30 Apr 2020

April 2020 – The Story of Modern Music in 1,500+ Facts – Part XIII

by Tony Drew | posted in: History, Introduction, Observations | 0

April 2020 – The Story of Modern Music in 1,500+ Facts – Part XIII

Introduction

For anyone out there still surviving the appalling ‘coronapocalypse’ that is undermining and unravelling civilisation around us as we speak, it’s good that you are hanging in there and hope you’re staying healthy and safe. Take a moment and spare a thought for the many who aren’t as lucky and those that have succumbed to the deadly virus. While the general response to the pandemic shows the best characteristics in most people, it also starkly reveals the sheer idiocy and irresponsibility of a not‑insignificant proportion of the population. Shame.

Thank you again for taking the time to visit CRAVE Guitars for the latest instalment of this epic series. Given the horrifying circumstances out there, your presence here is welcomed and very much appreciated. I only hope that it can provide some idle distraction from more serious issues facing us all.

It seems that this is this is a tale that just keeps on telling. I never thought it would reach these proportions when I started out on it, just over a year ago now! I trust this 13^th part of the series is not unlucky. If you suffer from triskaidekaphobia (fear of the number 13) or even primonumerophobia (the fear of prime numbers), it may be advisable to think of this as part 12a or, to be trendy, 12+.

As has become traditional, if you would like to (re)visit any or all of the first 12 parts (and 370 years) of the story to‑date, you can do so here (each link opens a new browser tab):

The Story of Modern Music Part XIII

In the last article, I presented an array of quotes about music uttered by a diverse range of non‑musicians. This time, guess what? Yep, perhaps somewhat predictably, we’re looking at quotes about music by musicians or, to be strictly more accurate, music professionals. While this is clearly a heavily skewed sample of the population expressing themselves on the wonder (or otherwise) of music, their vocabulary is revealing about what it means to them and others. As you can imagine, musicians have quite a lot to say about their passion, hence the sheer panoply of relevant observations on all things musical. There are also a couple of sneaky lyrics thrown in just for good measure.

For this article, I have omitted quotes explicitly about the guitar as a musical instrument; these were, I felt, adequately covered in the equivalent part of the companion series, ‘November 2018 – A Potted History of the Guitar: Epilogue’.

Simply because of my obsession with the world’s most popular instrument, the quotes tend to be biased towards those with some sort of connection to the guitar, although not exclusively so. I make no apology for this, it’s just the way it has turned out. Some of the quotes are very well known and may well be familiar, while others are somewhat more obscure but still worth extolling. If nothing else, I hope they inspire you to think about mankind’s unique affiliation with music a little differently.

Like last month, the quotes are in alphabetical order of the person, rather than their quote or any sort of chronological order. After much deliberation and messing around with different formats, I finally decided to lay these quotes out in a table. This is, perhaps, the most accessible and economical way of presentation, even though it means repeating the person being quoted in many instances. I apologise if that is not the best way for you to read the content.

Quotes about music by musicians

Right… let’s go. Enjoy.

Music drives you. It wakes you up, it gets you pumping and, at the end of the day, the correct tune will chill you down	‘Dimebag’ Darrell Abbot (1966-2004)
Music is something that should speak for itself, straight from the heart. It took me a long time to understand that	Damon Albarn (1968-)
Music to me is the air that I breathe, it’s the blood that pumps through my veins that keeps me alive	Billie Joe Armstrong (1972-)
If you have to ask what jazz is, you’ll never know	Louis Armstrong (1901-1971)
Music is life itself. What would this world be without good music? No matter what kind it is	Louis Armstrong (1901-1971)
Musicians don’t retire; they stop when there is no more music left in them	Louis Armstrong (1901-1971)
When I was a little boy, I told my dad, ‘When I grow up, I want to be a musician.’ My dad said: ‘You can’t do both, Son’	Chet Atkins (1924-2001)
The true beauty of music is that it connects people. It carries a message, and we, the musicians, are the messengers	Roy Ayers (1940-)
Don’t cry for me, for I go where music is born	Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
I think it’s good if a song has more than one meaning. Maybe that kind of song can reach far more people	Syd Barrett (1946-2006)

I would rather write 10,000 notes than a single letter of the alphabet	Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Music comes to me more readily than words	Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Music is a higher revelation than all wisdom and philosophy	Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Music is like a dream. One that I cannot hear	Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Music is the mediator between the spiritual and the sensual life	Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Music is the one incorporeal entrance into the higher world of knowledge which comprehends mankind but which mankind cannot comprehend	Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Music should strike fire from the heart of man, and bring tears from the eyes of woman	Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
To play a wrong note is insignificant; to play without passion is inexcusable	Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
I can’t live one day without hearing music, playing it, studying it, or thinking about it	Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990)
Music can name the unnameable and communicate the unknowable	Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990)
This will be our reply to violence: to make music more intensely, more beautifully, more devotedly than ever before	Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990)
I grew up thinking art was pictures until I got into music and found I was an artist and didn’t paint	Chuck Berry (1926-2017)
Music is an important part of our culture and record stores play a vital part in keeping the power of music alive	Chuck Berry (1926-2017)
If you play music for no other reason than actually just because you love it, the skills just kinda creep up on you	Nuno Bettencourt (1966-)
Music can change the world because it can change people	Bono (1960-)
Music fills in for words a lot of the time when people don’t know what to say, and I think music can be more eloquent than words	Bono (1960-)
I had to resign myself, many years ago, that I’m not too articulate when it comes to explaining how I feel about things. But my music does it for me, it really does	David Bowie (1947-2016)
I wanted to prove the sustaining power of music	David Bowie (1947-2016)
My theory is this; I’m not a political songwriter. I’m an honest songwriter	Billy Bragg (1957-)
It is cruel, you know, that music should be so beautiful. It has the beauty of loneliness of pain: of strength and freedom. The beauty of disappointment and never-satisfied love. The cruel beauty of nature and everlasting beauty of monotony	Benjamin Britten (1913-1976)
I guess all songs is folk songs. I never heard no horse sing them	Big Bill Broonzy (1893-1958)
I only got a seventh-grade education, but I have a doctorate in funk, and I like to put that to good use	James Brown (1933-2006)
I don’t really need to be remembered. I hope the music’s remembered	Jeff Buckley (1966-1997)

Punk was defined by an attitude rather than a musical style	David Byrne (1952-)
We don’t make music, it makes us	David Byrne (1952-)
With music, you often don’t have to translate it. It just affects you, and you don’t know why	David Byrne (1952-)
You create a community with music, not just at concerts but by talking about it with your friends	David Byrne (1952-)
Music is the divine way to tell beautiful, poetic things to the heart	Pablo Casals (1876-1973)
Of emotions, of love, of breakup, of love and hate and death and dying, mama, apple pie, and the whole thing. It covers a lot of territory, country music does	Johnny Cash (1932-2003)

I was born with music inside me. Music was one of my parts. Like my ribs, my kidneys, my liver, my heart. Like my blood. It was a force already within me when I arrived on the scene. It was a necessity for me – like food or water	Ray Charles (1930-2004)
Music is about the only thing left that people don’t fight over	Ray Charles (1930-2004)
Music to me is like breathing. I don’t get tired of breathing. I don’t get tired of music!	Ray Charles (1930-2004)
Music is powerful. As people listen to it, they can be affected. They respond	Ray Charles (1930-2004)
The important thing is to feel your music, really feel it and believe it	Ray Charles (1930-2004)
Music became a healer for me. And I learned to listen with all my being. I found that it could wipe away all the emotions of fear and confusion relating to my family	Eric Clapton (1945-)
Music will always find its way to us, with or without business, politics, religion, or any other bullshit attached. Music survives everything	Eric Clapton (1945-)
The point is, technology has empowered so many musicians, you know?	Stanley Clarke (1951-)
If it’s illegal to rock and roll, throw my ass in jail!	Kurt Cobain (1967-1994)
I have one message for young musicians around the world: Stay true to your heart, believe in yourself, and work hard	Joe Cocker (1944-2014)
I want to read… poems filled with terror and music that changes laws and lives	Leonard Cohen (1934-2016)
If I knew where the good songs came from, I’d go there more often	Leonard Cohen (1934-2016)
Music is the emotional life of most people	Leonard Cohen (1934-2016)
Nobody leaves this place without singing the blues	Albert Collins (1932-1993)
Simple music is the hardest music to play and blues is simple music	Albert Collins (1932-1993)
Musicians understand each other through means other than speaking	Ry Cooder (1947-)
To stop the flow of music would be like the stopping of time itself, incredible and inconceivable	Aaron Copland (1900-1990)
There’s a lot of integrity with musicians; you really still aspire to grow, and be great, to be the best version of yourself you can be	Sheryl Crow (1962-)
Every song is like a painting	Dick Dale (1937-2019)
I don’t play pyrotechnic scales. I play about frustration, patience, anger. Music is an extension of my soul	Dick Dale (1937-2019)
If songs were lines in a conversation, the situation would be fine	Nick Drake (1948-1974)
This land is your land and this land is my land, sure, but the world is run by those that never listen to music anyway	Bob Dylan (1941-)
I have a curiosity that compels me to find ways to make music that are fresh and new	The Edge (1961-)
Music is such a great communicator. It breaks down linguistic barriers, cultural barriers, it basically reaches out. That’s when rock n’ roll succeeds, and that’s what virtuosity is all about	The Edge (1961-)
You see, rock and roll isn’t a career or hobby – it’s a life force. It’s something very essential	The Edge (1961-)
My idea is that there is music in the air, music all around us; the world is full of it, and you simply take as much as you require	Edward Elgar (1857-1934)
I merely took the energy it takes to pour and wrote some blues	Duke Ellington (1899-1974)
I need drama in my life to keep making music	Eminem (1972-)
If people take anything from my music, it should be motivation to know that anything is possible as long as you keep working at it and don’t back down	Eminem (1972-)
Aggressive music can only shock you once. Afterwards, its impact declines. It’s inevitable	Brian Eno (1948-)
I’m a painter in sound	Brian Eno (1948-)
I’m fascinated by musicians who don’t completely understand their territory; that’s when you do your best work	Brian Eno (1948-)
You should play with real musicians; the best music comes from real people interacting with each other	John Fogerty (1945-)
It really is an honor if I can be inspirational to a younger singer or person. It means I’ve done my job	Aretha Franklin (1942-2018)
Finding a good band is like finding a good wife. You got to keep trying till you find the right one	Ace Frehley (1951-)
That’s what Kiss is all about – not just music, but entertainment, y’know? We’re there to take you away from your problems, and rock and roll all night and party every day for those two hours you’re at the concert	Ace Frehley (1951-)
I enjoy being able to express myself and the band is the perfect way of doing that	Keith Flint (1969-2019)
Music is the wine that fills the cup of silence	Robert Fripp (1946-)
Hardly a day goes by without me sticking on a Muddy Waters record	Rory Gallagher (1948-1995)
Life is a lot like jazz… it’s best when you improvise	George Gershwin (1898-1937)
A song without music is a lot like H2 without the O	Ira Gershwin (1896-1983)
Until you learn to play what you want to hear, you’re barking up the wrong tree	Billy Gibbons (1949-)
Too many young musicians today want to win polls before they learn their instruments	Benny Goodman (1909-1986)
Never lose faith in real rock and roll music. Never lose faith in that. You might have to look a little harder, but it’s always going to be there	Dave Grohl (1969-)
Anyone who used more than three chords is just showing off	Woody Guthrie (1912-1967)
I’ve never missed a gig yet. Music makes people happy, and that’s why I go on doing it – I like to see everybody smile	Buddy Guy (1936-)
Listen to the lyrics – we’re singing about everyday life: rich people trying to keep money, poor people trying to get it, and everyone having trouble with their husband or wife!	Buddy Guy (1936-)
Music is the tool to express life – and all that makes a difference	Herbie Hancock (1940-)
I do know the effect that music still has on me – I’m completely vulnerable to it. I’m seduced by it	Debbie Harry (1945-)

Music is a safe kind of high	Jimi Hendrix (1942-1970)
Music is my religion	Jimi Hendrix (1942-1970)
My goal is to be one with the music. I just dedicate my whole life to this art	Jimi Hendrix (1942-1970)
We plan for our sound to go inside the soul of a person… and see if they can awaken some kind of thing in their minds	Jimi Hendrix (1942-1970)
If I’m going to sing like someone else, then I don’t need to sing at all	Billie Holiday (1915-1959)
Music is the only thing I’ve ever known that doesn’t have any rules at all	Josh Homme (1973-)
Great music seems to come from a lot of angst, and that angst is from great musicians getting together with intense chemistry. When that chemistry isn’t there, people tend not to write great music	Peter Hook (1956-)

