KS5

Chris Duffill
currently works
at Monmouth
Comprehensive
School, where he is
responsible for the
A-level Music Technology course. He
is also a member of
the senior examining team for that A
level.

Edexcel AS Music Tech focus styles 2009/10: reggae and rock

by Chris Duffill

INTRODUCTION
This article is primarily aimed at covering the knowledge and skills needed for section B of the Music Technology AS listening paper, but also covers other wider areas of relevance in Music Technology, either
for the Edexcel A level or any of the other boards. It will also have wider uses in the curriculum if these
styles are required as an area of study, and some of the technology aspects may provide useful at GCSE
and even KS3.
It includes:
Stylistic features ensembles, timbres, writing approaches, performance, recording, production and use of

The key listening

suggestions mentioned in this article
have been compiled in this iTunes
playlist, so that you
can find them all in
one place should
you want to buy
any of them.

technology
Context influences, significant artists, social and cultural background, development, popularity
How to deliver the Special Focus topics in the classroom; crossover with practical tasks and skills development
(a two-way process); other listening and analysis work
Examination questions format, approaches to successful answers, common difficulties.
Although completely contrasting, both reggae and rock have followed a similar path in their growth and development, often being part of a niche market while crossing over into the mainstream at times; falling in and
out of favour and courting controversy; enjoying revivals and influencing other newer styles along the way.
They are also both appreciated widely by musicians and studio types, even if they are not particularly liked
on a personal level, because both are pioneering in terms of sound and technology use as well as writing
and performance, and have produced influential artists such as Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, Bob Marley and Lee
Perry, who have inspired generations of musicians since. Hopefully this is a message students will be able
to take on board its unlikely that all your students will like both these styles, but they should be able to see
that personal preference needs to be put aside sometimes when they are looking to grow and develop their
skills and knowledge as musicians, and in their recording and production work.

REGGAE: BACKGROUND AND DEVELOPMENT

SUMMARY LIST/KEY WORDS
Styles ska, rocksteady, reggae, roots, dub, reverb, echo, lovers rock, dancehall, digital
Sound systems DJs, MCs, toasting, dub plates
Students should aim to have a good awareness of the different styles, with dates as well as the artists involved. They can research the history and context of Jamaican music using online resources or video; some
useful links are given below.

http://niceup.com/history/bbc/intro.html a number of pages covering the history and styles within

Jamaican music; makes some good links showing the influence of reggae on more recent music
http://www.jamaicans.com/music/articles_reggae/index.shtml a variety of articles on reggae

throughout the years, written by Jamaicans; lots of info on more recent aspects of the music
Reggae: the Story of Jamaican Music three-part BBC series, repeated periodically, covering the
early years up to modern dancehall; the accompanying book can be found on Amazon
Linton Kwesi Johnsons series of radio programmes for the BBC, covering the development of reggae
Bass Culture: When Reggae was King by Lloyd Bradley (Penguin 2001) covers the history of
reggae in Jamaica and the UK

Classroom Music I spring term 1 I 2009/10

The Harder They Come featuring Jimmy Cliff; a film that provides a soundtrack of classics from the
rocksteady and reggae era, a story based in Kingston about a young man trying to succeed in the
reggae business
Rockers a later film showing studio life and Jamaican culture in the late 70s
NOTE
You may prefer to incorporate listening work from the following section on reggae, looking at the musical
characteristics of the various styles, which will contextualise the background to Jamaican music. Short
sections of listening material can be used in any case from the suggestions given in that section.
Not many people will be ignorant of the fact that reggae comes from Jamaica, and there is hardly anywhere
in the world where you will not hear Bob Marleys music playing in bars, clubs and on the radio. What might
be less well known is the sheer amount of music produced in Jamaica: the number of artists and studios on
one island must be one of the biggest concentrations in the history of recording. The way the industry works
is quite different from in the US and UK, with much of the output being aimed at the sound systems mobile
rigs with huge speaker stacks and powerful amplifiers that set up and play dances all over Jamaica, each
one aiming to have the heaviest bass and crispest top end, the most entertaining DJs, and live toasting and
singing from the best and most popular artists, as well as the latest music preferably original cuts that no
one has heard before.

