Musical Pieces for Progress Exam Flashcards
“That’s Amore” by Dean Martin (1953)
> Artist > Date > Genre/Style > Form > Standard Features
“That’s Amore” by Dean Martin (1953)
> Artist: Dean Martin > Date: 1953 > Genre/Style: Crooning > Form > Standard Features
“That’s Amore” by Dean Martin (1953)
> Signifigance
Cultural Context
Context within the centre-periphery model
“That’s Amore” by Dean Martin (1953)
> Signifigance: Elvis’s fist recording tells us a lot about what Elvis always wanted to do: to be a crooner. His idol was the crooner Dean Martin.
Cultural Context:
Context within the centre-periphery model: This was music solidly at the centre
My Happiness” by Elvis Presley (1953)
> Artist > Date > Genre/Style > Form > Standard Features
My Happiness” by Elvis Presley (1953)
> Artist: Elvis Presley > Date: 1953 > Genre/Style: Crooning with guitar > Form > Standard Features
My Happiness” by Elvis Presley (1953)
> Signifigance
Cultural Context
Context within the centre-periphery model
My Happiness” by Elvis Presley (1953)
> Signifigance: a Tin Pan Alley cover of voice and guitar. Elvis’s first recording. Seeking to emulate the popular crooners whom he idolized
Cultural Context
Context within the centre-periphery model:
“Blue Moon of Kentucky” by Bill Monroe (1947)
> Artist > Date > Genre/Style > Form > Standard Features
“Blue Moon of Kentucky” by Bill Monroe (1947)
> Artist: Bill Monroe
Date: 1947
Genre/Style: Bluegrass
Form: metre is in 3/4 time: you count in groupings of 3
Standard Features: the medium tempo, how the fiddle plays the melody, and how the solos are melodic (rather than based on riffs).
“Blue Moon of Kentucky” by Bill Monroe (1947)
> Signifigance
Cultural Context
Context within the centre-periphery model
“Blue Moon of Kentucky” by Bill Monroe (1947)
> Signifigance: “Blue Moon of Kentucky” was originally recorded by Bill Monroe and the Bluegrass Boys in 1947 for Columbia records (major record label). Monroe is considered the “Father of Bluegrass,” a type of country music that refers to his singing style, and acoustic instruments of fiddle, banjo, mandolin, guitar, and upright bass.
Cultural Context:
Context within the centre-periphery model: Music ready for WSM and the Grand ole opry
“Blue Moon of Kentucky” by Elvis Presley (1954)
> Signifigance
Cultural Context
Context within the centre-periphery model
“Blue Moon of Kentucky” by Elvis Presley (1954)
> Signifigance: Elvis transforms the song with his cover from 1954. Originally, the music didn’t really have a “genre”: was it country? R&B? It seemed to have aspects of both, and that is where the term Rockabilly came from. The tune was originally marketed as “country” music, but it was still unknown if it was black or white music to audiences.
> Cultural Context: What we have is a cover version of white music performed with “black” features.
> Context within the centre-periphery model: A radio DJ (Dewey Phillips, no relation to Sam) heavily promoted “Blue Moon of Kentucky” by Elvis on independent radio, frequently playing the recording on his program. It had immediate success with 5,000 copies ordered as soon as it was pressed for distribution.
> he is a white musician making a cover of a white song (not stealing an original black song). The years are also quite separate: the original was recorded in 1947, with the cover from 1954. This isn’t a cover version made within weeks or months of the original, but separated by seven years. Last, you’ll notice that we have a cover version by Elvis on a minor record label (Sun) taken from a major record label (Columbia). With other “cover versions,” it was typical for major record labels to steal from minor record labels.
“Good Rockin’ Tonight” by Wynonie Harris (1948)
> Artist > Date > Genre/Style > Form > Standard Features
“Good Rockin’ Tonight” by Wynonie Harris (1948)
> Artist: Wynonie Harris > Date: 1948 > Genre/Style: Jump Blues > Form;12-bar blues form. > Standard Features: It has a swing groove, typical of smaller R&B groups coming out of the swing era.