I don’t like no fancy chords. Just the boogie. The drive. The feeling. A lot of people play fancy but they don’t have no style. It’s a deep feeling-you just can’t stop listening to that sad blues sound. My sound	John Lee Hooker (1912-2001)
It’s never hard to sing the blues. Everyone in the world has the blues	John Lee Hooker (1912-2001)
No matter what you got, the blues is there	John Lee Hooker (1912-2001)
Poor people have the blues because they’re poor and hungry. Rich people can’t sleep at night because they’re trying to hold on to their money and everything they have	John Lee Hooker (1912-2001)
The blues tells a story. Every line of the blues has a meaning	John Lee Hooker (1912-2001)
When I die, they’ll bury the blues with me. But the blues will never die	John Lee Hooker (1912-2001)
I had the one thing you need to be a blues singer, I was born with the blues	Lightnin’ Hopkins (1912-1982)
Ain’t but one kind of blues and that consists of a male and female that’s in love	Son House (1902-1988)
The blues is not a plaything like some people think they are	Son House (1902-1988)
I don’t think punk ever really dies, because punk rock attitude can never die	Billy Idol (1955-)
Rock isn’t art, it’s the way ordinary people talk	Billy Idol (1955-)
Ladies and gentleman, I’ve suffered for my music, now it’s your turn	Neil Innes (1944-)
To have someone to relate to and hopefully enjoy the music and get a positive message out of it, to make the best music that we possibly could, those were the goals	Janet Jackson (1966-)
I believe that through music we can help heal the world	Michael Jackson (1958-2009)
I believe we should encourage children to sing and play instruments from an early age	Mick Jagger (1943-)
You start out playing rock ‘n’ roll so you can have sex and do drugs, but you end up doing drugs so you can still play rock ‘n’ roll and have sex	Mick Jagger (1943-)
My mother always told me, even if a song has been done a thousand times, you can still bring something of your own to it. I like to think I did that	Etta James (1938-2012)
I grew up in a world that told girls they couldn’t play rock ‘n’ roll	Joan Jett (1958-)
If nothing else, music lets you know that you’re not alone	Joan Jett (1958-)
Music is healing. It’s a really powerful thing, not to be taken lightly	Joan Jett (1958-)
I think music in itself is healing. It’s an explosive expression of humanity. It’s something we are all touched by. No matter what culture we’re from, everyone loves music	Billy Joel (1949-)
Musicians want to be the loud voice for so many quiet hearts	Billy Joel (1949-)
Music has healing power. It has the ability to take people out of themselves for a few hours	Elton John (1947-)
I been studyin’ the rain and I’m ‘on drive my blues away	Robert Johnson (1911-1938)
Some people tell me that the worried blues ain’t bad. Worst old feelin’ I most ever had	Robert Johnson (1911-1938)
The blues is a low down achin’ chill	Robert Johnson (1911-1938)
If you think you’re too old to rock ‘n’ roll then you are	Ian ‘Lemmy’ Kilmister (1945-2015)
And as long as people have problems, the blues can never die	BB King (1925-2015)
Notes are expensive… spend them wisely	BB King (1925-2015)
I think no matter what kind of music you play, there will be moments when you feel like it’s all been done before	Kerry King (1964-)
Music is my life, it is a reflection of what I go through	Lenny Kravitz (1964-)
And I think for me, any great art is art which communicates human emotion	Greg Lake (1947-2016)
The bottom line is that musicians love to make music and always will	Jennifer Lopez (1969-)
If being an egomaniac means I believe in what I do and in my art or music, then in that respect you can call me that… I believe in what I do, and I’ll say it	John Lennon (1940-1980)
Songwriting is like… being possessed. You try to go to sleep but the song won’t let you	John Lennon (1940-1980)
Music is an extraordinary vehicle for expressing emotion – very powerful emotions. That’s what draws millions of people towards it. And, um, I found myself always going for these darker places and – people identify with that	Annie Lennox (1954-)
Nothing pleases me more than to go into a room and come out with a piece of music	Paul McCartney (1942-)
I always said punk was an attitude. It was never about having a Mohican haircut or wearing a ripped T-shirt. It was all about destruction, and the creative potential within that	Malcolm McLaren (1946-2010)
The popularity of punk rock was, in effect, due to the fact that it made ugliness beautiful	Malcolm McLaren (1946-2010)
Music is born out of the inner sounds within a soul	John McLaughlin (1942-)
Actors always want to be musicians, and musicians want to be actors	Marilyn Manson (1969-)
Music is the strongest form of magic	Marilyn Manson (1969-)
My music fights against the system that teaches to live and die	Bob Marley (1945-1981)
My music will go on forever. Maybe it’s a fool say that, but when me know facts me can say facts. My music will go on forever	Bob Marley (1945-1981)
One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain	Bob Marley (1945-1981)
I’m just a musical prostitute, my dear	Freddie Mercury (1946-1991)
Life is too short to listen to bad music	Freddie Mercury (1946-1991)
What I look for in musicians is a sense of infinity	Pat Metheny (1954-)
All musicians are subconsciously mathematicians	Thelonious Monk (1917-1982)
A musician’s or artist’s responsibility is a simple one, and that is, through your music to tell the truth	Tom Morello (1964-)
Music inflames temperament	Jim Morrison (1943-1971)
Music is the magic carpet that carries poetry	Jim Morrison (1943-1971)
Music is spiritual. The music business is not	Van Morrison (1945-)
You can’t stay the same. If you’re a musician and a singer, you have to change, that’s the way it works	Van Morrison (1945-)
Three chords and the truth – that’s what a country song is	Willie Nelson (1933-)
If it’s too loud, you’re too old	Ted Nugent (1948-)
If I ever really felt depressed, I would just start putting on all my old records that I played as a kid, because the whole thing that really lifted me then still lifted me then, still lifted me during those other times	Jimmy Page (1944-)
I’m all about inspiring young musicians to get out there and express themselves through music	Orianthi Panagaris (1985-)
Master your instrument. Master the music. And then forget all that bullshit and just play	Charlie Parker (1920-1955)
Music is your own experience, your thoughts, your wisdom. If you don’t live it, it won’t come out of your horn	Charlie Parker (1920-1955)
They teach you there’s a boundary line to music. But, man, there’s no boundary line to art	Charlie Parker (1920-1955)
You can’t go to the store and buy a good ear and rhythm	Les Paul (1915-2009)
If children are not introduced to music at an early age, I believe something fundamental is actually being taken from them	Luciano Pavarotti (1935-2007)
I don’t know, my music has always just come from where the wind blew me. Like where I’m at during a particular moment in time	Tom Petty (1950-2017)
Music is probably the only real magic I have encountered in my life. There’s not some trick involved with it. It’s pure and it’s real. It moves, it heals, it communicates and does all these incredible things	Tom Petty (1950-2017)
I don’t know how much more expressive you can get than being a rock and roll singer	Robert Plant (1948-)
Music is for every single person that walks the planet	Robert Plant (1948-)
I like music that’s more offensive. I like it to sound like nails on a blackboard, get me wild	Iggy Pop (1947-)
Music is life, and life is not a business	Iggy Pop (1947-)
‘Punk rock’ is a word used by dilettantes and heartless manipulators about music that takes up the energies, the bodies, the hearts, the souls, the time and the minds of young men who give everything they have to it	Iggy Pop (1947-)
Rock and roll music, if you like it, if you feel it, you can’t help but move to it. That’s what happens to me. I can’t help it	Elvis Presley (1935-1977)

I’m always happy. I’m never sad. I never slow down. I’m constantly occupied with music	Prince (1958-2016)
Music is music, ultimately. If it makes you feel good, cool	Prince (1958-2016)
The hardest thing with musicians is getting them not to play	Prince (1958-2016)
The key to longevity is to learn every aspect of music that you can	Prince (1958-2016)
I am flattered to have been the woman to have opened the door for female rockers to be accepted into the mainly male industry	Suzi Quatro (1950-)
Rock n’ roll! It’s the music of puberty	Suzi Quatro (1950-)
Music is enough for a lifetime but a lifetime is not enough for music	Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943)
I never saw music in terms of men and women or black and white. There was just cool and uncool	Bonnie Raitt (1949-)
The great thing about the arts, and especially popular music, is that it really does cut across genres and races and classes	Bonnie Raitt (1949-)
All punk is is attitude. That’s what makes it. The attitude	Joey Ramone (1951-2001)
Rock ‘n’ roll is very special to me. It’s my lifeblood	Joey Ramone (1951-2001)
The only love affair I have ever had was with music	Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
Music is the greatest communication in the world. Even if people don’t understand the language that you’re singing in, they still know good music when they hear it	Lou Rawls (1933-2006)
Music should come crashing out of your speakers and grab you, and the lyrics should challenge whatever preconceived notions that listener has	Lou Reed (1942-2013)
My God is rock ‘n’ roll	Lou Reed (1942-2013)
My music, I hope, takes 100% of your concentration. I know how to do that	Trent Reznor (1965-)

If you don’t know the blues… there’s no point in picking up the guitar and playing rock and roll or any other form of popular music	Keith Richards (1943-)
Music is a language that doesn’t speak in particular words. It speaks in emotions, and if it’s in the bones, it’s in the bones	Keith Richards (1943-)
Music is a necessity. After food, air, water and warmth, music is the next necessity of life	Keith Richards (1943-)
Rock and Roll: Music for the neck downwards	Keith Richards (1943-)
To make a rock ‘n’ roll record, technology is the least important thing	Keith Richards (1943-)
I’ve always said music should make you laugh, make you cry or make you think. If it doesn’t do one those things, then you’re wasting everybody’s time	Kenny Rogers (1938-)
Texas is a hotbed of insanely good bands and musicians	Henry Rollins (1961-)
The musician is perhaps the most modest of animals, but he is also the proudest	Erik Satie (1866-1925)
Anyone who loves music can never be quite unhappy	Franz Schubert (1797-1827)
There is no such thing as happy music	Franz Schubert (1797-1827)
When you play, never mind who listens to you	Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
Songs won’t save the planet, but neither will books or speeches	Pete Seeger (1919-2014)
The music that I have learned and want to give is like worshipping God. It’s absolutely like a prayer	Ravi Shankar (1920-2012)
Music is forever; music should grow and mature with you, following you right on up until you die	Paul Simon (1941-)
Music is feeling. You can try to verbalize it. It really just hits you or it doesn’t	Gene Simmons (1949-)
Artists, musicians, scientists – if you have any kind of visionary aptitude, it’s often something that you don’t have a choice in. You have to do it	Patti Smith (1946-)

I don’t think I’ll ever write a song that’ll ever move me as much as ‘Faith’, that’ll change my life as much as that song did, or encapsulates a period of my life as well as that one does	Robert Smith (1959-)
I do a job I really, really love and I kind of have fun with. People think you can’t be grown up unless you’re moaning about your job	Robert Smith (1959-)
I had no desire to be famous; I just wanted to make the greatest music ever made. I didn’t want anyone to know who I was	Robert Smith (1959-)
I honestly don’t class myself as a songwriter. I’ve got ‘musician’ written on my passport. That’s even funnier	Robert Smith (1959-)
I lose myself in music because I can’t be bothered explaining what I feel to anyone else around me	Robert Smith (1959-)
The best music is essentially there to provide you something to face the world with	Bruce Springsteen (1949-)
Half the battle is selling music, not singing it. It’s the image, not what you sing	Rod Stewart (1945-)
If you play music with passion and love and honesty, then it will nourish your soul, heal your wounds and make your life worth living. Music is its own reward	Sting (1951-)
A painter paints pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence	Leopold Stokowski (1882-1977)
I haven’t understood a bar of music in my life, but I have felt it	Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971)
My music is best understood by children and animals	Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971)
Too many pieces of music finish too long after the end	Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971)
People have told me songs I’ve written have changed their life. That`s remarkable. That keeps your faith	Joe Strummer (1952-2002)
Punk rock isn’t something you grow out of. Punk rock is an attitude, and the essence of that attitude is ‘give us some truth’	Joe Strummer (1952-2002)
I believe 100 percent in the power and importance of music	James Taylor (1948-)
I never wanted to get rich or be a star. I’m an old bastard but I’m still playing! That’s the point	Bernie Tormé (1952-2019)
Music acts like a magic key, to which the most tightly closed heart opens	Maria von Trapp (1905-1987)
Music – what a powerful instrument, what a mighty weapon!	Maria von Trapp (1905-1987)
Music is a great natural high and a great natural escape	Shania Twain (1965-)
I’m always pursuing knowledge; I’m a seeker of spiritual equilibrium – and music is a big part of that	Steve Vai (1960-)
Music really is a way to reach out and hold on to each other in a healthy way	Stevie Ray Vaughan (1954-1990)

I don’t know if any genuine, meaningful change could ever result from a song. It’s kind of like throwing peanuts at a gorilla	Tom Waits (1949-)
I like beautiful melodies telling me terrible things	Tom Waits (1949-)
Songs really are like a form of time travel because they really have moved forward in a bubble. Everyone who’s connected with it, the studio’s gone, the musicians are gone, and the only thing that’s left is this recording which was only about a three-minute period maybe 70 years ago	Tom Waits (1949-)
The universe is making music all the time	Tom Waits (1949-)
I been in the blues all my life. I’m still delivering ‘cause I got a long memory	Muddy Waters (1913-1983)
My blues are so simple but so few people can play it right	Muddy Waters (1913-1983)
The blues had a baby and they called it rock and roll	Muddy Waters (1913-1983)
Being a musician is a noble profession	Paul Weller (1958-)
Music is very spiritual, it has the power to bring people together	Edgar Winter (1946-)
I think the blues will always be around. It just takes one person to make people aware of the blues	Johnny Winter (1944-2014)

I couldn’t do no yodelin’, so I turned to howlin’. And it’s done me just fine	Howlin’ Wolf (1910-1976)
I don’t play anything but the blues, but now I could never make no money on nothin’ but the blues. That’s why I wasn’t interested in nothin’ else	Howlin’ Wolf (1910-1976)
I just play blues for fun	Howlin’ Wolf (1910-1976)
When you ain’t got no money, you got the blues	Howlin’ Wolf (1910-1976)
Music, at its essence, is what gives us memories. And the longer a song has existed in our lives, the more memories we have of it	Stevie Wonder (1950-)
Music is a world within itself, with a language we all understand	Stevie Wonder (1950-)
The musical soundscape is an endless road	Zakk Wylde (1967-)
I am probably the last of a generation to be able to gain an education in country music by osmosis, by sitting in a ’64 Ford banging the buttons on the radio	Dwight Yoakam (1956-)
I think the most important thing about music is the sense of escape	Thom Yorke (1968-)
Rock and roll is here to stay	Neil Young (1945-)
There’s an edge to real rock ‘n’ roll. It’s all that matters	Neil Young (1945-)
I don’t understand this phrase ‘I’ve paid my dues’. We didn’t have any money and lived on peanut butter and jelly, and I loved it. I don’t regret any of it. We never expected to make it this far, but we worked hard to get here	Ronnie Van Zant (1948-1977)
If prisons, freight trains, swamps, and gators don’t get ya to write songs, man, y’ain’t got no business writin’ songs	Ronnie Van Zant (1948-1977)

A composer is a guy who goes around forcing his will on unsuspecting air molecules, often with the assistance of unsuspecting musicians	Frank Zappa (1940-1993)
All the good music has already been written by people with wigs and stuff	Frank Zappa (1940-1993)
Information is not knowledge. Knowledge is not wisdom. Wisdom is not truth. Truth is not beauty. Beauty is not love. Love is not music. Music is THE BEST	Frank Zappa (1940-1993)
Jazz is not dead, it just smells funny	Frank Zappa (1940-1993)
Most people wouldn’t know music if it came up and bit them on the ass	Frank Zappa (1940-1993)
Music is always a commentary on society	Frank Zappa (1940-1993)
There are more love songs than anything else. If songs could make you do something we’d all love one another	Frank Zappa (1940-1993)
Without music to decorate it, time is just a bunch of boring production deadlines or dates by which bills must be paid	Frank Zappa (1940-1993)
You can’t always write a chord ugly enough to say what you want to say, so sometimes you have to rely on a giraffe filled with whipped cream	Frank Zappa (1940-1993)

Tailpiece

Well, the above represents a veritable roll call of music royalty covering multiple centuries. As you might have expected, these maxims from musicians about music are often passionate, heartfelt and powerful, almost beyond words. The historical male dominance of the industry is clear and look forward to more female music professionals being credited for their insightful observations in the future.

There is, as mentioned last month, a certain irony in using plain words to articulate the meaning of music but that is just the medium I’m using. I would encourage you to listen to the source material for many of the elements covered in this series so far. There is a lifetime of ever‑growing musical exploration to be had out there.

CRAVE Guitars posts a ‘quote of the day’, both about music and more generally about ‘life, the universe and everything’ (Douglas Adams) every day on Twitter and Facebook. The previous article and this one have allowed me to draw from that broader research and to focus resources on the collective wisdom of this particular theme.

Having now done two consecutive articles on quotations, you are probably all quoted out by now, so be reassured that there won’t be any more for a while (except my traditional personal observation at the end of every article). As far as I can tell, this is the penultimate article in this long series, which means that, all being well, we should culminate the next month, as scheduled. As a bit of bait, I will leave you to ponder what else might be espoused in the way of a conclusion. Any guesses?