Toasting involves
chanting rhymes,
usually concerned
with how great the
DJ and sound system are compared
to everything else.

Studio owners have played a major part in shaping and developing reggae. Most produce music for their
own sound systems certainly in the early days. They use a pool of musicians and each studio has its own
sound, striving for originality though conversely, they re-record the same rhythm tracks time and again,
each with a signature bass line, chord pattern and horn or keyboard parts. Multiple artists will record over the
same rhythm track, with the mix engineer using dub techniques to make each version sound fresh.

The majority were

originally written
at the legendary
Studio One more
about this to follow.

The early days of the Jamaican scene

The Jamaican recording industry began in the late 1950s, when the sound-system owners started to record
local musicians in order to have exclusive songs playing at their dances. Two men in particular Clement
Coxone Dodd and Duke Reid saw the potential of Jamaicans to produce their own music instead of having to rely on imports from America New Orleans R&B being the popular music on the island at the time.
The short clip on YouTube explains what happened when the Jamaican musicians were asked to write their
own songs, with Ernest Ranglin illustrating how the signature off-beat chop (percussive chord) common to
ska and reggae developed from the R&B style.
Ernest Ranglin was one of the key musicians in the early Jamaican music scene, and was part of the group
called the Skatalites, who were the top ska band. They were the house band at Studio One the Motown of
reggae, owned by Clement Coxone Dodd; pretty much every reggae artist of the 60s, 70s and 80s started
their recording career here. The Skatalites were a broad pool of musicians who would also feature on their
own instrumentals Jackie Mittoo on keyboards, Ernest Ranglin on guitar, Don Drummond on trombone and
Roland Alphonso on sax are some of the regular soloists. The band later evolved during the reggae era,
becoming known as the Soul Vendors, Sound Dimension, Soul Brothers, Brentford Rockers, and Brentford
Road All Stars.
Often, the songs recorded were instrumentals with a horn section playing the melody and harmonies. The
music was lively, up-tempo and raw in its delivery. Vocalists were also featured, including Prince Buster,
Laurel Aitkin, Derrick Morgan, the Wailers and Jackie Wilson. Lyrics were often on standard pop themes of
love lost and found, going out and partying, with some also based on folk tales. There were often feuds that
would be played out on record and in the dancehall between rival artists and sound systems, each one trying
to provide the ultimate insult or put-down.

Classroom Music I spring term 1 I 2009/10

A new approach to
lyrics that started
to deal with the
social and political
issues was supposedly started by
the Wailers (Bob
Marley, Peter Tosh
and Bunny Wailer)
with their song Simmer Down (1963),
which implored the
Kingston youths
or rude boys
to stop getting
involved in street
violence.

Jamaican music in the UK

See an introduction
to mods on this
Wikipedia page,
and to skinheads
on this Wikipedia
page.

In the UK, the music was enjoyed by the rapidly growing Caribbean community, and found some favour
among the white working class by the mid 1960s particularly with mods and later with the skinheads. The
fashion choices of the Jamaican rude boys sharp suits or smart shirts and pork-pie hats were approved
of and adopted by the mods, and the music and dancing to go with it. A mainstream UK and US hit for Millie
Small My Boy Lollipop (1963) was probably the first time the wider public in the UK experienced ska. In
the UK, the Trojan label (set up by Chris Blackwell who later founded Island records) released many singles,
compilations and albums straight from Jamaica.
Rocksteady
In the mid 60s the style changed: more vocalists were being used and the frantic tempo of ska was not
always suitable; also, the studios were still constantly looking for innovation, so the beat slowed and rock-

Other international
hits from this era
include the instrumental Liquidator,
Desmond Dekkers
007 and The Israelites, which was
a UK number 1 in
1969.

steady was born. Lee Scratch Perry a crazy genius, originally an engineer at Studio One set up his own
Black Ark Studio and helped develop the new style. Tunes such as The Return of Django were massive hits
and are regularly heard today on TV, radio and in films. Duke Reids Treasure Isle studio also released many
rocksteady classics from Alton Ellis, Delroy Wilson and Ken Boothe.
The emergence of reggae
Rocksteady did not survive for long, and the reggae style emerged in its wake in the late 1960s. The origins
of the names of Jamaican music are the stuff of urban myth, but the Maytals recorded Do the Reggae in
1968, which at least documents the first use of the word on a recording. The style continued to enjoy some
international success in the UK and Europe, with Jimmy Cliff being based in England and working for Blackwell. He had hits with Wonderful World, Beautiful People, Many Rivers to Cross and the politically themed
protest song Vietnam.

