

prevalent in Modern Western Popular Music.

These themes include Peace & Anti-War,

Drugs & Sexuality, the Environment, and

Human Rights & Class.

Go To Rocking The World -

Part Two: Political Themes

In Popular Music