Despite the global shutdown of society, I’m sticking to what I know and love doing, which is to continue my mission to share with anyone who may be interested some selfishly selected stuff about ‘Cool & Rare American Vintage Electric’ Guitars. Weirdly, I am actually very comfortable in splendid seclusion and I would be quite happy to continue a relatively hermetic lifestyle whatever comes to pass. In the meantime, above all, please look after yourselves and take care – stay home, stay safe. Until next time…

CRAVE Guitars’ ‘Quote of the Month’: “True wealth is appreciating what you have now and neither grieving for what you might have had nor for what you may wish to have”

← Return to ‘Musings’ page

Like it? Why not share it?

28 Feb 2020

February 2020 – The Story of Modern Music in 1,500+ Facts – Part XI

by Tony Drew | posted in: History, Introduction, Observations | 0

Introduction

Welcome back once again dear musical masochists. Well… here we are – finally – almost at the end of the very long linear tunnel. The ordeal is nearly over! Along the way, I hope our factual passage through time has been an enlightening and entertaining experience. Chronologically (bar the first 2 months of 2020), the long ‘Story of Modern Music’ has caught up‑to‑date. By the end of this article the facts and events covering more than three‑and‑a‑half centuries will have been laid bar for all to see. It isn’t, however, the culmination of this series of articles, as there will be a fair bit of dilly‑dallying to do to give justice to the material and to complete a coherent narrative.

If you would like to (re)visit the first 10 parts (and over 350 years) of the story to‑date, you can do so here (each link opens a new browser tab):

The Story of Modern Music Part XI 2010-2019

As the ‘teenies’ are fresh in our collective memories, one has to think hard about what might be regarded as standout ‘classic albums’ that will stand the test of time. Simply the act of interrogating recent history and coming up with nada is a concern. Yes there were some big selling albums from popular commercial artists but they don’t really stand up to scrutiny when compared with watershed releases of the past. Perhaps we haven’t yet had sufficient time to reflect but one would have thought that something important would stick out from the random melange.

It is hard to believe that it was the early 1990s when game changing albums like Nirvana’s ‘Never Mind’ and Pearl Jam’s ‘Ten’, both landed in 1991 and Rage Against The Machine’s eponymous debut struck home in 1992. Since that time? With hindsight, perhaps controversially, not a great deal. Readers will no doubt have their favourite albums from the noughties and teenies but there were no multi‑platinum multi‑million sellers outside the pop mainstream that came out of the blue. and certainly no ground‑breaking important epics such as ‘Tubular Bells’, ‘Dark Side Of The Moon’, ‘Rumours’ or ‘Thriller’, to mention just four more classic albums that went on to sell in colossal quantities and helped to define the zeitgeist. It isn’t just about numbers and money, it’s about the value of artistic creativity. Where were the musical milestones to have significant global social and cultural impact? To-date, this levelling (lowering?) of the playing field seems to have resulted from benign prosperity and social disengagement. It seems as though, whereas the youthful tortured angst of previous decades has been quelled, to be replaced with pseudo entitled vacuous celebrity‑induced cupidity and malaise. Discuss…

One sad observation of the 2010s is the number of legendary musical artists who passed on during the decade. Many had featured in previous articles for other reasons and had their last entries in this one. Their valuable legacy has helped to shape the musical landscape that we enjoy and their influential music will endure well into the future, even though they are no longer with us. At the time of writing, we can only speculate about who might have been born in the teenies that will become future legends. Watch this space.

Historical Context 2010-2019

After the economic meltdown that started in the latter part of the 2000s, the ‘teenies’ were characterised by enduring global economic recession, which adversely affected most countries. Depression exposed the ugly and inhumane economic inequality that was exacerbated by extreme avarice, arrogance and hubris further polarising the wealth gap between richest and poorest. A resurgence of east/west Cold War political tensions was intensified by the errant behaviour of maverick states such as communist North Korea and Islamic Iran, as well as a bitter trade war between America and China. Misplaced ideological posturing drove extremist terrorism, which disregarded national borders and reached unprecedented levels through devastating atrocities in many countries. Escalating regional conflict in the Middle East continued to affect international relations, trade and mobility. Unparalleled economic and humanitarian migration reached new levels and became a major refugee problem for developed‑world countries. Technologically, an insatiable appetite for Internet use led to an equally huge increase in the uptake of social media and online commerce. Driverless and electric vehicles became the focus of major tech corporations. Global concerns increased over action required to reduce CO₂ emissions and extreme weather events. The equalities of LGBTQ+ communities gained widespread international recognition and forced irreversible social and cultural change in many societies.

Year	Global Events
2010	Many anti‑government protests rose up across the Middle East, widely known as the Arab Spring. A massive magnitude 7.0 earthquake hit Haiti in the Caribbean Sea, killing somewhere between 100,000 and 316,000 people. The Deepwater Horizon oil drilling rig run by BP exploded, causing an environmental catastrophe in the Gulf of Mexico. It is, to date, the largest marine oil spill in the history of the oil industry with over 210 million gallons discharged into the Gulf. The world’s tallest building to‑date, the Burj Khalifa opened in Dubai, standing at 829.8m (2,722ft). Controversial non-profit political organisation Wikileaks, under the control of editor‑in‑chief Julian Assange, began releasing substantial amounts of American classified information from whistle‑blowers into the public domain, thereby compromising national and international security. The culturally popular American post-apocalyptic AMC television series, ‘The Walking Dead’, based on the zombie comic book series by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard was first broadcast.
2011	The leader of the Islamic terrorist group al‑Qaeda, Osama Bin Laden was shot and killed by American Special Forces in Abbottabad, Pakistan. The Syrian Civil War started following Arab Spring protests against the Syrian government. Conflict escalated after protests calling for President Bashar al-Assad’s removal were brutally suppressed. The ensuing political and military vacuum led to territorial gains by the so‑called Islamic State in the Middle East and particularly in Syria. Japan was devastated by a massive 9.0 magnitude earthquake and tsunami that killed over 15,000 people. The Great East Japan Earthquake was the 4^th strongest on historical record. The tsunami caused a major nuclear accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. The estimated economic cost was in the region of $235bn USD. NASA’s aging Space Shuttle fleet was retired from service after 30 years, 5 operational vehicles, 135 missions and 2 fatal accidents costing 14 lives. The world’s human population exceeded 7 billion for the first time, highlighting serious concerns about the sustainability of uncontrolled population growth.
2012	The largest ever Atlantic storm, Category 3 Hurricane Sandy, devastated the north eastern United States, killing over 230 people and causing nearly $70bn of damage. The existence of the elusive so‑called ‘god particle’, the Higgs Boson sub‑atomic unit was finally confirmed by experiments conducted at the CERN Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland. Queen Elizabeth II celebrated the 60^th Anniversary of her accession to the British throne.
2013	Two Islamic terrorists from Chechnya detonated 2 bombs during the Boston Marathon in Massachusetts, USA, killing 3 and injuring 264. The largest outbreak of the Ebola virus in history reached epidemic proportions in Western Africa and lasted until 2016, resulting in a conservative estimate of more than 11,000 deaths.
2014	The so‑called Islamic State (ISIS) took military control of the city of Mosul in northern Iraq. The new World Trade Center, the Freedom Tower, was completed in New York, becoming the tallest building in the U.S. at 1,776 feet (541m), 13 years after the original World Trade Center twin towers were destroyed in the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
2016	The United Kingdom held a one‑off national referendum to determine whether to remain part of or to leave the European Union (EU). The UK had become a member of the European Economic Community (EEC) in 1973. The referendum result was a majority desire to leave the EU. The UK was the first country to leave the union since the EEC was formed in 1957. The process of leaving, often referred to as ‘Brexit’, was completed in 2020. HM Queen Elizabeth II became the longest reigning monarch in British history, surpassing Queen Victoria (1819‑1901), who had reigned for 63 years and 7 months.
2017	Businessman and Republican politician Donald Trump became the 45^th president of the U.S.A. The UK triggered Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, initiating the Brexit process that led to the UK leaving the EU after 47 years of membership. American president Donald Trump announced the U.S. government’s intention to withdraw unilaterally from the Paris Climate Agreement.
2018	The longest total lunar eclipse of the 21^st Century took place, lasting approximately 1 hour and 43 minutes. Canada legalised the sale and use of cannabis, only the 2^nd country to do so, Uruguay being the first.
2019	A catastrophic fire broke out in the roof of medieval Roman Catholic Notre Dame de Paris cathedral in France, destroying much of the building’s roof, spire and upper walls. The final stronghold of the so‑called Islamic State in Al-Baghuz Fawqani, Syria, was liberated. Violent protests and civil unrest occurred in Hong Kong, ignited by controversial Chinese legislation that allegedly undermined the region’s autonomy and civil liberties. Activists belonging to Extinction Rebellion, a global movement created to use direct non‑violent civil disobedience to force governments to react positively towards the threat of climate change, biodiversity loss and ecological collapse, caused widespread disruption in major cities worldwide.

Musical Genre Development 2010-2019

Sadly, during the 2010s there were no recent new genres or emergent significant sub‑genres, and little sign of any on the horizon. It is a struggle to identify any hugely influential genre developments during the ‘teenies’. Yes, there were ventures, projects, collaborations, experiments and side lines including, for instance dubstep and grime but, let’s be honest, these aren’t really new; they are simply variations on past themes that were re‑established for wider audiences. However, modern music has shown an incredible tenacity to rejuvenate and reinvent itself, especially when it appears to be entering the doldrums. One can only watch and wait to see what happens from here on in. Let’s start with some of the nuances during the 2010s.

Female pop mega‑artists such as Adele, Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus, Lady Gaga and even Lana Del Rey have become very powerful, successful multi‑millionaires predominantly focusing their considerable resources on commercially lucrative target audiences. These industry pillars have become renowned as much for their business acumen as their musical prowess. New artist, Billie Eilish looks set to continue this trend into the 2020s. The token male artist in this bracket is probably Ed Sheeran.

The indie movement continued to grow from strength to strength into the 2010s broadening the diversity of indie and keeping it fresh by fusing with other styles such as folk, blues, rock, punk, roots, garage and Americana. Notable indie artists of the teenies include (in no particular order); Courtney Barnett, Arcade Fire, Vampire Weekend, The War On Drugs, Band Of Skulls, The National, Sharon Van Etten, St. Vincent, Fleet Foxes, Real Estate, Feist, Tame Impala, Parquet Courts, Kurt Vile, Girls, Courteeners, Daughter, Angel Olsen, Fleet Foxes, Haim, Father John Misty, Ariel Pink, Sheerwater, Foals, Two Door Cinema Club, Villagers, EMA, The Horrors, The Kills, The Low Anthem, Royal Blood, Rival Sons, The Vaccines, Alt‑J, The XX, Wolf Alice, The Dead Weather, The Twilight Sad, Cage The Elephant, London Grammar, Savages, Band Of Skulls, Warpaint, Slaves, Wolf Alice, Bat For Lashes, K.T. Tunstall, Cigarettes After Sex, Blood Red Shoes, Real Estate and Dry the River among a multitude of others.

While clearly a niche subgenre of the fading mainstream Electronic Dance Music (EDM) and related genres and closely related to ambient, downtempo, progressive electronic, darkwave, glitch and chillwave, Intelligent Dance Music (IDM) flourished, building on the shoulders of pioneers such as The Orb, Future Sound of London, Orbital and Aphex Twin. IDM and related artists pushed the boundaries of esoteric syncopated, and stripped down electronica to new, often indulgent extremes. Under the broadest definition, some IDM artists include; Four Tet, Boards of Canada, Caribou, Crystal Castles, Neon Indian, Jon Hopkins, Bonobo, Burial, Flying Lotus, Memory Tapes, Apparat, Toro y Moi, James Blake, Oneohtrix Point Never, Com Truise, Autechre, Mouse On Mars and Squarepusher.

In the late 20^th Century, modern jazz had newfound credibility in the fusion years of the 1970s, with artists like John McLaughlin, Stanley Clarke, Herbie Hancock, Al Di Meola, Utopia and Weather Report, followed by other virtuoso instrumentalists like Larry Coryell, Larry Carlton and Lee Ritenour during the 1980s. Move forward in time to the 21^st Century and jazz experienced a stunning rejuvenation, often referred to as nu‑jazz or jazztronica, eschewing old-style constraints and fusing jazz elements with electronic music ranging from the traditional to the experimental. While growing on the popularity in the 2000s of artists like St. Germain, Mr. Scruff, Joss Stone and Jamie Cullum, nu‑jazz really came into its own in the 2010s. Nu‑jazz artists embraced hip‑hop, electronica, dance, reggae, electro‑swing and many other forms to create something vital and engaging, including artists such as Snarky Puppy, The Cinematic Orchestra, Floating Points, GoGo Penguin, Thundercat, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, The Comet Is Coming, The Correspondents and Mammal Hands.