NOTE
Political and social commentary, often based on Rastafarian religion and philosophy, are a big feature of
reggae lyrics. The history of Jamaica, the slave trade and independence from Britain form a background
to these themes.
The release of the film The Harder They Come in the UK in 1972, starring Cliff in the lead role and using his
songs as well as a selection of other reggae and rocksteady classics, helped to further increase reggaes
popularity. Blackwell was backing Cliff to go on and become the first major international reggae superstar,
but disagreements over contracts saw Cliff return to Jamaica.
The Wailers
This was the lucky break for the Wailers, who were in England trying to get a recording deal. They had been
recording successfully with Lee Perry for a number of years after leaving Studio One, with a string of hits
such as Soul Rebel, 400 Years, Keep On Moving, Kaya, Small Axe and Trenchtown Rock, and had persuaded the members of Lee Perrys studio band the Upsetters to form their own permanent backing group.
Blackwell knew of them but had reservations about their reputation for being awkward, uncompromising
characters. He decided to take a chance and they were given funding to record an album for Island Records
Getty Images

back in Jamaica Catch A Fire, released in 1973. The original mixes were
deemed too raw for the UK rock audience Blackwell was trying to entice to
buy the music, so some additional keyboards and lead guitar were overdubbed in the UK and the songs remixed to take some of the edge off.
Though Catch A Fire is generally acknowledged as a classic album these
days, its initial success was not great. The Wailers were working hard, touring the UK to promote their act and recorded another album to be released
in the same year Burnin.
This was the last album to feature Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer, who both felt
marginalised by Bob Marleys dominance in the songwriting and lead vocals
Bob Marley

(both were excellent writers and shared lead vocals with Marley in the early

Classroom Music I spring term 1 I 2009/10

years). The band changed their name to Bob Marley and the Wailers, and added the female backing vocal
trio and American guitarist Al Anderson for the album Natty Dread released in 1974, but the big success was
still to come, as summarised in the following table:
BOB MARLEY AND THE WAILERS: THE GLORY YEARS

Album

Key information

The Live album

Recorded at the Lyceum, London and released in 1975,

soon to be found in most record collections. The song
No Woman, No Cry in particular became an instant
classic, one of the most popular live recordings ever
made. The album featured some of the strongest songs
from the first three albums Trenchtown Rock, Burnin
and Lootin, Them Belly Full (But We Hungry), Lively Up
Yourself, I Shot The Sheriff and Get Up, Stand Up.

Rastaman Vibration

Continued Marleys output of a combination of reworked

older material and newer songs, with themes now
familiar in all Jamaican music of protest, political and
social commentary, love, entertainment and Rastafarian
philosophy and spirituality, often quoting or referring to
the Old Testament.

Exodus

This next album from 1977 saw the group achieve

worldwide success with several massive selling hits
Jamming, Waiting in Vain and One Love/People Get
Ready.

Kaya

Released in 1978, this saw a reworking of some old

material, being generally less concerned with the
message music of earlier releases.

Babylon by Bus

Double live album also released in 1978, showing

a band at the peak of its powers with flawless
performances of their best material up to that point.

Survival

This 1979 album saw a return to political themes,

dealing with black consciousness and Rasta themes
once more. By now, Marley was a notable figure in
the political arena, and the song Zimbabwe was later
performed at the celebrations to mark the independence
of Rhodesia.

Uprising

This 1980 record produced two more massive worldwide

hits Could You Be Loved and the folky, anthemic
Redemption Song.

