Rock n' Roll began to morph into just "rock" by the time the 1970s rolled around. Carole King cowrote and recorded "It's Too Late" at the beginning of the decade in 1971. She was a prominent example of the importance of the singer-songwriter. With her popularity, the idea that a performer should want to perform their own music and that singer-songwriters should want to be the ones to perform their songs began to emerge.
Stevie Wonder was a pioneer of having control of his music. He renegotiated his contract with Motown records so that he could have complete artistic control over his music. He not only wrote his music, but he would use overdubbing to record most or all of the parts of his pieces for the records. In addition, he would produce his music. This can clearly be heard with his hit, "Superstition" that was written and performed by Wonder in 1972. Wonder was very progressive in his use of music technologies. He not only utilized overdubbing but used synthesizers in his music as well. Elton John was another pioneer of having control over his music. He wrote his music to merge the sounds of rock with his own style. In 1972, Elton John wrote and released, "Crocodile Rock" which was a nostalgic throwback to the style of the 1950s and 1960s rock. He took that style and merged it with his own sound. Another pioneer of the time was John Denver. Live recorded albums were commonplace. Live recorded singles were rare. It was so easy to record in a studio with the new technology of the time. "Thank God I'm a Country Boy" which was released in 1975 was recorded live.
Music of the 1970s was beginning to be longer than the standard 3 minute songs from the previous decades. Barry White recorded "Love's Theme" in 1973 that is just over 4 minutes long. Elton John's "Crocodile Rock" is about the same length as well as Wonder's "Superstition." "The Eagles" took it even further, released "Hotel California" in 1976. This piece is over 6 minutes long! "The Eagles" helped to revitalize America's interest in "California" that had begun with "The Beach Boys." However, "Hotel California" "is pure 1970s. The sense of loss and disillusionment that is treated so casually in "Crocodile Rock" here assumes a desperate, almost apocalyptic character" (Starr and Waterman pg. 378).
To further push the time limit boundaries that had been around for decades, "Led Zeppelin" released "Stairway to Heaven" in 1971. "Led Zeppelin" had a unique idea. They knew this song would be a hit. But they did not want it to be released as a single. This pushed the music listener of the time to go out and actually buy the album in order to listen to this song. This song "was the most frequently requested song on FM radio during the 1970s" (Starr and Waterman pg 389). Carlos Santanna is another example of a musician who thought outside the box. Santana was a Mexican guitarist who merged the sounds of his country with rock. This can be evidenced in his hit, "Oye Como Va." This utilized the traditional rock band instruments such as the guitar, bass, drums, and keyboard with traditional Mexican instruments such as the guiro.
With the 70s, other genres began to emerge as well. One of the most popular genres of the mid to late 1970s is disco. Donna Summer released "Love to Love You Baby" in 1975. This song is 17 minutes long!! This is an example of early popular disco. It was recorded in Germany and released in the United States and became a hit! This was a testament to the popularity of dancing which put the band in an unimportant spot in nightclubs. The dance was the most important element! In addition, there was a "progressive country" music movement by artists who were not happy with the Nashville sound of the time. This included "Townes Van Zandt" who released "Poncho and Lefty" in 1972. This piece can be described as using "a spare, unpolished vocal style with guitar accompaniment that often uses more complex harmonies than are typical in country music" (Starr and Waterman pg. 412). Punk Rock began to emerge as an important genre as well. The "Talking Heads" recorded "Psycho Killer" in 1977. "The center of attention on most of Talking Heads recording is David Bryne's trembling, high-pitched voice and eclectic songwriting" (Starr and Waterman pg 432). This song was inspired by Alfred Hitchcok's film, "Psycho." "Punk rock" is the rock equivalent of the "progressive country music." It demanded that rock stay true to it's roots. Fans of "punk rock" did not want to listen to the "pop" rock that was emerging. We can see that many genres are emerging as well as many trains of thought as to which direction music should be heading!
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