Musical Facts 2010-2019

Day	Month	Year	Music Fact
11	January	2010	American indie rock band Vampire Weekend released their 2^nd studio album, ‘Contra’.
8	February	2010	English trip-hop group, Massive Attack released their 5^th studio album, ‘Heligoland’ in the UK.
17	February	2010	Northern Irish indie rock band Two Door Cinema Club released their debut studio album, ‘Tourist History’.
10	March	2010	Welsh guitarist and member of progressive rock band Man, Micky Jones died of cancer in Swansea at the age of 63.
15	March	2010	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2010’, including ABBA, Genesis, The Hollies, Jimmy Cliff, The Stooges and David Geffen.
28	March	2010	Highly influential American jazz guitarist Herb Ellis died of Alzheimer’s disease in Los Angeles, California at the age of 88.
13	April	2010	Experimental virtuoso English rock guitarist, Jeff Beck released his 10^th solo album, ‘Emotion And Commotion’ in the UK.
18	May	2010	American blues/rock duo The Black Keys released their classic 5^th studio album, ‘Brothers’.
25	June	2010	Canadian rock band, Rush, received a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame at 6752 Hollywood Boulevard.
9	July	2010	English indie rock group Bombay Bicycle Club released their understated acoustic 2^nd studio album, ‘Flaws’.
25	October	2010	American singer and songwriter Taylor Swift released her commercially successful 3^rd studio album, ‘Speak Now’.
16	November	2010	After many years of negotiation, The Beatles’ back catalogue was finally made available on Apple’s iTunes music platform.
17	December	2010	American rock singer, songwriter and musician, Captain Beefheart (real name Don Van Vliet) died from complications resulting from multiple sclerosis in a hospital in Arcata, California at the age of 69.
22	December	2010	The famous zebra crossing at Abbey Road, London, just outside Abbey Road Studios and featured on The Beatles’ classic titular 1969 album cover, was Grade II Listed by English Heritage.
24	January	2011	English pop singer, Adele released her massive commercial 2^nd studio album, ‘21’.
30	January	2011	Legendary English composer of classic film and television scores, John Barry died of a heart attack in New York at the age of 77.
6	February	2011	Irish blues/rock guitarist and singer, Gary Moore died from a heart attack in Malaga, Spain at the age of 58.
14	February	2011	English alternative/indie rock singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, P.J. Harvey released her award‑winning 8^th studio album, ‘Let England Shake’.
14	March	2011	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2011’, including Alice Cooper, Neil Diamond, Dr. John, Tom Waits and Leon Russell.
2	June	2011	Canadian country singer Shania Twain received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6270 Hollywood Boulevard.
6	June	2011	English indie rock band, Arctic Monkeys released their 4^th studio album, ‘Suck It and See’.
23	July	2011	English singer and songwriter, Amy Winehouse died from an alcohol overdose in Camden, London at the age of 27.
7	August	2011	American bass player and key member of Johnny Cash’s backing band, the Tennessee Two, Marshall Grant died in Jonesboro, Arkansas at the age of 83.
16	August	2011	American indie rock band The War On Drugs released their breakout 2^nd studio album, ‘Slave Ambient’.
7	September	2011	On what would have been his 75^th birthday, American rock ‘n’ roll singer Buddy Holly received a posthumous star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1750 North Vine Street.
5	October	2011	Accomplished Scottish acoustic folk guitarist Bert Jansch died after a long battle with lung cancer in London at the age of 67.
4	December	2011	American blues guitarist, singer and member of Howlin’ Wolf’s band, Hubert Sumlin died from heart failure in Wayne, New Jersey at the age of 80.
16	December	2011	American blues/rock duo The Black Keys released their classic 7^th studio album, ‘El Camino’.
20	January	2012	Legendary American multi-genre singer, Etta James died of leukaemia in hospital in Riverside, California at the age of 73.
31	January	2012	American singer and songwriter, Lana Del Rey released her breakout 2^nd studio album, ‘Born To Die’.
9	February	2012	English bass guitarist and former member of The Beatles, Paul McCartney received a solo star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1750 North Vine Street.
6	February	2012	Scottish indie rock band The Twilight Sad released their underrated 3^rd studio album, ‘No One Can Ever Know’.
11	February	2012	American soul/pop singer, producer and actress, Whitney Houston died from drug misuse and accidental drowning at the Hilton hotel in Beverley Hills, California at the age of 48.
29	February	2012	English singer and member of media pop band The Monkees, Davy Jones died from a heart attack in Florida at the age of 66.
5	April	2012	English innovator, entrepreneur, businessman and founder of iconic Marshall amplifiers, ‘The Father of Loud’, Jim Marshall OBE, died from cancer in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire at the age of 88.
14	April	2012	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2012’, including The Beastie Boys, Donovan, Guns N’ Roses, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Small Faces/The Faces, Freddie King and Tom Dowd.
16	April	2012	English indie rock band Spiritualized released their 7^th studio album, ‘Sweet Heart Sweet Light’.
10	July	2012	English-American guitarist Slash (a.k.a. Saul Hudson) received a solo star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6901 Hollywood Boulevard.
31	August	2012	Northern Irish indie rock band Two Door Cinema Club released their 2^nd studio album, ‘Beacon’.
2	October	2012	Highly acclaimed English session guitarist ‘Big Jim’ Sullivan died of complications from heart disease and diabetes in Billingshurst, West Sussex at the age of 71.
10	January	2013	Swiss founder and manager of the famous Montreux Jazz Festival since 1967, Claude Nobs, died in Lausanne at the age of 76.
18	February	2013	Alternative rock band, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds released their outstanding reflective 15^th studio album, ‘Push the Sky Away’.
6	March	2013	English blues/rock guitarist and singer, Alvin Lee died of complications following surgery in Estepona, Spain at the age of 68.
18	April	2013	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2013’, including Heart, Albert King, Randy Newman, Public Enemy, Rush and Donna Summer.
20	May	2013	American keyboard player with, and co-founder of, The Doors, Ray Manzarek died from bile duct cancer in Rosenheim, Germany at the age of 74.
3	June	2013	American rock band Queens Of The Stone Age released their 6^th studio album ‘…Like Clockwork’.
26	July	2013	Reclusive and influential American blues/rock guitarist, singer and songwriter, J.J. Cale died from a heart attack in La Jolla, California at the age of 74.
9	September	2013	English indie rock band, Arctic Monkeys released their 5^th studio album, ‘AM’.
27	October	2013	Legendary American singer, songwriter, guitarist, member of the Velvet Underground and successful solo artist, Lou Reed died of liver disease at his home in New York at the age of 71.
4	November	2013	American singer and cultural icon, Janis Joplin received a posthumous star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6752 Hollywood Boulevard.
3	January	2014	American singer and guitarist, Phil Everly, half of the vocal harmony duo The Everly Brothers, died of lung disease in Burbank, California at the age of 74.
25	February	2014	Spanish virtuoso flamenco guitarist and composer, Paco de Lucía died from a heart attack while on holiday in Playa del Carmen, Mexico at the age of 66.
18	March	2014	American indie rock band The War On Drugs released their 3^rd studio album, ‘Lost In The Dream’.
10	April	2014	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2014’, including KISS, Nirvana, Cat Stevens, Peter Gabriel, Linda Rondstadt and Hall & Oates.
17	June	2014	American singer and songwriter, Lana Del Rey released her 3^rd studio album, ‘Ultraviolence’.
16	July	2014	Renowned American blues/rock guitarist, Johnny Winter died from emphysema and pneumonia near Zurich, Switzerland, at the age of 70.
25	October	2014	Scottish bass guitarist with blues/rock super group Cream, Jack Bruce died of liver disease in Suffolk, England at the age of 71.
27	October	2014	American singer and songwriter Taylor Swift released her commercially successful 5^th studio album, ‘1989’.
13	March	2015	Australian guitarist, singer, songwriter, poet and co‑founder of psychedelic rock bands Soft Machine and Gong, Daevid Allen died from cancer in Australia at the age of 77.
30	March	2015	English dance/rock band The Prodigy released their 6^th studio album, ‘The Day Is My Enemy’.
14	May	2015	Legendary blues guitarist, singer, songwriter and producer, B.B. King died from a stroke caused by type 2 diabetes in Las Vegas, Nevada at the age of 89.
21	May	2015	American bass guitarist Louis Johnson of funk band Brothers Johnson died from internal bleeding in Las Vegas, Nevada at the age of 60.
30	May	2015	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2015’, including Green Day, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, Lou Reed, Ringo Starr, Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble and Bill Withers.
27	June	2015	English bass guitarist with progressive band Yes, Chris Squire died from leukaemia in Phoenix, Arizona at the age of 67.
11	September	2015	English indie rock band The Libertines released their highly anticipated 3^rd studio album, ‘Anthems for Doomed Youth’.
10	November	2015	American musician, songwriter, arranger and record producer Allen Toussaint died of a heart attack while on tour in Madrid, Spain at the age of 77.
13	November	2015	Islamic terrorists attacked a concert where American rock band Eagles of Death Metal were performing at the Bataclan Theatre in Paris, France. A total of 89 innocent people lost their lives.
4	December	2015	A commemorative statue of The Beatles was unveiled in their home city of Liverpool, 50 years after their last gig there.
28	December	2015	English singer, songwriter, bass guitarist, founder and front man of rock band Motörhead, Ian ‘Lemmy’ Kilmister, died of cancer in Los Angeles, California at the age of 70.
8	January	2016	Iconic English singer, David Bowie released his final studio album, ‘Blackstar’, on his 69^th birthday, just 2 days before his untimely death.
10	January	2016	Chameleonic English singer, rock legend, actor and cultural icon, David Bowie died from liver cancer at his apartment in New York City at the age of 69.
18	January	2016	Highly regarded American singer, songwriter and guitarist with country rock band Eagles, Glenn Frey died from complications of rheumatoid arthritis in New York City at age of 67.
4	February	2016	Northern Irish singer Sir Van Morrison OBE was knighted by Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace, London, UK for services to the music industry and tourism.
13	February	2016	Four members of English indie band Viola Beach and their manager were tragically killed in a car accident in Södertälje, Sweden.
8	March	2016	Legendary English record producer, Sir George Martin CBE, known by many as the ‘Fifth Beatle’, died at his home in Wiltshire at the age of 90.
11	March	2016	English keyboard player with progressive rock group Nice and a founding member of super group Emerson, Lake & Palmer (ELP), Keith Emerson died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in Santa Monica California at the age of 71.
6	April	2016	American country singer and guitarist Merle Haggard died on his birthday as a result of complications from pneumonia at his home in Palo Cedro, California at the age of 79.
8	April	2016	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2016’, including Cheap Trick, Chicago, Deep Purple, Steve Miller and NWA.
21	April	2016	American singer, guitarist, producer and actor, Prince died from an accidental drug overdose of the pain killer fentanyl at his home in Chanhassen, Minnesota at the age of 57.
21	April	2016	Influential American blues/rock guitarist Lonnie Mack died of natural causes in hospital near his home in Smithville Tennessee at the age of 74.
10	June	2016	British pop/rock singer and songwriter Sir Rod Stewart CBE was knighted in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list for services to music and charity.
28	June	2016	American singer Elvis Presley’s main guitarist in the early rock ‘n’ roll years, Scotty Moore died in Nashville, Tennessee at the age of 84.
15	July	2016	English virtuoso rock guitarist Jeff Beck released his fascinating change-of-direction 11^th studio album, ‘Loud Hailer’.
9	September	2016	Alternative rock band, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds released their desperately melancholic 16^th studio album, ‘Skeleton Tree’.
13	October	2016	Legendary American singer, songwriter and guitarist Bob Dylan was awarded the prestigious Nobel Prize for Literature in Stockholm, Sweden. He skipped the official awards ceremony and delivered his acceptance lecture in April 2017.
21	October	2016	Canadian singer, songwriter and guitarist, Leonard Cohen released his elegiac final studio album, ‘You Want It Darker’.
7	November	2016	Canadian singer, songwriter, poet and guitarist, Leonard Cohen died after a fall at his home in Los Angeles, California at the age of 82.
13	November	2016	Legendary American musician and songwriter, Leon Russell died in his sleep at his home in Mount Juliet, Tennessee at the age of 74.
2	December	2016	English rock band Rolling Stones released their great back-to-basics blues/rock studio album, ‘Blue & Lonesome’ in the UK.
7	December	2016	English bass guitarist, singer, songwriter and founding member of progressive rock bands King Crimson and ELP, as well as a solo artist, Greg Lake died from cancer in London at the age of 69.
24	December	2016	English guitarist with pop/rock band Status Quo, Rick Parfitt died from sepsis caused by a shoulder infection in hospital in Marbella, Spain at the age of 68.
25	December	2016	English singer, songwriter and member of pop band Wham!, George Michael died of heart failure at his home in Goring-on-Thames, Oxfordshire at the age of 53.
31	January	2017	Welsh guitarist and regular on-off member of the progressive jam rock bands Man and Iceberg, as well as a solo artist, Deke Leonard died at the age of 72.
4	February	2017	English heavy metal pioneers, Black Sabbath performed their final live concert of their ‘The End’ tour at the NEC Arena in their home city of Birmingham, UK.
19	February	2017	Influential American virtuoso jazz fusion guitarist, Larry Coryell died of heart failure in New York City at the age of 73.
16	March	2017	English singer and member of pop/rock band The Kinks, Sir Ray Davies CBE received a knighthood from Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace, London, UK for his service to the arts.
18	March	2017	Legendary American rock ‘n’ roll singer, songwriter and guitarist Chuck Berry died of a reported cardiac arrest at his home in Wentzville, Missouri at the age of 90.
7	April	2017	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2017’, including ELO, Joan Baez, Journey, Pearl Jam, Tupac Shakur and Yes.
15	April	2017	Influential virtuoso English jazz/rock fusion guitarist Allan Holdsworth died from heart disease at his home in Vista, California at the age of 70.
18	May	2017	American singer, songwriter and front man of hard rock bands Soundgarden and Audioslave, Chris Cornell committed suicide in his hotel room in Detroit, Michigan at the age of 52.
27	May	2017	American musician and co-founder of The Allman Brothers Band, Gregg Allman died from a heart attack in Richmond Hall, Georgia at the age of 69.
8	August	2017	American country singer and guitarist, Glen Campbell died of Alzheimer’s disease in Nashville, Tennessee at the age of 81.
25	August	2017	American indie rock band The War On Drugs released their 4^th studio album, ‘A Deeper Understanding’.
3	September	2017	American guitarist and bass guitarist, songwriter and co‑founder of rock band Steely Dan, Walter Becker died from oesophageal cancer at his home in Manhattan, New York at the age of 67.
2	October	2017	American singer, songwriter and guitarist Tom Petty died of an accidental overdose of prescription painkillers at his home in Santa Monica, California at the age of 66.
18	November	2017	Scottish-born guitarist and co-founder of Australian rock band AC/DC, Malcom Young died following a long battle with dementia in Elizabeth Bay, New South Wales at the age of 64.
10	January	2018	English guitarist and one-time member of the rock band Motörhead, ‘Fast’ Eddie Clarke died from pneumonia in hospital in London at the age of 67.
9	March	2018	After 66 years, the UK weekly music magazine The New Musical Express (a.k.a. NME) published its final printed copy, signalling the end of an era in British music press.
9	March	2018	British indie rock band Editors released their 6^th studio album, ‘Violence’.
20	March	2018	English drummer and former member of The Beatles, Sir Richard Starkey (a.k.a. Ringo Starr) MBE was knighted by HRH Prince William at Buckingham Palace, London, UK.
14	April	2018	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2018’, including Bon Jovi, The Cars, Dire Straits, Moody Blues, Nina Simone and Sister Rosetta Tharpe.
8	June	2018	English guitarist, singer, songwriter and member of Anglo-American rock group Fleetwood Mac from 1968 to 1972, Danny Kirwan died from pneumonia in London at the age of 68.
2	July	2018	Scottish bass guitarist and founding member of 1970s pop group The Bay City Rollers, Alan Longmuir died in Larbert, Scotland, following an illness while on holiday in Mexico at the age of 70.
16	August	2018	Legendary American singer, songwriter and the ‘Queen of Soul’, Aretha Franklin died of pancreatic cancer at her home in Detroit, Michigan at the age of 76.
22	August	2018	American guitarist and bass guitarist with southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, Ed King died following a battle with cancer at his home in Nashville, Tennessee at the age of 68.
22	September	2018	English guitarist and singer, best known as half of London duo Chas & Dave and as a session musician, Chas Hodges died from organ failure following treatment for cancer at the age of 74.
29	September	2018	Great American blues guitarist, singer and songwriter, Otis Rush died from complications resulting from a stroke in Chicago, Illinois at the age of 83.
16	March	2019	Influential American guitarist, ‘the king of surf guitar’, Dick Dale died of heart failure in hospital in Loma Linda, California at the age of 81.
17	March	2019	Irish guitarist and member of heavy rock bands Gillan and Ozzy Osbourne, Bernie Tormé died of pneumonia in London, England at the age of 66.
29	March	2019	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2019’, including The Cure, Def Leppard, Janet Jackson, Stevie Nicks, Radiohead, Roxy Music and The Zombies.
29	March	2019	Emerging American indie/pop singer and songwriter Billie Eilish released her phenomenally successful debut album, ‘When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?’.
30	April	2019	English guitarist and co-founder of jazz/funk band Level 42, Boon Gould died at his home in Dorset at the age of 64.
13	May	2019	American singer and Hollywood actress Doris Day died of pneumonia in Carmel Valley Village, California at the age of 97.
30	May	2019	Cypriot/Canadian jazz/blues singer, songwriter, guitarist and actor Leon Redbone died following complications from dementia in hospice care in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, USA at the age of 69.
31	May	2019	Pioneering American guitarist, singer and songwriter with psychedelic rock band 13^th Floor Elevators Roky Erickson died in Austin Texas at the age of 71.
6	June	2019	Great American singer, songwriter, pianist and occasional guitarist Dr John died of a heart attack in New Orleans, Louisiana at the age of 77.
20	June	2019	English guitarist and former member of Pink Floyd, David Gilmour auctioned 120 of his guitars in New York, raising nearly £17m to help fight climate change. His famous Black Strat sold for £3.1m.
30	August	2019	American singer and songwriter, Lana Del Rey released her standout 6^th studio album, ‘Norman Fucking Rockwell!’ (a.k.a. ‘NFR!’).
6	October	2019	Legendary English drummer and co-founder of the rock bands Cream, Blind Faith and Baker Gurvitz Army, as well as solo artist, Ginger Baker died in hospital after a long illness in Canterbury, Kent at the age of 80.

