A MUSICAL NOTE

http://www.lastfm.es/music/Jimi+Hendrix

The history of rock ´n ´roll

Rock ´n´roll started in the United States with black musicians, the great rhythm ´n´blues players: Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker and Chuck Berry.
Forty years ago black music were two completely separate things. Chuck Berry was the first black musician to cross the barrier and sell records to both black and white young people. His songs were about lives of teenagers - all teenagers. In 1958 he had a big hit with Sweet Little Sixteen.
In the 1960s the style of the musicians changed a lot. Before this time singers used to dress smartly and have short hair. Now there were groups, not solo singers. And they started to wear crazy clothes and their hair got longer and longer.
By 1968 groups were all in ´hippie´gear. The guitar became as important as the voice: Jimmi Hendrix and Eric Clapton were guitarists more than singers.
In the 1970s rock went in two different directions. On the soft side,Elton John, Rod Stewart and the Swedish group Abba became very popular with people of all ages. On the hard side, The Sex Pistols, The Stranglers, Siouxie and the Banshees, and a few other bands started to play loud, violent music called `punk`. Punk was also important as a fashion in clothes. The punk `look`is still around today.
Something new and different arrived in 1975. It came from Jamaica in the Caribbean. It had a heavy dance beat, but was not too fast. It was called `reggae, and its superstar was Bob Marley. Reggae was a mix of rock, African and South American music. It had a message of peace and optimism. Marley sang:

`Don`t you worry about a thing
`Cos every little thing
Gonna be all right.`

Today there are a number of different popular music styles - pop, heavy metal, rap, dance, indie. But they all originate from good old rock `n`roll.

http://web.bobmarley.com/index.jsp
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFGgbT_VasI