25.08 Conclusion

Overview

In this lesson, we will consider the genre of hard rock, which emerged in the late 1960s and the early 1970s. The genre of hard rock grew out of the psychedelic rock tradition as well as the British blues revival movement. Like psychedelic rock, it focused on loud, distorted electric guitars. Like the blues, it was riff-based. The “hardness” of hard rock came from an emphasis on the bass guitar as well as on the bass drum. Most of the early hard rock groups began their careers by playing either psychedelic rock or blues, or sometimes both genres. The pioneering hard rock group Led Zeppelin began as a last-minute replacement for the Yardbirds and grew into one of the most successful rock bands of the 1970s.

Objectives

Identify the defining musical characteristics of hard rock
Identify the important predecessors and early examples hard rock music and musicians
Examine Led Zeppelin’s career
Identify the defining musical characteristics of Led Zeppelin’s style

Conclusion

Deep Purple

Hard rock grew from the psychedelic rock and blues traditions into a heavy, riff-based rock genre. Early groups such as Deep Purple, Iron Butterfly, and Steppenwolf recorded some early examples of hard rock, but in general, Led Zeppelin is regarded as the quintessential example of a hard rock group from the 1970s. Not only did their music come to represent the genre, but they also played a crucial role in the development of arena rock and the importance of album-oriented rock. Further, they established a formal structure in their music that many rock bands would follow and continue to follow into the present day.

“From the first album, Led Zeppelin was always going to be a totally new approach from what had gone before - whether it was approaching the blues or folk music like 'Babe I'm Gonna Leave You': nothing existed like that.”

- Jimmy Page

“Our intent with Led Zeppelin was not to get caught up in the singles' market, but to make albums where you could really flex your muscles - your musical intellect, if you like - and challenge yourself.”

-Jimmy Page

"Led Zeppelin's version [of "Dazed and Confused"] was not credited to Jake Holmes, as Page felt that he changed enough of the melody and added enough new lyrics to escape a plagiarism lawsuit. While Holmes took no action at the time, he did later contact Page regarding the matter. Holmes finally filed a lawsuit in 2010...Holmes settled with Page and the case was dismissed on January 17, 2012."

Songfacts