Chapter 3

Chapter 3 brought a long some very interesting topics. Music for one, is something that I enjoy and is a hobby of mine. To place the impact of popular music in context, this chapter begins by investigating the origins of recording's technological "hardware," from Thomas Edison's early phonograph to Emilie Berliner's invention of the flat disk record and the development of audiotape, compact discs, and MP3's. In addition, we study radio's early threat to sound recording and and the subsequent alliance between the two media when television arrived in the 1950's. We also examine the content and culture of the music industry, focusing on the predominant role of rock music and its extraordinary impact on mass media forms and a diverse array of cultures, both American and international. Finally, we explore the economic and democratic issues facing the recording industry.

On page 80 they discussed U.S. popular music and the formation of rock. Popular or pop music is music that appeals either to a wide cross section of the public or to sizable subdivisions within the larger public based on age, region, or ethnic background. For example, teenagers, Southerners, and Mexican Americans. U.S. pop music today encompasses styles as diverse as blues, country, Tejano, salsa, jazz, rock, reggae, punk, hip-hop, and dance. The word pop has also been used to distinguish popular music from classical music, which is written primarily for ballet, opera, ensemble, or symphony. As various subcultures have intersected, U.S. popular music has developed organically, constantly creating new forms and reinvigorating older musical styles.

This chapter discusses a changing industry, referring to the music industry and it also speaks about popular music and the reformations about that music. Page 88 talks about these things in depth and it really got me thinking, what categorizes music to become popular? As the 1960's began, rock and roll was tamer and "safer," as reflected in the surf and road music of the Beach Boys and Jan & Dean, but it was also beginning to branch out. For instance, the success of producer Phil Spector's "girl groups," such as the Crystals ("He's a Rebel") and the Ronettes ("Be My Baby"), and other all female groups, such as the Shangri-Las ("Leader of the Pack") and the Angels ("My Boyfriend's Back"), challenged the male dominated world of early rock and roll. In addition, rock and roll music and other popular styles went through cultural reformations that significantly changed the industry, including the international appeal of the "British invasion"; the development of soul and Motown; the political impact of folk-rock; the experimentalism of psychedelic music; the rejection of music's mainstream by punk, grunge, and alternative rock movements; and the reassertion of black urban style in hip-hop.