The Influence of Protest Music during the 1960’s And Beyond Essay examples

Folk rock in the sixties inherited the tradition of country and western. In the 1960s, the main representatives of folk rock were Joan Baez, The Byrds, Bob Dylan, and so on. However, the most important folk rock singer is Bob Dylan, who was the first and the most important folk rock music creator. Known as the “protest song singer”, for the entire 1960s, Bob Dylan 's music strongly affected young people that were in the wandering and confusion. It was like a banner, a totem, and a pioneer, helped the the youth from the 1960s generation of found the sustenance of their ideals.

The evolution of the 1960s “protest song” has typically been associated with Joni Mitchell, but the expanding range of protest songs in the 1970s defines her continued presence as a leader in terms of environmental activism. More than just a vestige of the late 1960s, Mitchell continued to write protest songs long after many other artists from the 1960s had changed their lyrical content. In the “mellow turn” of early 1970s country rock and folk music, Mitchell represented a new environmental shift that moved away from the proto-typical antiwar songs of the 1960s. Mitchell, along with other musicians of this era, defined a shifting musical focus on songwriting and musical presentation during the early 1970as:

In a broader context, protest musicians composed songs about student protests in which they firmly sided with the protesters, supporting their actions and condemning those trying to stop the protests. (OnlyEverArabella, n.d.). The ideas were expressed in music as it served as a form of publicity and promotion for the counterculture community during this era. The government continuously tried to prevent media coverage about these movements but their music simply spoke the

The Sixties were an exciting revolutionary period of time with great social and technological change. Some people called it the “decade of discontent” because of the race riots in Detroit and La, and the demonstrations against the Vietnam War. Other people called it the decade of “peace, love, and harmony”. It was called this because of the peace movement and the emergence of the flower children. (Britannica) The sixties were about assassination, unforgettable fashion, new styles of music, civil rights, gay and women’s liberation, Vietnam, Neil Armstrong landing on the moon, peace marches, sexual freedom, drug experimentation, and Woodstock. All of these components caused a revolutionary change in the world of popular Music.

“The rise of rock ‘n’ roll and the reception of it, in fact, can tell us a lot about the culture and values of the United States in the 1950s. According to historians James Gilbert, there was a struggle throughout the decade ‘over the uses of popular culture to determine who would speak to what audience, and for what purpose”. At the center of that struggle, rock ‘n’ roll unsettled a nation had been “living in an ‘age of anxiety’” since 1945” (p.15). Altschuler talks about how music and race interlock with one another. Rock had become a “highly visible and contested arena for struggles over racial identity and cultural and economic empowerment in the United States” (p.35). Other chapters within the book state the battles involving sexuality, generational conflicts, as well as other social issues. The author states ideas that are somewhat problematic. For example, he states that there is a myth that rock ‘n’ roll went into a “lull” following the payola hearings (the practice of record promoters paying DJs or radio programmers to play their labels ' songs) of 1959 and did not come about again until the arrival of the Beatles in 1964.

Freedom songs were a key element to the development of the Civil Rights movement in the 1950s and 1960s. During mass meetings, marches, and violent confrontations, music offered an outlet for people to express their emotions and a place to draw courage from. The ability of songs to draw together communities in order to build morale and support for the movement, while reaffirming the need for a nonviolent Movement in America during this period of time, profoundly contributed to the development of protest movements across the nation. However, though freedom songs appeared in many styles during the 1960s, with songs such as “We Shall Overcome” and those associated with Black Power like “Mississippi Goddamn” appearing in the same period, the role

Protest music was an effective tool used as a weapon in peaceful protest in America during their involvement in the Vietnam War. Singers and songwriters would express their views through the lyrics of their songs, effectively spreading awareness and informing people about the changes that need to take place, and the ideas of peace over war. Protest music was a major contributor in the escalating support for the peace movements, as well as many other movements, against the horrors of the Vietnam War and increasing acts of sexism, racism and the lack of equality in America in the 1950s and 1960s. Many famous artists took the initiative to write protest songs to spread awareness about the cause, generating a broader impact and having different

Protest music still keeps going on and even influences today’s major conflicts. There were many music artists that helped bring the movements of the 60’s to another level. Protest music helped create the anti war community. Bob Dylan was one of the most influential music artist when

