The 70s - Two Tone

In the late 1950s, a genre emerged in Jamaica known as ‘Ska’ – the genre coming about after the two genres ‘rocksteady’ and reggae were combined, and the influence of R and B that was being played on the radios was included. Ska became popular throughout Jamaica, and became one of its stereotypical genres. The sound that was created lends its influence to Two Tone – the offbeat guitar strokes and reggae style drum beat being the biggest influences.
Taking inspiration from this genre, in the late 1970s the ‘second wave’ of ska was born. This time based in England, more notably around the Coventry area, the second wave of ska was to be better known as ‘Two Tone’ (named after the record company set up by Jerry Dammers of The Specials). The sound of Two Tone was similar to that of the first wave – off beat guitar strokes and a drumming style adapted from Reggae. Two Tone also featured a lot of keyboards, but mainly as background melody, not playing a vital role in the song. Another technique that was adapted from the first wave of ska was the use of delay on the vocals. This was used widely throughout the second wave of ska, featuring in music by both The Specials and Madness. Most notably, however, are the brass sections that were common in ska music. These were adapted from the original first wave, and featured a lead role in most Two Tone ska songs, often having their own solo section. Saxophones were the main instrument featured, and also trombones and trumpets. The most respected trombonist to come from the second wave of ska is Rico Rodriguez, who has gone on to perform with many other bands and ensembles, most notable of which is Jools Holland’s band.
The lyrical content of ska music varied from band to band, mostly depending on what each individual band was about. Bands such as The Specials and The Beat adopted a political stance, writing songs about the current situation in England and even writing protest songs, often against the rule of the Conservative party and Margaret Thatcher (an example of this is ‘Stand Down Margaret’ by The Beat (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=urLRoVUzg3Q )). This angle made up most of ska, many of the songs being a social commentary or protesting about the current situation in Britain, but as an exception there were bands such as Madness and Bad Manners who had a totally different style, being much more poppy, fun, and mad with songs that were about silly things that didn’t really matter to anyone, such as Baggy Trousers by Madness (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJOLwy7un3U) and Special Brew by Bad Manners (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pa_PbyWUZ4Q). The extent of this silliness is to be found in Special Brew, as it is basically about Bad Manners’ lead singer’s (Busta Bloodvessel) love for the lager ‘Special Brew’. Other notable Two Tone bands include The Body Snatchers and The Selector.
There was a very significant logo attached to ska, and that was the logo of Two Tone Records. The black and white checked logo became the logo which became attached to ska, and also to symbolise racial unity (many ska bands, such as The Specials, featured both black and white band members). The image that accompanied this logo was black and white suits – this was to mock the higher classes, as many of the ska bands were working class, and also to symbolise racial unity. Two Tone also made popular a new type of dance, known as the ‘skank dance’, which was basically running on the spot in a jaunty style. Suggs from Madness often performed this dance whilst on stage and performing in music videos. Ska even brought with it a nickname – ‘rudeboy’ became a popular name shared amongst ska fans and bands, and was derived from ska’s Jamaican roots; A rudeboy was a derogative term used to describe someone who was unemployed or a criminal.
Since the arrival and demise of Two Tone, a third wave of ska had emerged, being most popular in the late 80s – early 90s. The difference, however, was it originated in America. The third wave featured most of the things heard in Two Tone, but combined with a rockier sound. The brass sections and off beat upstrokes remained, but it featured a much rockier drum beat.

The 80s - New Romantics

New Romantics, sometimes referred to as New Romanticism, was a UK scene that became popular in the early 1980s, bringing with it a distinctive style of music but also a very prolific lifestyle and image. The New Romantic movement originated and stayed largely in London, but went on to influence bands all over the UK.

The New Romantic scene was known most of all for the culture that surrounded it. New Romanticism included a very hedonistic lifestyle. New Romantics were often partying and taking drugs, leading very wild lifestyles and often squatting in boarded up houses. Androgyny was also a big part of the New Romantic movement, many of the men wearing make-up and even dressing up as women. This is seen as very unusual nowadays but during the time this was very normal.

The main hub for this new movement was in Billy’s club in London, which became well known for running Roxy Music and David Bowie nights in the late 1970s (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_romantics). Because of the growing popularity of this, club organizers Steve Strange and Rusty Egan had to relocate to a bigger venue which they called The Blitz. The Blitz club became famous for its strict door policy (you were turned away if you lacked creativity in whatever it was you were wearing, and had to try harder the following week), enforced by Steve Strange who was working as doorman to the club. Even though it was a larger club, however, there was still a limited amount of people who could fit into the club, making the club and the scene even more exclusive. The club was that strict on its door policy that, famously, Steve Strange turned away Mick Jagger for not being glamorous enough. People who were regulars of the Blitz club became known as ‘Blitz Kids’, named after the club.

It is said that David Bowie is the ‘godfather’ of the new romantic scene, and has believed to be for many years. This is largely because of the androgyny of his character ‘Ziggy Stardust’, and the way he looked like neither a man nor woman. Steve Strange went on to appear in the video for ‘Ashes to Ashes’, which is said to be ‘an anthem for the New Romantics’ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_romantics). Record labels realized they could turn these New Romantics into pop stars and that is how the image is linked to the music. It is said that the New Romantic scene was a reaction to the punk movement of the 1970s, however it is also said that the New Romantic scene is also an extension to this scene, replacing the raw sound of punk with the cutting edge sound of synthesizers, which were just being introduced into music at the time. Many people who were linked with the early days of New Romanticism believe the New Romantic scene was not a reaction, but merely an extension of the Punk scene of the 1970s. New Romanticism also entered the media, with magazines such as ‘The Face’ and ‘iD’ were devoted to New Romantic artists and culture.