Bob Marley died in 1981, but there were several posthumous releases: the album Confrontation on Island in
1983, again exploring Rasta and political themes; the single Buffalo Soldier; Iron Lion Zion, released in 1992
after being accidentally discovered on some Island tapes; and the Lee Perry-produced Rainbow Country in
the late 1980s. The Legend compilation released in 1984 became his biggest-selling production.
Beyond Marley
While Bob Marley brought his brand of reggae to the world, the Jamaican recording industry continued to
grow with new studios and artists emerging all the time. The roots style using political, social and Rasta
themes came to dominate in the 1970s with artists like Burning Spear, Culture, Israel Vibration, Bunny
Wailer and Black Uhuru gaining success in Jamaica and abroad.
At the same time as the roots sound emerged, dub mixing came into being. Dub mixing involves stripping
the music down to the drums and bass, and dropping in short sections of other instruments bathed in effects
like echo, large amounts of reverb, phasers, flangers and filter sweeps. The engineer plays the studio like
an improvised performance, and a new piece of music evolves, although with familiar bass and drum parts.
These were used by sound systems for the DJs to toast on. Lee Perry and King Tubby are two of the pioneers
of dub mixing; others include Scientist and Prince Jammy. The techniques are still widely used today, and
have been influential on many styles since including jungle, drum n bass, hip hop and dub step.

Classroom Music I spring term 1 I 2009/10

The dancehall style, using drum machines and digital keyboards, was a new sound that emerged in the mid
1980s. Before this, the style of music in the sound system dances was always somewhat different from the
roots sounds: people wanted to dance and enjoy themselves and didnt want the serious lyrics that roots
brought. The music had always been full of lighter-themed lyrics, about going out and having a good time,
or love and its ups and downs. Some artists during the 70s and 80s were better known for their contributions
in this area Sugar Minott, Dennis Brown, Gregory Isaacs, Frankie Paul, Barrington Levy, and a host of DJs/
toasters like U Roy, Josie Wales, Dillinger and Eek-a-Mouse.
Something of a schism was created with dancehall and roots in the late 80s and 90s, as many roots artists
objected to the shallow nature of dancehall lyrics, the often graphic sexual references and gangster/gun
lyrics. During the 90s dancehall came to resemble R&B in many ways, with the traditional guitar and piano
off-beat chops disappearing from the music altogether. DJs (toasters) such as Shabba Ranks, Buju Banton and Capleton were well known in this style, but as pressure from other artists, and even the Jamaican
government and police, increased, these artists were forced to moderate their style. There was also a new
movement of conscious dancehall, from artists like Beenie Man and Luciano as well as Bob Marleys son
Damien, who were able to combine the feel and sound of dancehall with more roots elements, and included
lyrics with depth and meaning again.
The UK has also produced a fair number of reggae and Jamaican-influenced bands notably, the 2-tone
ska revival around the same time as punk: bands such as the Specials, the Selecter, the Beat and Madness
added an English punk edge to ska. There have also been a number of successful bands of first- or secondgeneration Jamaicans based in the UK such as Steel Pulse, Aswad, Undivided Roots and Black Roots.

REGGAE: MUSICAL FEATURES

The most prominent features of reggae are:
The off-beat chop on guitar and piano
The deep, heavy bass sound, usually playing riff-like repeated patterns
Simple, repeated chord patterns, often with few or no changes throughout a song
A smattering of horn-section or keyboard parts, and percussion
Vocals that are often expressive and soulful, with improvisation or embellishment of lines and extensive use of
harmony vocals.
There are some other features that are less easily identified through casual listening. Because the music is
so tight rhythmically, and due to the mix often blending parts and placing some of them fairly quietly, rather
than separating them, its easy to overlook or miss organ parts, the drum patterns used and the role of a
second guitar. The outline score below shows typical basic patterns played on guitar, piano, organ and drum
kit, explained on the next page.

