Course Outline for Music Literature 8
History of Rock and Roll and Popular Music

Effective: Fall 2022
SLO Rev: 03/01/2021
Catalog Description:

MUSL 8 - History of Rock and Roll and Popular Music

3.00 Units

A cultural survey of original American music traditions, forms and trends influenced by cultural, socio-economic, socio-political and economic changes including blues, jazz, early rock, the “British invasion,” rap, hip hop culture, Latino rock, heavy metal, jazz-rock fusion, electronic, modern rock, and pop. The focus will be on at least three of the following cultural groups: African Americans, Asian Americans, European Americans, Latin Americans and Native Americans.
1004.00 - Music
Letter Grade Only
Type Units Inside of Class Hours Outside of Class Hours Total Student Learning Hours
Lecture 3.00 54.00 108.00 162.00
Laboratory 0.00 18.00 0.00 18.00
Total 3.00 72.00 108.00 180.00
Measurable Objectives:
Upon completion of this course, the student should be able to:
  1. describe the emergence of rock and roll from its roots to the present and the role various cultural groups played in its formation;
  2. identify major rock and roll artists and trends within each ethnic group studied;
  3. describe the social and political events that have influenced rock and roll musical styles;
  4. identify the historical origins of each group studied within the American musical landscape ;
  5. describe the different evolution of rock and roll through aural examples and historical references;
  6. explain the impact of technology on musical instruments, recording techniques, and artists;
Course Content:
  1. Roots and evolution of the medium and the role of cultures
    1. blues
    2. tin pan alley
    3. jazz
    4. black gospel
    5. rhythm and blues
    6. hill billy music
    7. British folk traditions
    8. country music
    9. honky-tonk
    10. Latino/Chicano music
    11. hip hop
  2. Major pop, rock and hip hop artists, styles, and trends within the ethnic groups
    1. African American
    2. European American
    3. Latin Americans
    4. Native Americans
    5. Asian Americans
  3. Social, political, influence in pop and rock
    1. work songs, shouts and field hollers
    2. race music
    3. Jim Crow laws
    4. McCarthyism
    5. fascism
    6. Vietnam War
    7. the media
  4. Origins of each artistic style within each of the distinct groups studied
    1. African Americans
    2. European Americans
    3. Latin Americans
    4. Native Americans
    5. Asian Americans
  5. Evolution of pop and rock
    1. informed listening and journals
    2. radio, film and television
    3. cultural evolution and movements
  6. Influence of technology on pop, rock and hip hop
    1. radio
    2. recording arts
    3. television and film
    4. digital revolution
    5. instruments
Methods of Instruction:
  1. Audio visual presentations
  2. Lecture/Discussion
  3. Demonstration/Exercise
  4. Distance Education
  5. Live performances by Chabot ensembles
Assignments and Methods of Evaluating Student Progress:
  1. Read the chapter relating to the 12-bar blues structure and be prepared to create a 12-bar blues arrangement on paper.
  2. Listen to the sound file provided in class and write a brief analysis of the lyrical content.
  1. Exams/Tests
  2. Written assignments
  3. Concert reports
  4. Final Examination
  5. Lab Activities
Upon the completion of this course, the student should be able to:
  1. articulate the influence of modern technology on musical instruments and recording techniques;
  2. differentiate between various styles of rock and popular music;
  3. synthesize factual information and historical evidence through informed listening, analysis, evaluation and discernment of musical elements, forms and repertoire.
Textbooks (Typical):
  1. Thomas Larson (2018). History or Rock and Roll (6th). Kendall Hunt.
  2. Starr & Waterman (2017). American Popular Music: From Minstrelsy to MP3 (5th). Oxford University Press.
  3. Friedlander & Miller, (2019). Rock And Roll: A Social History (3rd). Westview Press, .
  4. Garafalo & Waksman (2017). Rockin' Out (updated 6th). Pearson.
  5. David P. Szatmary (2019). Rockin' in Time: A Social History of Rock and Roll (9TH). Prentice Hall.
Abbreviated Class Schedule Description:
A cultural survey of original American music traditions, forms and trends as an instrument for expressing and understanding cultural identity. The focus will be on at least three of the following cultural groups: African Americans, Asian Americans, European Americans, Latin Americans and Native Americans.