Portal:Rock music

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Rock is a broad genre of popular music that originated as "rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles from the mid-1960s, particularly in the United States and the United Kingdom. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, a style that drew directly from the blues and rhythm and blues genres of African-American music and from country music. Rock also drew strongly from genres such as electric blues and folk, and incorporated influences from jazz and other musical styles. For instrumentation, rock has centered on the electric guitar, usually as part of a rock group with electric bass guitar, drums, and one or more singers. Usually, rock is song-based music with a ⁴
₄ time signature using a verse–chorus form, but the genre has become extremely diverse. Like pop music, lyrics often stress romantic love but also address a wide variety of other themes that are frequently social or political. Rock was the most popular genre of music in the U.S. and much of the Western world from the 1950s to the 2010s.

Rock musicians in the mid-1960s began to advance the album ahead of the single as the dominant form of recorded music expression and consumption, with the Beatles at the forefront of this development. Their contributions lent the genre a cultural legitimacy in the mainstream and initiated a rock-informed album era in the music industry for the next several decades. By the late 1960s "classic rock" period, a number of distinct rock music subgenres had emerged, including hybrids like blues rock, folk rock, country rock, southern rock, raga rock, and jazz rock, which contributed to the development of psychedelic rock, influenced by the countercultural psychedelic and hippie scene. New genres that emerged included progressive rock, which extended artistic elements, and glam rock, which highlighted showmanship and visual style. In the second half of the 1970s, punk rock reacted by producing stripped-down, energetic social and political critiques. Punk was an influence in the 1980s on new wave, post-punk and eventually alternative rock.

From the 1990s, alternative rock began to dominate rock music and break into the mainstream in the form of grunge, Britpop, and indie rock. Further fusion subgenres have since emerged, including pop-punk, electronic rock, rap rock, and rap metal. Some movements were conscious attempts to revisit rock's history, including the garage rock/post-punk revival in the 2000s. Since the 2010s, rock has lost its position as the pre-eminent popular music genre in world culture, but remains commercially successful. The increased influence of hip-hop and electronic dance music can be seen in rock music, notably in the techno-pop scene of the early 2010s and the pop-punk-hip-hop revival of the 2020s. (Full article...)

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The following are images from various rock music-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Tommy Steele, one of the first British rock and rollers, performing in Stockholm in 1957 (from Rock and roll)
Image 2Drum notation for a backbeat (from Hard rock)
Image 3"There's No Romance in Rock and Roll" made the cover of True Life Romance in 1956. (from Rock and roll)
Image 4The Who on stage in 1975 (from Hard rock)
Image 5Chuck Berry in 1957 (from Rock and roll)
Image 6Little Richard in 1957 (from Rock and roll)
Image 7Golden Earring receives a gold record in 1970. (from Hard rock)
Image 8Buddy Holly and his band, the Crickets (from Rock and roll)
Image 9Big Joe Turner and Pete Johnson's record "Roll 'Em Pete" is regarded as a precursor to rock and roll. (from Rock and roll)
Image 10Baker, Bruce and Clapton of Cream, whose blues rock improvisation was a major factor in the development of the genre (from Hard rock)
Image 11Kiss onstage in Boston in 2004 (from Hard rock)
Image 12Rush on stage in Milan, Italy, 2004 (from Hard rock)
Image 13Sign commemorating the role of Alan Freed and Cleveland, Ohio, in the origins of rock and roll (from Rock and roll)
Image 14Nirvana were at the forefront of the 1990s grunge era. (from Hard rock)
Image 15Bill Haley and his Comets performing in the 1954 Universal International film Round Up of Rhythm (from Rock and roll)
Image 16Led Zeppelin live at Chicago Stadium, January 1975 (from Hard rock)
Image 17Elvis Presley in a promotion shot for Jailhouse Rock in 1957 (from Rock and roll)
Image 18Aerosmith performing at Quilmes Rock in Buenos Aires, Argentina on April 15, 2007 (from Hard rock)
Image 19Wolfmother, 2007 (from Hard rock)
Image 20Foo Fighters performing an acoustic show in 2007 (from Hard rock)
Image 21Poison, seen here in 2008, were among the most successful acts of the 1980s glam metal era. (from Hard rock)
Image 22Original member Izzy Stradlin' on stage with Guns N' Roses in 2006 (from Hard rock)