Classroom Music I spring term 1 I 2009/10

PIANO AND GUITAR

These instruments play off-beat skank (or chop) staccato and punchy. Variations include double chop
(guitar), extra on-beat or syncopated chops to emphasise phrases, and short melodic patterns on piano.
ORGAN
This is known as shuffle or bubble: the left hand plays off-beat quavers between the guitar/piano chops. The
right hand plays chops on 2 and 4 but also snippets of melody, sustained chords and on-beat chops.
DRUM KIT
The pattern shown is known as one drop, and is unusual because most of the time the kick drum plays on
beat 3, not beat 1. Beat 1 is played at the start of phrases, but consequently the drum plays only on beat 3.
The snare or often sidestick is played on beat 3 with the kick, and often has added syncopated beats.
The snare will often add dramatic, clattering, timbale-like rolls at the end of sections. Hi-hats are shown
playing a closed-closed-open pattern, with the open falling on beats 2 and 4 with the piano and guitar.
Many other patterns are used: closed straight quavers, or crotchets; combinations of quavers and crotchets; and patterns that miss out certain beats.

NOTE
The whole rhythm ensemble revolves around beat 3, a fact that is often missed by people unfamiliar
with the style, who will hear the second and fourth beats clearly emphasised. Looking at bass lines will
help to illustrate this.

Listening example: Satta Massagana the Abyssinians

Students can use the score shown above to listen for the typical reggae parts in this track, and try to spot
variations in them. They can also try to identify additional parts not shown in the score above, including

As well as downloading this track via

the iTunes playlist
link on page 1 of
this article, you
can listen to it on
YouTube.

identifying the rhythm played by the bass (the score below shows the first half of the verse pattern; the same
rhythmic pattern is used throughout).

LISTENING POINTS

Note that the

rhythm is slightly
swung in this
example.

1. Notice how the bass is tightly locked in with the emphasis on beat 3. The rhythm swings into and out of
this strong accent, which is why it referred to as the drop or one drop. The music centres on that point in
the rhythmic phrase, and this is true of all reggae, whatever the style. Bass lines always revolve around this
point in the music, and are usually based on a repeated pattern of two or four bars. If the harmonic structure
involves a longer chord pattern, the bass will often use the same rhythmic pattern throughout, and often uses
root5th combinations or broken chords. Bob Marley and the Wailers Natural Mystic from the album Exodus
has a very similar bass line.
2. The organ and guitar as described above can be identified clearly. The piano is harder to hear by just
listening to the right channel (which clears the organ out of the way as it is panned left) it is possible to hear
that it is mixed behind the guitar.
3. Another very common feature of reggae not mentioned so far is the second guitar, doubling up the bass
line with a picking, palm-muted style.
4. The horn section takes a typical role: three-part (sax, trumpet, trombone) harmony playing a riff that takes
the intro and punctuates the arrangement.
5. Satta Massagana is a good illustration of roots music. The song is more or less a hymn of praise the
Satta Massagana section is from a psalm written in the original biblical language Amheric (from Ethiopia).
The Rastafarians identify themselves as the lost tribes of Israel, whose homeland is Ethiopia, and these
themes are common in roots music.
6. Other examples of the one-drop rhythm and roots style include the Burning Spear: Reggae Greats Album
available on iTunes. The tracks Door Peep, Slavery Days, Man in the Hills, Marcus Garvey, Dry and Heavy
and Black Wa-da-da all feature various approaches to the same beat.
7. The one-drop rhythm was common on many early reggae tunes, and has always had regular use,
but other drum patterns are also used. The rockers style has kick drum on beats 1 and 3, plus occasional

Classroom Music I spring term 1 I 2009/10

extra beats, and often uses lots of syncopated, percussion-like sidestick (listen to Black Disciples on the
Burning Spear album). The steppers style uses a four-to-the-floor kick drum and, again, lots of busy, syncopated sidestick (Social Living or The Sun from Burning Spear).
Listening example: Alipang Don Drummond/the Skatalites
LISTENING POINTS
1. To hear where the one-drop rhythm came from, and the pre-cursor of reggae, its worth listening to some
ska. In Alipang, the rhythm of the drums and piano/guitar found in reggae is effectively played at double
tempo, i.e. kick drum and snare on 2 and 4 with the piano and guitar chop on the quavers in between, often
Confucius by the
Skatalites is one
example listen
on this YouTube
page.

with the horn section doubling up. Bass lines adopted more of a walking style, though some syncopated lines
were used.
2. The horns are prominent and play a leading role, with ensemble and solo sections much like dance bands
and jazz combos of the 40s and 50s. The jazz influence is also clear from the solo sections.
Students will benefit from trying to play some reggae and ska they may need to use techniques that are
unfamiliar to them and it will help in their understanding of the music. Satta Massagana is easy enough to
work out from the skeleton score given above to get the rhythmic patterns, and working out the chords is a
good exercise in listening and will benefit students practical work, when they need to use aural recognition
to work out chord patterns and harmonic lines. A table of the basic chords used in Alipang is shown below.