Tailpiece

So, finally, that’s the major part of the extensive adventure now covered. Along the way, way more than 100 additional facts have been squeezed into the timeline, so somewhere around 1,700 music‑related facts. That doesn’t include the hundreds of ‘Historical Context’ facts that I think brought some of the more obscure musical events to life.

Undoubtedly, over time, more ideas and data will expand the long list of factoids further. Fortunately, these supplemental incidences won’t be lost, as they will appear on CRAVE Guitars’ quotidian ‘Musical Facts Of The Day’, which are posted daily on Twitter and Facebook.

The next article… or two… or three… will be wrapping up the voluminous subject matter in a way that I hope provides adequate closure to the lengthy journey. As there are no more decades to cover, the next episode will take a different look at what has already been covered. Intrigued by what the next slice of exposition might comprise? I hope so. Come back and find out.

In the meantime, I will be continuing my personal quest to bring you ‘Cool & Rare American Vintage Electric’ Guitar heritage for your entertainment (?!?!). This chore inevitably means the routine business of accumulating and appreciating some hopefully interesting old guitar gear. Hey, it’s a tough job but someone’s got to do it and, quite frankly, I ain’t complainin’. Much. Until next time…

CRAVE Guitars’ ‘Quote of the Month’: “The purpose of art is to stimulate an emotional reaction, regardless of what that reaction is.”

← Return to ‘Musings’ page

Like it? Why not share it?

30 Jan 2020

January 2020 – The Story of Modern Music in 1,500+ Facts – Part X

by Tony Drew | posted in: History, Introduction, Observations | 0

Introduction

Well, here we are once again. Welcome to 2020 one and all – a new year and a new decade, well, sort of. After the temporary intermission last month for the obligatory 2019 end‑of‑year roundup, we’re back on the trail ‘History of Modern Music…’ Cast your mind back for a moment. In more than one way, 1650 and the end of the Renaissance, where this story began seems a long, long time ago now. It struck me during the brief interlude just what a conceivably Sisyphean labour it has become, and there is still quite a bit of fun and games to be played out. Getting straight back into the proverbial saddle, Part X of the story is now rounding up the stragglers from the 20^th Century and riding into the dawn of the new millennium with all its first world promises and disappointments.

If you would like to (re)visit the first 9 parts (and 350 years) of the story to‑date, you can do so here (each link opens a new browser tab):

Right, now the prelude is over, let’s get into the groove of the shiny new millennium, starting at 2000 and finishing this month at the end of 2009…

The Story of Modern Music Part X 2000-2009

Without the benefit of lengthy hindsight, the question is, how best to describe early 21^st Century music? Arguably, the most notable trend of the noughties was the rise in popularity of indie music standing proud and in stark contrast to the seemingly indomitable, yet strangely bland, soulless and non‑descript merchandise of the commercial pop music industry.

Sadly, time and circumstances resulted in many prominent departures during the decade, adding a touch of pathos among the many achievements. While lost to us, at least we still have their music to appreciate.

In the absence of any particularly significant defining characteristics, perhaps it is best to let the facts speak for themselves. Before we get there, though, it is important to set the turbulent global context within which the musical styles of the new age progressed. Although shorter in content than previous decades, the ‘noughties’, and consequently, the ‘teenies’, will still get their own discrete article.

Historical Context 2000-2009

The opening decade of the 2000s has many popular names, one of which is simply, ‘the noughties’. The widely recognised formal name for the first decade of a new century is the less common, ‘the aughts’. Despite the unbridled optimism for the new millennium, the ‘00s heralded a fractious decade during which terrorism and the rise of dangerous radical Islamic ideologies would dominate international relations and drive brutal armed conflict in many territories. An unsustainable rise in living standards and avaricious materialism during the first half of the decade precipitated another inevitable major ‘boom and bust’ event fuelled by rabid financial mismanagement and, ultimately, greed. The result was the most devastating global recession to hit ordinary people since the 1930s in terms of both impact and longevity. Depression drove increasingly profound social, health and wealth divisions between the richest few percent and the vast majority. The digital revolution boomed and the unbridled growth of the Internet facilitated the promise of global democratisation of knowledge and information, while also enabling massive levels of ‘social’ drivel and inanity. There was a continued expansion in environmental lobbying and ‘green’ industries aiming to tackle the impending and still controversial threat of the ‘greenhouse effect’ on the planet’s fragile ecosystem.

Year	Global Events
2000	An Air France Concorde airliner crashed shortly after take‑off in France, killing 113 people, leading to the suspension of the fleet and effectively ending the era of supersonic passenger flights. The first stage of the world’s largest collaborative biological project, the Human Genome Project was completed, documenting an initial rough draft of the base pairs that make up human DNA.
2001	Republican politician George W. Bush became the 43^rd president of the U.S.A. Bush Junior was the son of George H.W. Bush who was the 41^st president. Members of the Islamic terrorist group al-Qaeda hijacked and crashed two airliners into the World Trade Center in Manhattan, New York City. A third plane was crashed into the U.S. Department of Defense HQ, the Pentagon in Virginia. A fourth aircraft crashed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania after passengers overpowered the hijackers. The co‑ordinated attacks of 9/11 killed almost 3,000 people. America, supported by its allies, invaded Afghanistan following the unprecedented 9/11 terrorist attacks on the U.S.A. with the intention of dismantling the threat of Islamic terrorist organisation al‑Qaeda at its source.
2002	The Euro was officially introduced in the Eurozone countries, after which the former currencies of those countries ceased to be legal tender. Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother of the UK monarchy and the wife of King George VI, died. Her funeral took place at Westminster Abbey in London. The Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus (SARS CoV) outbreak emanated in southern China and the subsequent epidemic caused a global public health crisis.
2003	America and Britain, supported by allies, invaded Iraq to remove the threat of alleged weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and to depose the country’s dictator and head of state, Saddam Hussain. The first successful global social networking website, Myspace was founded by Americans Chris DeWolfe and Tom Anderson, based in Beverly Hills, California. Myspace was overtaken in popularity by rival Facebook in 2008 and, while still in existence, usage has declined significantly. American Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during re‑entry to the Earth’s atmosphere, killing all seven astronauts aboard.
2004	The global Internet‑based social media networking web site Facebook was created by American entrepreneur Mark Zuckerberg, based in Menlo Park, California. Facebook has approximately 2.5billion active users. The European Union (EU) expanded by 10 new member states – Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Hungary, Malta and Cyprus. A massive 9.3 magnitude earthquake and tsunami in the Indian Ocean near Sumatra killed over 200,000 people. The tallest skyscraper in the world, Taipei 101, at a height of 1,670 feet (510m) opened in Taipei, Taiwan. It was overtaken by the completion of the Burj Khalifa in Dubai in 2010.
2005	The video sharing web site, YouTube was launched. The platform was created by Chad Hurley, Steve Chen, and Jawed Karim, based in San Bruno, California. YouTube is currently owned by technology giant, Google. Polish head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Pope John Paul II died. He was succeeded by German national, Pope Benedict XVI. Category 5 Hurricane Katrina devastated the city of New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.A., killing over 1,800 people and causing billions of dollars’ worth of damage.
2006	Indian Islamic terrorists detonated seven bombs on trains in the city of Mumbai, India, killing more than 200 people. Discovered in 1930, Pluto was demoted from planet status and was re‑designated the largest known dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt. Caltech researcher Mike Brown led the team that led to the declassification. Former president of Iraq, Saddam Hussein was tried and convicted by an Iraqi Special Tribunal and was executed by hanging for crimes against humanity.
2007	Three-year old English girl Madeleine McCann disappeared from the holiday resort of Praia da Luz in the Algarve region of Portugal. She remains missing despite massive media coverage. Technology giant Apple Inc. launched the game‑changing touch screen mobile telephone, the iPhone. The Global Financial Crisis began, caused by poor regulation resulted in the failure of a number of large financial and banking institutions. The severe worldwide economic downturn, known as the Great Recession, was the worst since the Great Depression of the 1930s. The economic impact of the slump lasted for more than a decade.
2008	In physics, the Large Hadron Collider particle accelerator used to detect the presence of sub‑atomic particles was completed by CERN near Geneva in Switzerland. The pioneering science project became fully operational in 2010. Pakistani Islamic terrorists carried out a series of 12 attacks over 4 days in Mumbai, India, killing almost 175 people.
2009	The decentralised digital cryptocurrency Bitcoin was established by pseudonymous Japanese creator Satoshi Nakamoto. Democrat politician Barack Obama became the 44^th president of the U.S.A. and was the first African‑American to be elected to the presidency.

Musical Genre Development 2000-2009

The pop music machine sustained commercial success well into the 21^st Century. Large record companies continued to focus resources on the lucrative tween and teen audiences with artists such as Avril Lavigne, Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber, Rihanna, Chris Brown, Usher, P!nk, Beyoncé, Lady Gaga and Katy Perry. Also popular were manufactured groups such as Destiny’s Child, Sugababes, Pussycat Dolls, One Direction, 5 Seconds Of Summer and Little Mix. Country music saw another revival with artists like Shania Twain, Taylor Swift, Faith Hill, Keith Urban and Carrie Underwood achieving notable success. Soul (nu‑soul) also saw a resurgence of interest, including performers like Joss Stone, Natasha Bedingfield, Corinne Bailey Rae, Estelle, Amy Winehouse, Adele and Duffy. Hip‑hop broadened out into contemporary R&B and claimed the resurgent urban music territory with artists such as Jay‑Z, Kanye West, Ludacris and 50 Cent building on the popularity of Dr Dre, Eminem and N.W.A.

Indie (rock) music had its origins in the 1970s as a ‘catch‑all’ umbrella term for artists who produced music through independent record labels rather than the large record companies and their subsidiaries. A new breed of bands began to emerge, aided by Internet exposure, coalescing into the indie rock movement on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Emerging rock bands came into their own and reasserted their independence through a rejection of (and by) the structured studio system. One constant characteristic of indie music is the rejuvenated dominance of the electric guitar within a band format. Indie music originated from the punk, alternative and grunge genres of previous decades and represents a very diverse range of musical approaches including dream pop, shoegaze, indie pop, indie dance, garage rock, indietronica, chillwave, hypnagogic pop, lo‑fi, etc. To reflect this diversity, there is a long list of indie artists from varying sub‑genres to give an indication of its broad appeal, including (in no particular order); My Bloody Valentine, Arctic Monkeys, The Jesus & Mary Chain, Eels, Low, The Zutons, Interpol, Charlatans, Slowdive, Ride, Primal Scream, PJ Harvey, The Strokes, The White Stripes, The Hives, The Vines, Snow Patrol, Keane, Pavement, Spiritualized, Blood Red Shoes, The Cribs, Sleater‑Kinney, The Libertines, Franz Ferdinand, Razorlight, Editors, Kasabian, Kings Of Leon, LCD Soundsystem, Crystal Castles, Arcade Fire, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Paramore, Belle & Sebastian, The Shins, The Kooks, The Killers, The Fratellis, Vampire Weekend, Bombay Bicycle Club, The Black Keys, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Modest Mouse, Ariel Pink, My Chemical Romance, Weezer, Death Cab for Cutie, White Lies, Two Door Cinema Club and War On Drugs amongst many others. The sheer volume of artists and material led to the term ‘indie landfill’ used to describe generic and derivative music exploiting indie music credentials.

