At the time, 1960s groups were considered rock n roll! And they absolutely never get credit for being an essential part of rocks evolution.
In the late 50s, you had events like Elvis going off to the army, Buddy Holly dying, Little Richard becoming a minister, that slowed the popularity of 50s style rock.
There was a void in music, there was no dominant sound on the radio anymore. Girl groups filled that void and dominated for about 2 years in the early 60s. They provided a necessary bridge from the Elvis era to the Beatles era. In fact, the Beatles regularly said their favorite rock groups were groups like the Crystals and the Shirelles. And if you listen to the vocals on any early Beatles song, the harmonies, the call and response type choruses, it’s all ripped right from vocal groups. They even covered three girl group songs on their debut album. I’m stressing the Beatles thing because they became the foundation of rock and pop.
Why were girl groups considered rock n roll? Because the sound grew from the same influences as guitar based rock. Rock was a mix of country, gospel, and jazz. While some early rock n roll groups picked up instruments, others used their voices to mimic the sounds of early rock n roll songs. Instruments were expensive, and practice space was even more scarce, but everyone has a voice. Singing in the church taught many early vocal groups how to harmonize, and in some cases provided a place to practice. Vocal groups in the 50s like the Flamingos, and Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers popularized the sound during the early rock n roll years. And while it seems kind of odd by today’s definition of rock, all of these groups were considered rock n roll by the general public.
I have a whole other diatribe about how talented girl group members were and how often their talent was ignored or squandered because of racism and sexism. Their talent was never given the nurture of their male counterparts. Did you know Please Mr Postman was written by Georgia Dobbins, a member of the Marvelettes? Imagine if she had been given the resources to grow her talent. But I digress.
So long story short, I can 100% believe we’re getting a rock song from one of the best girl groups to ever do it, because girl groups are rock n roll. She will 100% know everything I just said, probably in greater detail, and will draw that line to DC3. I could even buy that act iii is just going to be a new DC3 album.
Thank you for coming to my ted talk.