Theres a good
video of Burning Spear in the
studio performing
Slavery Days on
this YouTube page.
Students can use
it to study guitar,
bass and drum
technique.

Intro/horn break:

Am / E7 / Am / Am / x2

Verse:

Am / Am / Dm / Dm / x3,

Am / Am / E7 / Am / x2

Chorus:

Dm / Dm / Am / Am / x3,

Am / E7 / Am / Am / x2

Some chord extensions and variations are used, such as minor 7ths and even a few minor 6ths in places. It
will help students to keep it simple and concentrate on getting the rhythm crisp.

NOTE
Students could even consider recording a reggae song for AS or A2 multi-track coursework the latter
being a better option as, if horns can be incorporated, it will easily meet the requirement for four acoustic
instruments, even with, for example, two saxes plus drum kit and percussion. It also offers some good
opportunities for creative mixing using dub techniques.

REGGAE: RECORDING AND PRODUCTION

As well as downloading this track
via the iTunes
playlist link on page
1 of this article, you
can listen to it on
YouTube.

Listening example: Zion Gate Dub King Tubby

Dub mixing, as we saw on page 4, is the art of taking multi-track recordings and creating a new version of
the song with mainly drums and bass, plus splashes of vocals and instruments that are dropped in and out
with plenty of effects. Apart from pioneering the creative use of the mixing desk and effects, dub also allows
us to study the individual performances and recordings in a song, as parts are heard in isolation.
Students can attempt to identify the techniques used in the example given, and could also spend some time
trying to recreate dub mixing techniques. Here is a summary of some of the effects used:
Adding a large amount of spring reverb to snare (sidestick)
Dropping instruments and vocals in and out with echo (tape echo)
Using large amounts of reverb to place instruments far in the distance
Allowing instruments to leak into the reverb send so there is no dry signal, only effected sound
Using EQ sweeps manually changing the frequency of a boosted EQ, similar to a filter sweep on a synth (it is
not phasing or flanging); used on the actual effects channels in a lot of cases
Adding triplet-quaver timed delay on the hi-hats.

Classroom Music I spring term 1 I 2009/10

Practical work: dub mixing in a sequencing program

Give your students the following step-by-step task. They will need a sequence of a reggae song with at least
drums, bass, piano, organ and guitar. Some percussion and horns would also be useful.
1. Each part, including individual drums, needs to be configured so the audio output is on its own channel.
Using VST instruments, this should be possible with a bit of thought. Each instrument has its own way of being
set up, and not all will have multiple audio outputs. It is vital to get kick drum, snare and hi-hats on separate
audio tracks, so if necessary split them onto separate MIDI tracks and open a new instance of the VST instrument for each part.