“Good Rockin’ Tonight” by Wynonie Harris (1948)
> Signifigance
Cultural Context
Context within the centre-periphery model
“Good Rockin’ Tonight” by Wynonie Harris (1948)
> Significance
Cultural Context
Context within the centre-periphery model: was a R&B hit by Wynonie Harris originally recorded in 1948. It was recorded by King Records, an independent record label.
“Good Rockin’ Tonight” by Elvis Presley (1954)
> Artist > Date > Genre/Style > Form > Standard Features
“Good Rockin’ Tonight” by Elvis Presley (1954)
> Artist: Elvis
Date: 1954
Genre/Style: Rockabilly
Form: The first section is arranged into two 8 bar sections (from 0:00 to 0:24). The next three are 12-bar blues (from 0:24 to 0:41, then with the guitar solo from 0:41 to 0:58, and the vocal section again from 0:58 to 1:15). The next section is a restatement of the first verse with the two 8-bar sections (1:15 to 1:37), then finishing with two 12-bar blues sections.
Standard Features: The instrumentation is a major change. Rather than the jump blues with drums and honking sax, we have a string band (the same as Elvis’ “Blue Moon”), which was likely due to industry wisdom of marketing the music to a country audience. The groove in Elvis’ version is also different. Although we have a walking bass line, there is a strong 2-beat groove closer to country than a swing groove of R&B.
The electric guitar solos might sound like blues playing, but listen to the guitar played behind Elvis’ vocals (in the first minute for example): the chords and finger-picking patterns are heavily influenced by the Chet Atkins guitar style, here providing a mix of blues (R&B) and country. We also have the distinctive slap-back echo sound from Sun Records.
“Good Rockin’ Tonight” by Elvis Presley (1954)
> Signifigance
Cultural Context
Context within the centre-periphery model
“Good Rockin’ Tonight” by Elvis Presley (1954)
> Signifigance: It is a transformation of the Jump Blues with an addition of Tin Pan Alley and Country elements
Cultural Context: there is an exaggeration of “black” elements like the walking bass line, how the group pushes the beat, a use of call-and-response structures, and a playful voicedness (much like “Blue Moon”).
Context within the centre-periphery model: Elvis Presley’s cover version was his second single release in 1954, also recorded at Sun Records.
The music was clearly not intended to be R&B but something different, and something marketed to country audiences.
“Blue Suede Shoes” by Elvis Presley (1956)
> Artist > Date > Genre/Style > Form > Standard Features
“Blue Suede Shoes” by Elvis Presley (1956)
> Artist: Elvis > Date: 1956 > Genre/Style > Form > Standard Features: . The addition of drums makes this more of a Rock recording than previous, although the guitar solos are more melodic (and similar the Chet Atkins sound).
“Blue Suede Shoes” by Elvis Presley (1956)
> Signifigance
Cultural Context
Context within the centre-periphery model
“Blue Suede Shoes” by Elvis Presley (1956)
> Signifigance: We hear a lot of the same features as the previous example, but a bit more refined. We have the slap-back sound used by RCA (it was working at Sun, so they didn’t want to change it)
Cultural Context
Context within the centre-periphery model: Sam Phillips selling Elvis’ contract to RCA in 1955 (for $35,000)
Don’t Be Cruel” by Elvis Presley (1956)
> Artist > Date > Genre/Style > Form > Standard Features
Don’t Be Cruel” by Elvis Presley (1956)
> Artist: Elvis > Date: 1956 > Genre/Style: Pop/rockabilly/rock and roll > Form: 12-bar blues > Standard Features
Don’t Be Cruel” by Elvis Presley (1956)
> Signifigance
Cultural Context
Context within the centre-periphery model
Don’t Be Cruel” by Elvis Presley (1956)
> Signifigance
Cultural Context: The described hiccup technique, a white musical feature, is also important and something to listen for (others like Buddy Holly used this device).
Context within the centre-periphery model:RCA hired Chet Atkins to be Elvis’ producer and make his music more “pop friendly.” His performances were tamer with a more contained vocal delivery, and with backup vocals supplied by a (white) gospel quartet, The Jordanaires. Elvis requested the group to back him up. He grew up with gospel music, and the style was similar to the crooning music he idolized as a youth. Even Elvis’ singing style became more like crooning than “shouting.”
“Don’t Be Cruel” with RCA records is a good example of this change in style.