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U2 are an Irish rock band formed in Dublin in 1976. The group consists of Bono (lead vocals and rhythm guitar), the Edge (lead guitar, keyboards, and backing vocals), Adam Clayton (bass guitar), and Larry Mullen Jr. (drums and percussion). Initially rooted in post-punk, U2's musical style has evolved throughout their career, yet has maintained an anthemic quality built on Bono's expressive vocals and the Edge's chiming, effects-based guitar sounds. Bono's lyrics, often embellished with spiritual imagery, focus on personal and sociopolitical themes. Popular for their live performances, the group have staged several elaborate tours over their career.

The band was formed when the members were teenaged pupils of Mount Temple Comprehensive School and had limited musical proficiency. Within four years, they signed with Island Records and released their debut album, Boy (1980). Works such as their first UK number-one album, War (1983), and singles "Sunday Bloody Sunday" and "Pride (In the Name of Love)" helped establish U2's reputation as a politically and socially conscious group. Their fourth album, The Unforgettable Fire (1984), was their first collaboration with producers Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois, whose influence resulted in a more abstract, ambient sound for the band. By the mid-1980s, U2 had become renowned globally for their live act, highlighted by their performance at Live Aid in 1985. Their fifth album, The Joshua Tree (1987), made them international stars and was their greatest critical and commercial success. One of the world's best-selling albums with 25 million copies sold, it produced the group's only number-one singles in the US to date: "With or Without You" and "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For".

Facing creative stagnation and a backlash to their documentary and double album Rattle and Hum (1988), U2 reinvented themselves in the 1990s. Beginning with their acclaimed seventh album, Achtung Baby (1991), and the multimedia spectacle of the Zoo TV Tour, the band pursued a new musical direction influenced by alternative rock, electronic dance music, and industrial music, and they embraced a more ironic, flippant image. This experimentation continued on Zooropa (1993) and concluded with Pop (1997) and the PopMart Tour, which were mixed successes. U2 regained critical and commercial favour with the records All That You Can't Leave Behind (2000) and How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb (2004), returning to a more conventional, mainstream sound. Although their twelfth album, No Line on the Horizon (2009), did not meet commercial expectations, the supporting U2 360° Tour of 2009–2011 set records for the highest-attended and highest-grossing concert tour, both of which stood until 2019. In the 2010s, U2 released two companion albums: Songs of Innocence (2014), which received criticism for its pervasive, no-cost release through the iTunes Store; and Songs of Experience (2017). In 2023, U2 released Songs of Surrender, an album of re-recorded songs, and began the U2:UV Achtung Baby concert residency at the Sphere in the Las Vegas Valley.

U2 have released 15 studio albums and are one of the world's best-selling music artists, having sold an estimated 150–170 million records worldwide. They have won 22 Grammy Awards, more than any other band, and in 2005, they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility. Rolling Stone ranked U2 at number 22 on its list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". Throughout their career, as a band and as individuals, they have campaigned for human rights and social justice causes, working with organisations and coalitions that include Amnesty International, Jubilee 2000, DATA/the ONE Campaign, Product Red, War Child, and Music Rising. (Full article...)

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Noel Thomas David Gallagher (born 29 May 1967) is an English musician, singer and songwriter. He was the primary songwriter, lead guitarist and co-lead vocalist of the rock band Oasis until their split in 2009. After leaving Oasis, he formed Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds. He is one of the most successful songwriters in British music history, as the writer of eight UK number-one singles and co-writer of a further number one, as well as the sole or primary writer of ten UK number-one studio albums. He is widely considered to be one of the most influential songwriters in the history of British rock music, cited by numerous major subsequent artists as an influence.