Musical Facts 2000-2009

Day	Month	Year	Music Fact
6	March	2000	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2000’ including Eric Clapton, Earth Wind & Fire, The Lovin’ Spoonful, Bonnie Raitt, James Taylor, Nat ‘King’ Cole, Billie Holiday and Scotty Moore.
27	March	2000	English punk singer, songwriter and poet, Ian Dury died from cancer in London at the age of 57.
23	May	2000	American hip hop artist Eminem released his classic 3^nd studio album, ‘The Marshall Mathers LP’.
20	June	2000	American blues/rock duo The White Stripes released their 2^nd studio album, ‘De Stijl’.
2	October	2000	English alternative rock band Radiohead changed stylistic direction when they released their 4^th studio album, ‘Kid A’.
9	October	2000	English alternative rock band Placebo released their 3^rd studio album, ‘Black Market Music’.
5	December	2000	American political rap rock band, Rage Against The Machine released their 4^th and, to‑date, final studio album, ‘Renegades’.
8	December	2000	English bass guitarist, singer, songwriter and former member of rock band The Police, Sting received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6834 Hollywood Boulevard.
18	December	2000	English singer and songwriter Kirsty MacColl was killed tragically in a boating incident while on holiday in Cozumel, Quintana Roo, Mexico at the age of 41.
20	December	2000	Long-running UK music magazine ‘Melody Maker’ published its final issue. It had run for over 74 years since January 1926. Melody Maker was merged with rival music paper, New Musical Express (NME).
6	March	2001	Jamaican reggae legend Bob Marley received a posthumous Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7080 Hollywood Boulevard.
19	March	2001	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2001’ including Aerosmith, Solomon Burke, the Flamingos, Michael Jackson, Queen, Paul Simon, Steely Dan, Ritchie Valens and James Burton.
20	March	2001	Renowned Northern Irish blues/rock guitarist, Gary Moore released his classic 15^th studio album, ‘Back To The Blues’ in the UK.
2	April	2001	German industrial heavy metal rock band Rammstein released their top-selling 3^rd studio album, ‘Mutter’ (translated as Mother).
3	April	2001	American indie rock band Black Rebel Motorcycle Club released their debut studio album, ‘B.R.M.C.’.
10	April	2001	Indie rock giants, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds released their 11^th studio album, ‘No More Shall We Part’.
4	June	2001	English alternative rock band Radiohead released their classic 5^th studio album, ‘Amnesiac’ in the UK.
18	June	2001	English alternative rock band Muse released their breakout 2^nd studio album, ‘Origin of Symmetry’.
30	June	2001	American guitarist, nicknamed the ‘Country Gentleman’, Chet Atkins died from cancer at his home in Nashville, Tennessee at the age of 77.
3	July	2001	American blues/rock duo The White Stripes released their 3^rd studio album, ‘White Blood Cells’.
18	July	2001	American hard rock band KISS introduced a unique, if somewhat sinister, item of brand merchandise, a burial coffin humorously known as the ‘KISS Kasket’.
27	July	2001	American bass guitarist with southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, Leon Wilkeson died of chronic liver and lung disease in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida at the age of 49.
30	July	2001	Emerging American indie rock band The Strokes released their classic debut album, ‘Is This It’.
18	September	2001	American alternative/indie rock band Wilco released their classic 4^th studio album, ‘Yankee Hotel Foxtrot’.
23	October	2001	American technology giant Apple Inc. introduced the first iPod solid state portable media player, linked to the iTunes media storage library.
29	November	2001	English former member of The Beatles, George Harrison died of cancer in Los Angeles, California at the age of 58.
16	December	2001	Scottish guitarist and singer with punk rock band Skids and then Big Country, Stuart Adamson committed suicide in Honolulu, Hawaii at the age of 43.
5	March	2002	MTV broadcast the first episode of their reality TV show ‘The Osbournes’, featuring a portrayal of the Black Sabbath singer Ozzy Osbourne’s family life.
18	March	2002	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2002’ including Isaac Hayes, Brenda Lee, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Gene Pitney, Ramones, Talking Heads and Chet Atkins.
26	March	2002	British heavy metal rock band, Iron Maiden released their massive live concert album, ‘Rock In Rio’.
12	April	2002	English heavy metal singer with Black Sabbath and TV reality show celebrity, Ozzy Osbourne received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6780 Hollywood Boulevard.
14	May	2002	Award-winning American singer, songwriter, guitarist, electronica musician and producer Moby released his commercially successful 6^th studio album, ‘18’.
5	June	2002	American bass guitarist Dee Dee Ramone of punk rock band Ramones died from a heroin drug overdose at his home in Hollywood, California at the age of 50.
27	June	2002	English bass guitarist with rock band The Who, John Entwistle, nicknamed ‘The Ox’, died of a cocaine‑related heart attack in a Hard Rock hotel room in Paradise, Nevada at the age of 57.
27	August	2002	American rock band Queens Of The Stone Age released their classic 3^rd studio album, ‘Songs For The Deaf’.
24	September	2002	American alternative rock artist, Beck released his introspective and highly underrated 8^th studio album, ‘Sea Change’.
14	October	2002	English indie rock band The Libertines released their successful debut studio album, ‘Up The Bracket’.
18	October	2002	English pop/rock band Queen received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6356 Hollywood Boulevard.
27	October	2002	Highly renowned American record producer who worked for Atlantic Records, Tom Dowd died of emphysema in Aventura, Florida at the age of 77.
3	November	2002	Scottish singer and guitarist, crowned the ‘King of Skiffle’, Lonnie Donegan died of a heart attack in Market Deeping, Lincolnshire at the age of 71.
22	December	2002	English singer, songwriter and guitarist, Joe Strummer of punk rock band The Clash died from a congenital heart defect at his home in Somerset, UK at the age of 50.
30	December	2002	The funeral of English guitarist, singer and songwriter with punk rock band The Clash, Joe Strummer took place in London, UK.
3	February	2003	Famous American ‘wall of sound’ record producer, Phil Spector murdered actress Lana Clarkson in his California Alhambra mansion.
10	February	2003	English trip-hop group, Massive Attack released their underrated 4^th studio album, ‘100^th Window’ in the UK.
10	March	2003	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2003’ including AC/DC, The Clash, Elvis Costello & The Attractions, The Police, The Righteous Brothers and Floyd Cramer.
1	April	2003	American blues/rock duo The White Stripes released their highly regarded 4^th studio album, ‘Elephant’.
1	April	2003	English alternative rock band Placebo released their 4^th studio album, ‘Sleeping With Ghosts’.
18	April	2003	Legendary American blues/R&B, soul and jazz singer Etta James received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7080 Hollywood Boulevard.
11	May	2003	English bass guitarist with The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Noel Redding died of liver disease in Clonakilty, County Cork, Ireland at the age of 57.
15	May	2003	American country music singer and wife of Johnny Cash, June Carter Cash died following heart surgery in Nashville, Tennessee at the age of 73.
30	May	2003	Successful English record producer behind many massive chart hits, Mickie Most died from abdominal cancer at his home in London at the age of 64.
9	June	2003	Acclaimed English alternative rock band Radiohead released their 6^th studio album, ‘Hail To The Thief’.
13	June	2003	English guitarist, singer, songwriter and former member of progressive rock band Pink Floyd, David Gilmour was awarded a CBE by Her Majesty the Queen.
30	July	2003	Legendary American record producer Sam Phillips, founder of Sun Records and the man responsible for signing Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison and Johnny Cash, died of respiratory failure in Memphis Tennessee at the age of 80.
25	August	2003	American indie rock band Black Rebel Motorcycle Club released their 2^nd studio album, ‘Take Them On, On Your Own’.
12	September	2003	Less than 4 months after his wife passed away, American country legend Johnny Cash died of complications caused by diabetes in Nashville at the age of 71.
26	September	2003	English singer, songwriter, musician, solo artist and former member of the pop rock band Power Station, Robert Palmer died of a heart attack in a hotel room in Paris, France at the age of 54.
29	September	2003	English alternative rock band Muse released their successful 3^nd studio album, ‘Absolution’.
12	December	2003	English singer and songwriter with The Rolling Stones, Mick Jagger received a knighthood from HRH Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace.
9	February	2004	English indie rock band Franz Ferdinand released their successful debut studio album, the self-titled ‘Franz Ferdinand’.
15	March	2004	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2004’ including Jackson Browne, George Harrison, Prince, Bob Seger, Traffic and ZZ Top.
6	May	2004	American virtuoso jazz guitarist and session musician with The Wrecking Crew, Barney Kessel died from a brain tumour at his home in San Diego, California at the age of 80.
10	June	2004	American singer, songwriter, musician, and composer Ray Charles died from complications as a result of acute liver disease at his home in Beverly Hills, California at the age of 73.
15	June	2004	Emerging American rock band The Killers released their hugely successful debut studio album, ‘Hot Fuss’.
23	June	2004	American folk/rock singer, songwriter and guitarist, Bob Dylan was made ‘Doctor of Music’ at St. Andrews University in Scotland, UK.
24	June	2004	Exactly 5 years after his first sale, English blues/rock guitarist, Eric Clapton auctioned many of his guitars in New York City. Together, the two auctions raised $11 million for the Crossroads Centre he founded in Antigua, a residential treatment centre for alcohol and chemical dependencies.
21	July	2004	American music composer, Jerry Goldsmith, famous for his many TV and film scores, died from cancer in Beverley Hills, California at the age of 75.
30	August	2004	English indie rock band The Libertines released their successful eponymous 2^nd studio album, ‘The Libertines’.
6	September	2004	English indie rock band Kasabian released their classic self-titled debut studio album, ‘Kasabian’.
9	September	2004	Successful American guitar and musical equipment entrepreneur and businessman, Ernie Ball died in San Luis Obispo, California at the age of 74.
15	September	2004	American guitarist and songwriter with punk rock band Ramones, Johnny Ramone died of prostate cancer at his home in Los Angeles, California at the age of 56.
20	September	2004	Indie/alternative rock giants, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds released their epic 13^th double studio album, ‘Abattoir Blues / The Lyre of Orpheus’.
21	September	2004	American post-punk rock band Green Day released their top-selling 7^th studio album, ‘American Idiot’ in the U.S.
27	September	2004	German industrial heavy metal band Rammstein released their 4^th studio album, ‘Reise, Reise’ (roughly translated as ‘Arise, Arise’).
25	October	2004	Highly acclaimed English DJ and BBC radio presenter, John Peel died from a heart attack while working on holiday in Cusco, Peru at the age of 65.
1	November	2004	American rock band Kings of Leon released their commercially successful 4^th studio album, ‘Only By The Night’ in the UK (22 February 2005 in the US).
3	November	2004	English blues/rock guitarist, singer and songwriter, Eric Clapton received a CBE from the Princess Royal at Buckingham Palace in London for his services to music.
8	December	2004	American guitarist, ‘Dimebag’ Darrell Abbott, co-founder of heavy metal bands Pantera and Damageplan was murdered while performing on stage in Columbus, Ohio at the age of 38.
14	December	2004	The funeral of American guitarist with heavy rock bands Pantera and Damageplan, ‘Dimebag’ Darrell Abbott, took place in Arlington, Texas.
10	February	2005	English singer with The Who, Roger Daltrey was awarded a CBE by HM The Queen at Buckingham Palace.
14	March	2005	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2005’ including Buddy Guy, The O’Jays, The Pretenders, Percy Sledge and U2.
22	March	2005	American alternative rock band Queens Of The Stone Age released their 4^th studio album ‘Lullabies to Paralyze’.
11	June	2005	Two English rock guitarists were rewarded for their contributions to music in the Queen’s Birthday Honours. Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin was awarded an OBE and Brian May of Queen a CBE.
22	August	2005	American indie rock band Black Rebel Motorcycle Club released their 3^rd studio album, ‘Howl’.
30	August	2005	American indie rock band Death Cab For Cutie released their 5^th studio album, ‘Plans’.
1	September	2005	American blues singer, songwriter and guitarist R.L. Burnside died of heart disease in a hospital in Memphis, Tennessee at the age of 78.
4	September	2005	The major feature film chronicling the life of country legend Johnny Cash, ‘Walk The Line’, starring Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon, directed by James Mangold, was released in the USA.
10	September	2005	American guitarist and Blues Hall of Famer, Clarence ‘Gatemouth’ Brown died from cancer in Orange, Texas at the age of 81.
5	November	2005	Influential American rock ‘n’ roll guitarist Link Wray died of heart failure at his home in Copenhagen, Denmark at the age of 76.
23	January	2006	English indie rock sensation, Arctic Monkeys released their debut studio album, ‘Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not’.
13	March	2006	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2006’ including Black Sabbath, Blondie, Miles Davis, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Sex Pistols and Herb Alpert.
7	July	2006	English guitarist, songwriter and founder of progressive rock band Pink Floyd, Syd Barrett died of pancreatic cancer at his home in Cambridge at the age of 60.
25	July	2005	British indie rock band Editors released their debut studio album, ‘The Back Room’ in the UK.
30	July	2006	Popular weekly UK music chart TV programme ‘Top Of The Pops’ (TOTP) was broadcast by the BBC for the final time, after running for 42 years.
28	August	2006	English indie rock band Kasabian released their classic 2^nd studio album, ‘Empire’.
15	October	2006	After American singer Patti Smith finished her live set at New York City’s famous punk rock music venue CBGB & OMFUG, the club finally closed its doors for good, following a rent dispute and thereby ending an era.
25	December	2006	Legendary American singer and the ‘Godfather of Soul’, James Brown died of pneumonia in Atlanta, Georgia at the age of 73.
28	February	2007	American rock band The Doors received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6901 Hollywood Boulevard.
12	March	2007	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2007’ including Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five, R.E.M., The Ronettes, Patti Smith and Van Halen.
23	April	2007	English indie rock band, Arctic Monkeys released their sophomore studio album, ‘Favourite Worst Nightmare’.
25	June	2007	British indie rock band Editors released their sophomore studio album, ‘An End Has a Start’.
5	November	2007	English downtempo artist William Emmanuel Bevan (a.k.a. Burial) released his melancholic genre breaking 2^nd studio album, ‘Untrue’.
12	December	2007	Controversial American rock ‘n’ roll and R&B pioneer, Ike Turner died from a cocaine overdose at his home in San Marcos, California at the age of 76.
2	March	2008	Extraordinary blind Canadian blues/rock guitarist Jeff Healey died from lung cancer in Toronto at the age of 41.
10	March	2008	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2008’ including Leonard Cohen, The Dave Clark Five, Madonna, John Mellencamp, The Ventures and Little Walter.
1	April	2008	American blues/rock duo The Black Keys released their classic 5^th studio album, ‘Attack & Release’.
3	April	2008	American media and technology giant Apple Inc. became the top seller of recorded music in the USA.
19	April	2008	The annual global campaign to promote the importance of independent music stores ‘Record Store Day’ began in California, USA.
28	April	2008	English trip-hop band, Portishead released their 3^rd studio album, the originally titled, ‘Third’.
12	May	2008	American indie rock band Death Cab For Cutie released their 6^th studio album, ‘Narrow Stairs’.
26	May	2008	English indie rock band Spiritualized released their 6^th studio album, ‘Songs In A&E’.
2	June	2008	Legendary American blues and rock ‘n’ roll guitarist Bo Diddley died from heart failure at his home in Archer, Florida at the age of 79.
7	June	2008	The ‘homecoming’ funeral of American blues guitarist and singer Bo Diddley took place in Gainseville Florida.
19	June	2008	American indie rock band The War On Drugs released their debut studio album, ‘Wagonwheel Blues’.
10	August	2008	Acclaimed American soul singer, songwriter, producer and actor, Isaac Hayes died of a stroke at his home in Memphis, Tennessee at the age of 65.
19	September	2008	American rock band Kings of Leon released their commercially successful 4^th studio album, ‘Only By The Night’.
10	October	2008	English alternative rock band Radiohead released their 7^th studio album, ‘In Rainbows’ in the UK.
24	November	2008	Experimental virtuoso English rock guitarist, Jeff Beck released his highly acclaimed live concert album, ‘Performing This Week… Live At Ronnie Scott’s’.
15	December	2008	Hugely influential English folk acoustic guitarist Davey Graham died of lung cancer at the age of 68.
6	January	2009	American guitarist and songwriter with The Stooges and Iggy Pop, Ron Asheton died of a heart attack at his home in Ann Arbor, Michigan at the age of 60.
29	January	2009	Influential British singer, songwriter and guitarist, John Martyn died from pneumonia in Kilkenny, Ireland at the age of 60.
23	February	2009	English rave band The Prodigy released their resurgent 5^th studio album, ‘Invaders Must Die’.
4	April	2009	The American Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its ‘Class of 2009’ including Jeff Beck, Metallica, Run‑D.M.C., Bobby Womack, Bill Black and D.J. Fontana.
13	April	2009	Controversial American record producer Phil Spector was convicted of murdering actress Lana Clarkson at his Alhambra mansion in California in February 2003.
14	April	2009	English former member of The Beatles, George Harrison received a posthumous star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1750 Vine Street.
29	May	2009	Notorious American record producer, Phil Spector was sentenced to 19 years to life in prison for murdering actress Lana Clarkson at his California mansion in 2003.
5	June	2009	English indie rock band Kasabian released their classic 3^rd studio album, ‘West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum’.
25	June	2009	American superstar singer Michael Jackson died of a drug overdose in Los Angeles, California at the age of 50.
12	August	2009	Legendary American jazz guitarist, singer, inventor and recording innovator, Les Paul, died from pneumonia in White Plains, New York at the age of 94.
19	August	2009	English indie rock band, Arctic Monkeys released their 3^rd studio album, ‘Humbug’.
12	October	2009	British indie rock band Editors released their 3^rd studio album, ‘In This Light And On This Evening’.