The Antiwar Protest began in the late 1950s and early 1960s.(Zimmerman) The protest effort centered around two groups: peace groups formed by left-wing activists that opposed the Cold War and America’s interference in other countries along with a group of students that felt the government was high-handed and unjust, SDS.(Zimmerman) Early on, the groups formulated a plan to bring about the change they sought by using the press, literature, music, and the public domain.(Zimmerman) The Antiwar Protest used three rhetorical strategies: empathy, shock value, and symbolic actions.(Trodd) Of the three strategies, the movement relied most heavily on shock value. Professor Trodd explains shock value as a strategy that “inspires outrage, agitation, and a desire to correct social ills”.(Trodd) Bill Zimmerman, an antiwar protest leader, explains the shock value was the most effective because once seen, the images were hard to remove from your mind: He recounts the most glaringly shocking images being of clergy dumping blood on draft records and young student protesters shouting, “Hey, hey, LBJ, how many kids did you kill today?” while holding photographs of slaughtered soldiers.(Zimmerman) The images and the chants stirred anger, aroused tension, and motivated protest which is exactly what Trodd believes the protest politics of shock value will do. Musicians such as Jimi Hendrix, Bob Dylan, and Joan Baez used their music to

During the 1960’s protest songs were a big way for musical artists to put forth their opinions and stances, on controversial events happening in the US, into the American public. Songs by these artists in the 60’s, were able to connect to many of the feelings of American citizens on controversial issues that many were afraid to speak out against, through their messages and lyrics. One song that spoke to several people, on the topic of Civil Rights in America, was “A Change Is Gonna Come” by Sam Cooke because of the songs ability to connect greatly with the black community. It was able to tap into the anger and frustration that many felt because of the racism and prejudice. It also was able to tap into the many hopeful thoughts that individuals were having in this time too. This song was able to connect to not only to the

Throughout all the anti-war protests and marches during the Vietnam War, it is interesting to note the changes in the music of that time. From the beginning of the war, where support and loyalty from Americans was present in songs, to the end of the war, where anger and distrust was evident in musical lyrics, American’s opinion changed about the war. This change in opinion was easily recognized by the altering of musical lyrics about the war when Americans grew tired of the constant sending of U.S. troops to Vietnam. The growing dissatisfaction with the Vietnam War led to increasing levels of anger and hostility in the popular music of the time.

Protest music in the United States dates back to the 19th century. This protest music focused around subjects that were topical for the time period. Among these topics were the Civil War. Another topic was slavery, and its abolition. A final topic was women’s suffrage.

Some may argue that the sixties displayed a decade of leaderless communities, major protest, white lash, and violent responses to what was called the Civil Rights movement. Although popular leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcom X made changes in these communities, their efforts were short lived, (and a dialogue is still be had). While Anderson’s approach to discuss the events of the sixties showed readers his unbiased focus on social protest, racism, riots, and other injustices done in the U. S. to minorities, Anderson failed to correlate how much of an impact music had on the communities by misinterpretation and inaccurate quotes to lyrics. This paper will discuss the narrative’s mastery of laying out the history of an entire

I will be reviewing the website entitled The 60s and Protest Movies. This website outlines the historical and political impact of music released in the 1960s. Due to the political and social climate in the 60s, musicians used their platforms to take a political stance. I chose to review this website because I believe that music can impact the world in a very serious way. In the modern age, people place a lot of weight in what the famous say and do, especially if they idolize them. I loved this website, as it allowed me to learn about how music, an art, has effected war culture. I wish this website had included more visuals to make the content more relatable, to those who cannot remember these events happening in

To understand the sixties counterculture, we must understand the important role of Bob Dylan. His lyrics fueled the rebellious youth in America. Songs such as “Blowin’ in the Wind” and “The Times are A-Changin” made him favorable to anti-war demonstrators and supporters of the Civil Rights movement. He was commonly hailed as the spokesman for his generation. Dylan used lyrics to allow the youth to find their own form of counter-culture. The youth generation began to see the effects racism, war, etc. effect the society in America. To combat this, the youth created their own form of counter-culture to promote a peaceful change within society. Some of their actions include forming anti-war protests that opposed America’s involvement in the Vietnam War, and supporting African Americans/women get the rights they deserve through the Civil Rights Movement. Bob Dylan’s music appealed to the young generation because he openly expresses his disapproval of the establishment in order to influenced his audience to move in a direction for change. Counterculture youth rejected cultural norms of the previous generation and their values and lifestyles opposed the mainstream culture present in the 1950’s. The folk music revival of the early 1960s, as well as the counter-culture movement played an important role in advocating change. Bob Dylan wrote songs that influenced the Civil Rights Movement, New Left Movement, and Anti-War Movement.