Gallagher began playing the guitar at the age of twelve, and became a roadie and technician for Inspiral Carpets when he was 21. He learnt that his younger brother Liam had joined a band called the Rain, which eventually became Oasis; Liam invited him to join the group as manager. After rejecting the offer, Gallagher agreed to join the band, on the condition that he would take creative control of the group and become its sole songwriter and lead guitarist.

The band's debut album, Definitely Maybe (1994), was a widespread critical and commercial success. Their second album, (What's the Story) Morning Glory? (1995), reached the top of the album charts in many countries, and their third studio album, Be Here Now (1997), became the fastest-selling album in UK chart history. Britpop eventually declined in popularity, and Oasis failed to revive it, though their final two albums, Don't Believe the Truth (2005) and Dig Out Your Soul (2008), were hailed as their best efforts in over a decade. In August 2009, following an altercation with his brother, Gallagher announced his departure from Oasis. He went on to form Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, with whom he has released four studio albums.

Oasis's time was marked by turbulence, especially during the peak of Britpop, during which Gallagher was involved in several disputes with Liam; their conflicts and wild lifestyles regularly made tabloid headlines. The band notably had a rivalry with fellow Britpop band Blur. Gallagher himself was often regarded as a pioneer and spearhead of the Britpop movement. Many have praised his songwriting, with Beatles producer George Martin calling him "the finest songwriter of his generation". Conversely, he was voted the most overrated guitarist of the last millennium in a 1999 poll, and the ninth-most-overrated ever in a 2002 listener survey. He cited being named the most overrated guitarist of the last millennium as the accolade he most enjoyed receiving. (Full article...)

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Duke is the tenth studio album by English rock band Genesis, released on 28 March 1980 on Charisma Records. The album followed a period of inactivity for the band in early 1979. Phil Collins moved to Vancouver, Canada, in an effort to salvage his failing first marriage, while Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford recorded solo albums. Collins returned to the UK after his marriage ended and wrote a significant amount of material, some of which was used for Duke and some was later reworked for his first solo album, Face Value. Duke contained a mix of individually written songs and tracks that evolved from jam sessions in mid-1979, while recording took place at the end of the year. The break in activity rejuvenated the band, and they found the album an easy one to work on.

Duke was positively received by music critics, who praised the album for bridging the band's progressive rock-oriented past, such as the closing ten-minute "Duke's Travels"/"Duke's End" suite, with their more pop rock-oriented, commercially accessible direction, as displayed on the hit singles "Turn It On Again", "Duchess", and "Misunderstanding". It reached No. 11 in the US, and became their first album to reach No. 1 in the UK. It has since been certified Platinum in both countries. (Full article...)

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"Where the Streets Have No Name" is a song by Irish rock band U2. It is the opening track from their 1987 album The Joshua Tree and was released as the album's third single in August 1987. The song's hook is a repeating guitar arpeggio using a delay effect, played during the song's introduction and again at the end. Lead vocalist Bono wrote the lyrics in response to the notion that it is possible to identify a person's religion and income based on the street on which they lived, particularly in Belfast. During the band's difficulties recording the song, producer Brian Eno considered erasing the song's tapes to have them start from scratch.

"Where the Streets Have No Name" was praised by critics and became a commercial success, peaking at number thirteen in the US, number fourteen in Canada, number ten in the Netherlands, and number four in the United Kingdom. The song has remained a staple of their live act since the song debuted in 1987 on The Joshua Tree Tour. The song was performed on a Los Angeles rooftop for the filming of its music video, which won a Grammy Award for Best Performance Music Video. (Full article...)

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Credit: Sven-Sebastian Sajak

Mike Dirnt, singer and bassist of Green Day, stands on the Centerstage during Rock im Park ("Rock in the Park") Festival 2013.

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Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or '60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock and roll that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The style is characterized by basic chord structures played on electric guitars and other instruments, sometimes distorted through a fuzzbox, as well as often unsophisticated and occasionally aggressive lyrics and delivery. Its name derives from the perception that groups were often made up of young amateurs who rehearsed in the family garage, although many were professional. (Full article...)