Tailpiece

Help! We are running out of decades from which to poach pertinent and poignant particulars (pardon the flowery alliteration). Just one more decade and a few hundred facts to be revealed before the chronological timeline has to remain as‑yet‑unwritten for another epoch. The next instalment looking at the 2010s will, by definition, bring us pretty much up‑to‑date. I hope you feel inclined to re-join me in the next enthralling part of the journey.

In the meantime, warmer days and longer evenings of spring beckon. There are plenty of guitars to be played and much music to be listened to. Until next time…

CRAVE Guitars’ ‘Quote of the Month’: “It really doesn’t matter what music you play, or how good you are at playing it, as long as you play”

← Return to ‘Musings’ page

Like it? Why not share it?

31 May 2019

May 2019 – The Story of Modern Music in 1,500+ Facts – Part III

by Tony Drew | posted in: History, Introduction, Observations | 0

Introduction

Well, my, my, my… Here we are back again with spring just about to morph into balmy summer. I can’t believe that we are nearly half way through the last year of the 2010s already.

This means that we are now well into this year’s major music project with article number three of, well, who knows how many at the moment. Such a venture needs breaking down into digestible chunks or it would be colossal as just one bite at the proverbial cherry. The source data is immense, yet still only manages to brush the surface of a monumental subject matter. As always, if there are errors or omissions that I should consider including retrospectively, let me know via e‑mail or the web site’s contact form.

If you would like to pop in and (re)visit the first two parts of the story to‑date, you can do so here (each link opens a new browser tab):

The Story of Modern Music Part III 1920-1939

This month, we start at the beginning of the ‘Roaring Twenties’ and finish at the end of the ‘Dirty Thirties’ (the latter being a moniker apparently associated with the Dustbowl era rather than something inherently naughty – apologies for that!).

The world had never seen decades like these and hasn’t since. As such, they exhibit polar opposites in human endeavour. These twenty years stand a testimonial to the rapid progress of civilisation while also as a condemnation of the self‑destructive stupidity of the human condition. Hindsight, as ‘they’ say is a wonderful thing, so perhaps we should learn something profound from an examination of our collective past and build a better future for mankind. However, I digress…

This brings us to the format of this article, which follows the same tripartite structure for each 10‑year span as last month. Each decade is given a broad historical context outlining the sorts of global events – good and bad – that occurred, followed by examples of how music genres emerged and changed over the period and, finally, the whole point of this series, some music facts associated with the same years. As a whole, it hopefully provides an interesting insight into what went on. Here we go…

One noticeable trait that comes through strongly this month is the number of births occurring in the 1920s and 1930s of people who would go on to be significant musical icons in the 1950s and thereafter. This means that this month’s ‘facts’ are setting the foundation for future articles, while later ones will see a shift to the other, and rather more mortal, end of their illustrious lifetimes.

Historical Context 1920-1929

The 1920s was a paradigm shift in global affairs. The ‘Roaring Twenties’ and were characterised by post‑WWI optimism, individualism, industrial and economic growth, as well as social, artistic, and cultural dynamism. However, underlying the positivity was an omnipresent political paranoia, fuelled by conspiracy and corruption that stood a portent of the looming storm clouds that were gathering. The rise of radical political doctrines including communism and fascism would ultimately lead to further international conflict. Women were experiencing greater emancipation as a result of the suffragette movement, paving the way for later equalities movements.

Year	Global Events
1920	The United States introduced national legislation to ban the production, transport and sale of alcohol, widely known as the prohibition.
1921	The Irish Revolution led to the partitioning of Ireland into Northern Ireland which is part of the United Kingdom and the South, which is now the Republic of Ireland.
1922	The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) was created and existed until c.1991 when the political confederation collapsed. Georgian revolutionary and Soviet politician Joseph Stalin became leader, and later dictator, of the USSR. Danish physicist and philosopher Niels Bohr won the Nobel Prize for his work on atomic structure and quantum theory. Fascist leader Benito Mussolini became Prime Minister in Italy and proceeded to seize power as dictator espousing an ideology of ‘revolutionary nationalism’.
1923	Egyptian pharaoh King Tutankhamun’s tomb was opened by British archaeologist Howard Carter. The first Le Mans 24 Hours Grand Prix of Endurance motor race took place in France. It remains the world’s oldest endurance sports car racing event.
1924	The first international Winter Olympic Games were held in Chamonix, France.
1925	Author Franz Kafka wrote the novel, ‘The Trial’, the same year that F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote ‘The Great Gatsby’. The first successful black & white television transmission was made by Scottish engineer John Logie Baird in the UK, with the first public demonstration the following year.
1926	The first General Strike took place in Britain after the Trades Union Congress (TUC) called for widespread industrial action to support miners who were locked out by owners demanding longer hours for less pay. The famous U.S. Route 66 highway from Chicago, Illinois to Santa Monica, California was opened, with a total length of 2,448 miles (3,940 km).
1927	Aviator Charles Lindburgh made the first solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean in his plane The Spirit of St. Louis. The sprawling epic dystopian science fiction silent film, ‘Metropolis’, directed by Fritz Lang was released. Russian/American singer and actor Al Jolson starred in the first commercial feature length ‘talkie’ film, ‘The Jazz Singer’.
1928	Scottish biologist, Sir Alexander Fleming discovered the anti‑biotic penicillin, which would go on to revolutionise modern medicine. American animator Walt Disney introduced Mickey Mouse to the public in the short film, ‘Steamboat Willie’. Republican politician Herbert Hoover became the 31^st president of the United States of America.
1929	Notorious gangster Al Capone allegedly carried out the brutal Saint Valentine’s Day Massacre of 7 members of the North Side Gang in Lincoln Park, Chicago, Illinois. American astronomer Edwin Hubble demonstrated that the universe is expanding. The Vatican City became an independent and sovereign state located within Rome, Italy. The U.S. Stock Market collapsed, known widely as the Wall Street Crash, precipitating the worldwide Great Depression that lasted until the late 1930s.

Musical Genre Development 1920-1929

Blues and jazz continued to be popular during the 1920s, the latter sparking the ‘jazzmania’ craze. These twin pillars of modern musical culture also began to spawn new genre styles and to influence a diverse range of musical expression. Record, radio and film companies started to search out new artists and music to bring to a wider audience. It was in 1925 that the electrical recording and the 78rpm vinyl record became standard, the same year that television began, thereby opening up a whole new market for musicians.

In the 1920s, two separate musical forms emerged from Louisiana in the deep south of the United States, cajun and zydeco. The Cajuns were French colonists, called Acadians, from North Eastern America (Canada and Nova Scotia) who migrated to Louisiana in the late 18^th Century, bringing with them Cajun musical traditions. The creole were people descended from the inhabitants of French colonial Louisiana and who developed their own distinct musical style called zydeco. Although often regarded as similar, the two forms developed in parallel and have different cultural origins and styles. Cajun music is often played on accordion and fiddle, while zydeco is usually played on accordion and washboard. Both forms became popular outside insular local communities from the late 1920s when early recordings became available. Stylistic origins derived from blues, jazz, spirituals, traditional folk and country music, as well as regional influences from Europe, Africa, indigenous Americans and the Caribbean. Both cajun and zydeco are often used as dance music, including two‑steps and waltzes. Cajun and zydeco, in turn, influenced other forms of American roots music.

From the 1880s, musical theatre such as vaudeville and burlesque were common and very popular. From around 1920, commercial theatrical Broadway musicals originated in New York and London, becoming widespread and attracting big audiences before ‘talkie’ cinema movies began to adopt musical storytelling as a reflection of popular culture. Successful composers of the time included George & Ira Gershwin, Cole Porter and Irving Berlin. Prior to the 1920s most music distribution was by way of sheet music, piano rolls or live performance. It was during the 1920s that recording and distribution of popular music really took off, giving audiences much greater access to a wide range of music. However, the gramophone had strong competition from the proliferation of wireless radio and commercial radio stations during the 1920s, as well as motion pictures. In 1927, the first commercial feature length film to incorporate synchronised music, singing and speech, ‘The Jazz Singer’, starring Al Jolson was released. Broadway musicals reached their zenith in the 1940s with hits such as Oklahoma (1943). The convergence and crossover between Broadway and cinema musicals became a major launch pad for musical dissemination into the 1950s and beyond, including the development of soundtrack compositions for film and, later, television.

Country music was another genre that emerged from the Appalachian Mountain region of southern and eastern America during the 1920s, particularly in Tennessee but also Oklahoma and Texas. The roots of country music came largely from traditional genres such as folk, blues, hillbilly and western music, and was heavily influenced by Irish, English and wider European immigrants to the American east and south. Early popular country music, including cowboy songs, were often regarded as the music of the American rural working classes. Popular establishments for hillbilly music were the rowdy honky‑tonk bars of the period. Country music comprised of song ballads and dances normally constructed from simple arrangements, lyrics that told a story, and vocal harmonies. In addition country music accompaniment was usually provided by an array of acoustic string instruments such as banjos, guitars and fiddles as well as harmonicas and Jews harps. Early pioneers of country music included Jimmie Rodgers and The Carter Family, followed by other famous artists such as Patsy Cline, Jim Reeves, Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash and Dolly Parton. Country music is a massive commercial industry, now largely centred on Nashville, Tennessee. Country music is a diverse musical form of expression and continues to evolve, having seen several resurgences of popularity since its early heyday.

Musical Facts 1920-1929

Bert Weedon

Day	Month	Year	Music Fact
10	May	1920	English guitarist and a guide for millions of fledgling guitarists the world over, Bert Weedon OBE (1920-2012, 91) was born in London.
29	August	1920	Legendary American jazz/bebop saxophonist and composer, Charlie ‘Bird’ Parker Jr. was born in Kansas City, Kansas.
7	June	1921	Virtuoso American jazz guitarist, Tal Farlow (1921-1998, 77) was born in Greensboro, North Carolina.
4	August	1921	Influential and highly renowned American jazz guitarist Herb Ellis (1921-2010, 88) was born in Farmersville, Texas.
7	August	1921	French virtuoso gypsy flamenco guitarist Manitas de Plata (1921-2014, 93) was born in Sète.
3	April	1922	American singer and Hollywood actress Doris Day was born in Cincinnati, Ohio.
22	April	1922	Hugely influential American jazz double bass player and bandleader Charles Mingus was born in Nogales, Arizona.
10	June	1922	Famous American actress, singer and dancer Judy Garland was born in Grand Rapids, Minnesota.
5	January	1923	Legendary American producer and founder of Sun Records, Sam Phillips was born in Florence, Alabama. Phillips signed artists including Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison and Johnny Cash.
6	March	1923	Legendary and hugely influential American jazz guitarist, Wes Montgomery (1923-1968, 45) was born in Indianapolis, Indiana.
25	April	1923	Legendary guitarist and one of the ‘Three ‘Kings’ of blues guitar, the one and only Albert King (1923-1992, 69) was born in Indianola, Mississippi.
29	July	1923	One of the world’s great innovators in modern music, nicknamed ‘The Father Of Loud’, Dr Jim Marshall OBE (1923-2012, 88), founder of Marshall Amplification PLC, was born in London.
17	October	1923	Great American jazz guitarist Barney Kessel (1923-2004, 80) was born in Muskogee, Oklahoma.
27	March	1924	Highly acclaimed Grammy award winning American jazz singer Sarah Vaughan was born in Newark, New Jersey.
18	April	1924	American blues rock guitarist, Clarence ‘Gatemouth’ Brown (1924-2005, 81) was born in Vinton, Louisiana.
20	June	1924	Great American country guitarist and producer who established the Nashville sound, nicknamed ‘The Country Gentleman’ and ‘Mr. Guitar’, Chet Atkins (1924-2001, 77) was born in Luttrell, Tennessee.
6	July	1925	American guitarist, singer and Rock ‘n’ Roll pioneer Bill Haley (1925-1981, 55) was born in Highland Park, Michigan.
15	August	1925	Virtuoso Canadian jazz pianist and composer Oscar Peterson was born in Montreal, Quebec.
6	September	1925	American electric blues guitarist and Hall of Famer, Jimmy Reed (1925-1976, 50) was born in Dunleith, Mississippi.
16	September	1925	Legendary American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter and producer supreme, one of the ‘Three ‘Kings’ of blues guitar, Mr BB King (1925-2015, 89) was born in Itta Bena, Mississippi.
28	November	1925	The famous country music institution, the Grand Ole Opry was founded in Nashville, Tennessee by George D. Hay to promote country music and showcase its history.
8	December	1925	American singer, musician, dancer, actor, vaudevillian and comedian Sammy Davis Jr. was born in Harlem, New York.
2	January	1926	The first edition of the monthly popular music magazine ‘Melody Maker’ was published in the UK, priced at just 3 pence. It ran for over 74 years until 2000.
3	January	1926	English record producer, composer and conductor, Sir George Martin was born in London. He was well known for his pioneering collaboration with The Beatles.
26	April	1926	Hugely influential American blues guitarist J.B. Hutto (1926‑1983, 57) was born in Blackville, South Carolina.
26	May	1926	Legendary and hugely influential American jazz trumpeter and composer, Miles Davis was born in Alton, Illinois.
17	September	1926	American bass guitarist who played with Elvis Presley in the pioneering rock ‘n’ roll years, Bill Black (1926-1965, 39) was born in Memphis, Tennessee.
18	October	1926	Hugely influential pioneering American rock ‘n’ roll guitarist, singer and songwriter, the legendary Chuck Berry (1926‑2016, 90) was born in St. Louis, Missouri.
23	November	1926	Underrated American blues singer, songwriter and guitarist, the inimitable R.L. Burnside (1926-2005, 78) was born in Lafayette County, Mississippi.
10	December	1926	Pioneering New Orleans blues guitarist, Guitar Slim (real name, Eddie Jones, 1926-1959, 32) was born in Greenwood, Mississippi.
28	January	1927	English jazz saxophonist and founder of the famous Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club situated in Soho, London in 1959, Ronnie Scott OBE was born in Aldgate, London.
–	January	1928	American country guitarist and member of Johnny Cash’s band, the Tennessee Three, Luther Perkins (1928-1968, 40) was born in Como, Mississippi.
19	April	1928	Influential English musician and pioneer of the British blues/R&B scene in the 1960s, Alexis Korner was born in Paris, France.
5	May	1928	One of the main men behind the ‘Man In Black’, American bass player with Johnny Cash’s band, the Tennessee Two, Marshall Grant (1928-2011, 83) was born in Bryson City, North Carolina.
6	August	1928	Famous American pop artist, manager of The Velvet Underground, producer, director and album artwork designer, Andy Warhol was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
30	December	1928	Massively influential in the development of modern music, American guitarist, singer and songwriter Bo Diddley (1928-2008, 79) was born in McComb, Mississippi.
13	January	1929	American virtuoso jazz guitarist, Joe Pass (1929-1994, 65) was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey.
10	February	1929	Legendary American film and television music composer and conductor, Jerry Goldsmith was born in Los Angeles, California.
17	April	1929	German composer and big band leader of the James Last Orchestra, James Last was born in Bremen, Germany.
2	May	1929	Highly influential American rock ‘n’ roll guitarist, Link Wray (1929-2005, 76) was born in Dunn, North Carolina.
23	June	1929	American country singer, songwriter, actress, author, member of the famous Carter family and wife of Jonny Cash, June Carter Cash, was born in Maces Spring, Virginia.
19	December	1929	American blues and gospel guitarist, singer and songwriter, Blind Lemon Jefferson died from a reported heart attack in Chicago, Illinois, at the age of 36.