Bands such as Visage and Culture Club were among the first to appear in the charts, with bands such as Spandau Ballet, Human League and Duran Duran appearing shortly afterwards. All these bands were similar in that they featured keyboards as the main instrument, usually playing the melody. There were also a lot of synthesized drums featured in New Romantic music, as these had just been invented as well. Where bands like Human League and Ultravox (Midge Ure of Visage’s second band) featured quite an intense synthesized sound, Duran Duran were more pop, and definitely had a funk influence, conveyed by the heavy slap bass lines and guitar chords progressions that can be heard consistently throughout all their music. The videos for some New Romantic songs often told a story, and were quite high quality. A good example of this is ‘Don’t You Want Me Baby?’ by The Human League.

New Romanticism has gone on to influence a lot of modern bands and genres, chief among which would be 90s electronic music and the Nu Rave scene of the 00s. Synthesizers were used heavily in 90s electronic music, replacing the need for musicians and often replacing them with a pair of decks. The same can be said about the Nu Rave scene of the 00s, bands such as Does It Offend You, Yeah? And Klaxons using synthesizers as main instruments, incorporating bass and guitar lines into it, and also using vocoders and vocal effects which sometimes cropped up in 80s New Romantic Music.

The 90s - Britpop

Britpop was one of the UK’s main genres of music during the 90s, reaching its peak at around 1995-96. It could be said that Britpop was based around Manchester, and this is true in many cases but some important bands came from towns such as Sheffield and London. Camden played a very important role in the succession of Britpop, many of the bands performing in clubs around that area. It is said that Britpop was there to counteract the American Grunge Scene.

The music featured very little in the way of instruments, a step down from the keyboard-laden music of the 80s, mainly consisting of a rhythm guitar, a lead guitar, a bass guitar, a drummer and a singer. Occasionally Britpop music did feature keyboards, a good example of this being Pulp who relied quite heavily upon keyboards to create melodies.

The lyrical content of Britpop music is inspired mainly about real life, slightly echoing the ‘sex, drugs and rock n roll’ of rock bands of the 70s. Lyrics of Britpop songs often contained swear words, references to drugs and even past relationships.

Significant artists of the Britpop era were Oasis, Blur, Suede, The Charlatans, Pulp and The Verve, The Stone Roses and Happy Mondays forming the origins in the late 80s, early 90s. Britpop bands were often pitted together, the most famous example of this being Oasis vs. Blur.

Britpop music is very much inspired by bands of the 60s and 70s. Classic examples of these bands are The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who, The Kinks, The Sex Pistols and even David Bowie. Certain Britpop bands can be associated with a single band from a previous era, Oasis drawing a lot of influence from The Beatles, and Suede drawing a lot of influence from David Bowie. Later influences of Britpop included the ‘Madchester’ scene of the late 80s, which consisted of bands like Inspiral Carpets, Happy Mondays and The Stone Roses. Subsequently, Britpop has gone on to influence such modern day bands as Arctic Monkeys and The Libertines.

One of the heaviest influences of Britpop music was the ‘Madchester’ scene. Fronting this scene were bands such as The Stone Roses, Happy Mondays and Inspiral Carpets (who’s roadie was Noel Gallagher). These formed the foundation for Britpop bands that were later to come.

Important albums from the Britpop era include ‘Definitely Maybe/What’s the Story Morning Glory’ by Oasis, ‘Parklife’ by Blur and The Stone Roses’ self titled debut album, the most important of these probably being The Stone Roses’ debut album as this was the origin of Britpop, and went on to influence bands of the same genre later on. Happy Mondays’ ‘Pills ‘n’ Thrills and Bellyaches’ could be said to be an important album as it was released before the influx of Britpop and can be said to be somewhat of an influence. Happy Mondays’ and The Stone Roses’ albums could be classed as Britpop but were more part of the ‘Madchester’ scene of the late 80s.

Singles from this era that are very important include Oasis’ ‘Live Forever’, Blur’s ‘Parklife’, Pulp’s ‘Common People’ and many others. A famous clash between Oasis and Blur happened when Oasis released ‘Roll With It’ on the same day as Blur released ‘Country House’, the end result being Noel Gallagher wishing Blur’s Damon Albarn and Alex James would catch AIDS and die. Noel later apologized for this statement, but it shows how fierce the rivalry became.

The image of Britpop was very, very patriotic, the clue being in the title. Britpop can often be associated with the Union Jack, the flag appearing all over magazines featuring Britpop artists, and to the extent of Noel Gallagher playing a guitar decorated with the Union Jack. The fashion of the Britpop era was derived heavily from the Mod scene, with parka coats being all the rage at the time.

The society and culture that surrounded Britpop was very British and very working class. A lot of working class people could associate with the lyrical content and style of the Britpop bands, and this was also reflected in the media through magazines such as NME and Melody Maker, who featured a Britpop band of some kind in every issue. The Oasis vs. Blur rivalry manifested itself heavily through magazines and newspapers such as NME and The Sun. Another part of the Britpop culture was the ‘lad’ culture, however Britpop was not exclusive to men, as bands such as Suede and Elastica contained female band members.

Bibliography

www.wikipedia.org

www.google.co.uk

www.last.fm