Historical Context 1930-1939

After a period of relative peace during the 1920s, the ‘Dirty Thirties’ followed. The harshness of the global recession set in, resulting in widespread unemployment, hardship, deprivation and poverty. The catalysts for descent of the globe’s major industrialised countries into a second and even more destructive world war had been seeded and, despite progress in other areas of human civilisation such as science, technology and art, the political die was already cast. Expansionist agendas fuelled Fascism in Europe, which coalesced into the rise of the Third Reich in Germany and its Axis power allies, while communism was also on the rise.

Year	Global Events
1930	The first FIFA soccer World Cup was held in Uruguay; the home team beat Argentina in the final.
1931	The Empire State Building opened in Manhattan, New York, reaching 102 stories and 1,250 feet (381m) tall.
1932	English author Aldous Huxley published his famous futurist novel, ‘Brave New World’. American aviator Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean.
1933	Democrat Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected 32^ndPresident of the United States of America. After 13 years, the nationwide prohibition of manufacture, transportation, and sale of alcohol in America was ended. In Germany, Adolf Hitler, leader of the Nazi Party became Chancellor and subsequently Führer in 1934, establishing his one‑party dictatorship. Infamous American bank robbers Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were shot and killed after being ambushed by a posse of law enforcement officers in Louisiana.
1934	The worst ever American drought led to severe dust storms that greatly damaged the ecology and agriculture of the American and Canadian prairies, known widely as the Dust Bowl. Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary, an American maximum security prison island located in San Francisco Bay, California, also known as ‘The Rock’, opened its cell doors for the country’s most notorious criminals.
1935	British publishing house Penguin Books was founded and introduced the first inexpensive paperback books.
1936	The massive art deco style Hoover Dam, spanning the Colorado River in Nevada became operational, with a height of 726 feet (221m) and a length of 1,244 feet (379m). British monarch King George V died. His successor, Edward VIII was crowned and soon abdicated, and George VI became King. The bitter Spanish Civil War started after the Spanish army in support of General Franco rebelled against the Republican presidency. The conflict lasted until 1939, resulting in Franco becoming nationalist dictator of Spain until 1975.
1937	The German passenger airship Hindenburg caught fire and was destroyed when attempting to dock with a mooring mast in Lakehurst, New Jersey, killing 36 people. Conservative Party MP Neville Chamberlain was elected British Prime Minister.
1938	Orson Welles’ infamous radio broadcast adapting H.G. Wells’ science fiction novel ‘The War Of The Worlds’ caused mass panic in America. The first comic book appearance of fictional superhero Superman was published by Action Comics.
1939	The classic ‘golden era’ Hollywood films ‘The Wizard of Oz’ and ‘Gone with the Wind’ were released. The first comic book appearance of fictional superhero Batman was published by Detective Comics (DC). The Second World War (WWII) began when Britain and France responded to Germany’s military invasion of Poland. The first successful flight of a jet-propelled aircraft was undertaken by a Heinkel He178, developed for the German Luftwaffe, in Rostock, Germany.

Musical Genre Development 1930-1939

Music of the 1930s was largely characterised by social events such as the Great Depression and the growth in popularity of radio and Hollywood cinema, which began to replace Broadway musical theatre. Established genres such as jazz continued to evolve to reflect changes in social culture, giving birth to swing and big band music. Jump blues music began to appear in the 1930s, adapting the grand swing and big band music for smaller venues, performed by small bands. The 1930s also saw the introduction of the electric guitar, which began to play a part in evolution of popular music of the decade.

Hawaiian music was popular with mainstream audiences in America during the 1930s, even though it had been a major genre in the mid-Pacific since the late 19^th Century. Hawaiian music was important because of its influence on country music, including the introduction of the lap steel guitar, often played horizontally and using a slide. It also helped to shape Polynesian music across the Pacific islands.

Traditional folk music has been an enduring form of musical expression throughout the centuries, in many nations and regions across the globe. Historically, folk music is often regarded as an oral tradition being handed down by word of mouth over many generations. During the 1930s, contemporary folk music, an Anglo‑American acoustic style, experienced a revival, often commenting about social issues including war, work, civil unrest, economic hardship, as well as love songs and non‑topical comedy themes. As the roots of folk music predate many modern musical genres, influences came from all over the world, imported by immigrants to America from Europe and Asia, as well as traditional songs used by African slaves. During the Great Depression in the 1930s, America in particular experienced a booming folk scene. The record industry began to exploit folk songs as an alternative to other popular genres. One of the most significant folk singer/songwriters of the generation was Woody Guthrie, whose work in the 1930s and 1940s was often seen as a protest against rural injustice, and which has influenced many artists since. Other famous artists from the 1940s to the early 1960s included Pete Seeger, Joan Baez and Bob Dylan in America, Donovan, Ralph McTell and Martin Carthy in the UK, as well as Leonard Cohen, Joni Mitchell, and Buffy Sainte-Marie in Canada.

Swing music is a close relative of jazz and has its roots as early as the 1920s, becoming a dominant genre during the 1930s and 1940s, predominantly in urban cities such as Chicago, New York and Kansas City. It is notable because music with a strong ‘swing feel’ became popular dance music, especially in lively clubs that could accommodate swing ensembles. Swing was popularised by big band swing orchestras such as that led by Benny Goodman. Other famous swing artists included Glenn Miller and Tommy Dorsey. The ‘swing era’ lasted for about 10 years from 1935 to 1946, when popularity began to fade during and after World War II. Swing was also hugely influential in popular music with artists like Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Nat King Cole and Frank Sinatra. Dance crazes of the swing era included the jitterbug and the shag, which would evolve into dances later associated with genres such as R&B and rock ‘n’ roll. Swing and its derivatives have experienced a number of revivals in subsequent years.

Musical Facts 1930-1939

Day	Month	Year	Music Fact
15	January	1930	American Chicago blues guitarist working either solo or with other artists, Earl Hooker (1930-1970, 40) was born in Quitman County, Mississippi.
17	June	1930	American rock ‘n’ roll guitarist who played with Gene Vincent and His Blue Caps in the 1950s, Cliff Gallup (1930-1988, 58) was born in Norfolk, Virginia.
3	July	1930	Highly regarded, prolific American session guitarist, Tommy Tedesco (1930-1997, 67) was born in Niagara Falls, New York.
30	August	1930	American entrepreneur, musician and innovator of guitar equipment, Ernie Ball (1930-2004, 74) was born in Santa Monica, California.
29	April	1931	Scottish singer, songwriter and guitarist, often referred to as the ‘King of Skiffle’, Lonnie Donegan (1931-2002, 71) was born in Glasgow.
17	September	1931	Record company RCA-Victor first demonstrated the 33¹/₃rpm Long Playing (LP) record. Astoundingly, the vinyl ‘album’ is still going strong, even now.
5	November	1931	Controversial American R&B/soul guitarist, songwriter, producer and rock ‘n’ roll innovator, Ike Turner (1931-2007, 76) was born in Clarksdale, Mississippi.
16	November	1931	Influential American blues guitarist, singer and long-term member of Howlin’ Wolf’s band, Hubert Sumlin (1931-2011, 80) was born in Greenwood, Mississippi.
27	December	1931	Influential rock ‘n’ roll legend, American guitarist Scotty Moore (1931-2016, 84) who played with Elvis Presley in the early days was born in Gadsden, Tennessee.
26	February	1932	The great American country legend that is Mr Johnny Cash (1932-2003, 71) was born in Kingsland, Arkansas.
9	April	1932	Great American singer, songwriter and guitarist, Carl Perkins (1932-1998, 65) was born in Tiptonville, Tennessee.
1	October	1932	Legendary American blues/rock guitarist and singer, ‘the master of the Telecaster’ and ‘the ice man’, Albert Collins (1932-1993, 61) was born in Leona, Texas.
14	March	1933	Multi-award-winning American musician and record producer Quincy Jones was born in Chicago, Illinois.
29	April	1933	Legendary American outlaw country legend, guitarist, singer and songwriter, Willie Nelson was born in Abbott, Texas.
3	May	1933	Legendary American singer, songwriter and producer, often proclaimed as the ‘godfather of soul’, James Brown was born in Barnwell, South Carolina.
15	July	1933	English virtuoso classical guitarist and one of the very best musicians of his generation, Julian Bream was born in London.
3	November	1933	English composer of film and TV scores, including 11 James Bond film soundtracks and numerous theme tunes, John Barry OBE was born in York, Yorkshire.
29	November	1933	Legendary English blues/rock guitarist, singer, songwriter and founder of the Bluesbreakers, John Mayall OBE was born in Macclesfield, Cheshire.
7	February	1934	American blues singer, songwriter and guitarist, Earl King (1934-2003, 69) was born in New Orleans, Louisiana.
28	April	1934	Renowned American delta blues guitarist Charlie Patton died from a heart disorder in Sunflower County, Mississippi at the age of 43.
3	September	1934	Hugely influential American blues guitarist and one of the ‘Three Kings’ of blues guitar, Freddie King (1934-1976, 42) was born in Gilmer, Texas.
21	September	1934	Legendary Canadian guitarist, singer and songwriter, Leonard Cohen (1934-2016, 82) was born in Montreal, Quebec.
1	December	1934	American blues and ragtime guitarist Arthur ‘Blind’ Blake died from tuberculosis in Milwaukee, Wisconsin at the age of 38.
8	January	1935	American singer, guitarist and cultural icon that would become ‘The King’, Elvis Aaron Presley (1935-1977, 42) was born in Tupelo, Mississippi.
3	February	1935	Flamboyant American soul, blues and funk guitarist, singer and songwriter, Johnny ‘Guitar’ Watson (1935-1996, 61) was born in Houston, Texas.
29	April	1935	Influential American Chicago blues guitarist and singer, Otis Rush, (1935-2018, 84) was born in Philadelphia, Mississippi.
6	June	1935	American virtuoso jazz guitarist and composer Grant Green (1935-1979, 43) was born in St Louis, Missouri.
17	October	1935	English dairy farmer and founder of the world famous Glastonbury Music Festival from 1970 to date, Michael Eavis was born in Pilton Somerset.
22	April	1936	Great American singer, songwriter and guitarist, Glen Campbell (1936-2017, 81) was born in Billstown, Arkansas.
30	July	1936	Legendary and highly influential American Chicago Blues guitarist and singer, George ‘Buddy’ Guy was born in Lettsworth, Louisiana.
7	September	1936	Legendary American rock ‘n’ roll star, guitarist, singer and songwriter, Buddy Holly (1936-1959, 22) was born in Lubbock, Texas.
24	October	1936	English bass guitarist, singer, songwriter, producer, former member of rock band The Rolling Stones and bandleader with The Rhythm Kings, Bill Wyman was born in London.
6	April	1937	Acclaimed American country singer, songwriter and guitarist, Merle Haggard (1937-2016, 79) was born in Oildale, California.
4	May	1937	Influential American surf rock guitarist often referred to as ‘the king of the surf guitar’ Dick Dale (1937-2019, 81) was born in Boston, Massachusetts.
15	May	1937	Renowned American guitarist, singer and actor, Trinidad ‘Trini’ Lopez III was born in Dallas, Texas.
15	June	1937	Influential American country guitarist and singer, Waylon Jennings (1937-2002, 64) was born in Littlefield, Texas.
13	January	1938	Australian guitarist, singer, songwriter and co-founder of psychedelic rock bands Soft Machine and Gong, Daevid Allen (1938-2015, 77) was born in Melbourne, Victoria.
25	January	1938	Grammy award-winning artist and Hall of Famer, legendary American songstress, Etta James was born in Los Angeles, California.
26	April	1938	American rock ‘n’ roll guitarist who became famous for his signature ‘twang’ guitar sound, Duane Eddy was born in Corning, New York.
16	August	1938	Legendary American blues guitarist Robert Johnson died in mysterious circumstances in Greenwood, Mississippi at the age of 27. The bizarre mythology surrounding Johnson’s life and demise continues to deepen with time.
3	October	1938	Legendary American singer and guitarist, Eddie Cochran (1938-1960, 21) was born in Albert Lea, Minnesota.
5	December	1938	Highly influential American guitarist, singer and songwriter, J.J. Cale (1938-2013, 74) was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
18	December	1938	English bass guitarist with The Animals, record producer and manager of both Slade and Jimi Hendrix, Chas Chandler (1938-1996, 57) was born in Newcastle upon Tyne.
2	April	1939	American singer, Motown soul legend and multi-award winning artist, Marvin Gaye was born in Washington DC.
4	April	1939	Incomparable English double bass guitarist who has collaborated with artists like John Martyn and Richard Thompson to great effect, Danny Thompson was born in Teignmouth, Devon.
28	July	1939	American singer and actress, Judy Garland recorded the perennial all‑time‑favourite song, ‘Over The Rainbow’ from the classic feature film, ‘The Wizard Of Oz’.
21	August	1939	Hall of Famer and prolific American guitarist and collaborator extraordinaire, James Burton was born in Dubberly, Louisiana.
23	September	1939	Influential American blues/rock guitarist Roy Buchanan (1939-1988, 48) was born in Ozark, Arkansas.
26	November	1939	American-born Swiss soul/R&B/pop singer, songwriter and actress Tina Turner was born in (where else?) Nutbush, Tennessee.
26	December	1939	Famous but volatile American ‘Wall of Sound’ record producer Phil Spector was born in New York. He is currently serving a 19-year prison sentence in California for the murder of actress Lana Clarkson in 2003.

Tailpiece

Phew! That was a bit of a 20‑year roller coaster. However, this still hasn’t got us to point at which ‘modern music’ arguably really begins, i.e. from the emergence of rock ‘n’ roll and will ultimately bring us up‑to‑date. However, it is a fascinating insight into not only what the rapidly growing global population got up to but also how this was inextricably linked to how music was also progressing. Social culture and music are symbiotically interdependent – culture shapes and stimulates music and music reflects and influences culture. The 20 years covered in this article are therefore fundamental building blocks of the unstoppable development that will lead us to rock ‘n’ roll and beyond. The next article will, hopefully, bridge the gap from the start of WWII to the ground-breaking events that would take place in the 1950s.

Watch this space and make sure you tune in, same time same place next month. I can’t wait… can you? Until next time…

CRAVE Guitars ‘Quote of the Month’: “Don’t try to learn from geniuses how to be a genius. They are unique. Think for yourself and you are a genius, even if no-one else notices. That is also integrity.”

← Return to ‘Musings’ page

Like it? Why not share it?

Etta James