NOTE
The technique of separating out sequenced tracks into individual channels like this is also useful for
mixing other sequenced songs, especially the integrated sequence practical work at A2. It replicates the
control over individual parts that an engineer has in a multi-track recording, and allows individual EQ,
compression and effects to be applied to parts.
2. Set up a plug-in reverb on a send-and-return with a spring reverb setting the convolution-type reverbs
found in newer versions of software will have one.
3. Send a generous amount of snare to the reverb unit, insert and EQ on the reverb return and select the
mid-range frequency band. Boost a decent amount set at about 3 or 4 oclock on a dial-type control. Now
sweep the frequency setting anywhere between 1k and 5k while the snare reverb is playing.
4. When choosing an echo, try to find one that emulates tape delay. This will have a thickening of the sound as
the repeats fade away and high frequencies are lost. Try triplet-quaver, triplet-crotchet or dotted-quaver setting.
Practise dropping in guitar and piano and increasing the send level at the point at which it is dropped out.
5. Allow reverb to leak by setting it to pre-fader, and muting the channel.
It will soon be found that using a screen and a mouse is far from ideal for this kind of work. The touch of a
hardware mixing desk is really important to be able to quickly mute/unmute channels, change EQ and send
amounts, or even change the effects settings themselves. The advantage that a sequencing program has is
that it can record and edit the moves, so the mix can be built up a bit at a time. It lacks the interactivity of a
real-time mix though.
Other features of reggae production
Heavy bass with plenty of low frequency, heavily compressed and prominent in the mix
Drums recorded with lots of isolation and treated with gates and compression, to achieve a separated and
punchy sound
Piano and guitar chops EQd to sound very thin pianos often sound unnaturally so mixed so they blend together
Organ shuffle, usually mixed fairly quietly; sometimes the left-hand part is barely distinguishable
Sparseness of playing, which leaves lots of room for additional guitars and keyboards
Vocals and horns recorded and mixed with lots of clarity (usually)
Plenty of reverb used to give a sense of space to dry, close-mic recordings.

VIDEO CLIPS
Lee Perry in the recording studio the video shows an overview of a recording session, with another
chance to study some of the playing techniques and the set-up in the studio. At the end, Perry can be
seen using some phaser on the mix.
Prince Jammy at the controls Jammy is another renowned dub-mixer, and here he can be seen working

the desk, dropping parts in and out and adding effects.

Classroom Music I spring term 1 I 2009/10

Advice on the exam

can be found at the
end of this article.

HEAVY ROCK: BACKGROUND AND DEVELOPMENT

SUMMARY LIST/KEY WORDS
Distortion, overdrive, tube/valve amp, speaker cabinet, guitar effects, amp modelling, power chords,
pentatonic and blues scales

This style is probably harder to categorise than reggae, and does not share such a clearly defined origin
(although an argument could be made for the midlands being the geographical centre of the heavy-rock
universe). There are distinctions that need to made between this and newer styles such as metal and its subgenres; this will be looked at in more detail in the section on musical characteristics.
Students will no doubt be more familiar with this style than with reggae, and probably know more about the
songs, the bands and artists, and the equipment. There may well be some students who, as guitarists, are
adept at playing in this style this can be used as a valuable resource for teaching and learning.
The early days
The development of heavy rock owes much to the blues and R&B (50s and 60s, not modern), and is very
much about the development of the electric guitar as a centrepiece to the music both as a lead and rhythm
instrument. Guitar-playing bluesmen such as John Lee Hooker, Muddy Waters, Link Wray, Willie Johnson
and B.B. King, and of course Chuck Berry, who was more of a rock n roller, helped develop the sound and
popularity of the guitar. But it is also the distorted tone of the guitar that characterises heavy rock, and has
been influential on all guitarists since it first became used.
Jimi Hendrix
Getty Images

Jimi Hendrix was perhaps the most influential artist in, and certainly one of
the pioneers of, the heavy rock sound and style. Hendrix started playing R&B
in the early to mid 1960s in Nashville and New York, having various positions
as a session man, including playing with Little Richards band. In 1966 he
moved to London and formed the Jimi Hendrix Experience, getting rave reviews from fellow musicians and fans for his extravagant gigs, which included
playing the guitar behind his head and with his teeth, and on occasion setting
light to one of his guitars. Singles Hey Joe and Purple Haze climbed high in
the charts, and the album Are You Experienced stayed in the charts until the
summer of 1969. Tours in the States and the release of the Axis: Bold as Love

Jimi Hendrix

album followed in 1967.

1968 saw the recording and release of Electric Ladyland (with Hendrix now based in the States), featuring
longer songs, more of Hendrixs own compositions and guest musicians such as members of Traffic. Voodoo
Chile and All Along the Watchtower are two classic songs from the album.
The Jimi Hendrix Experience split in 1969, but he continued performing with new musicians and called the
band Gypsy Sun and Rainbows by the time they played the legendary Woodstock festival, which included
the iconic performance of Star-spangled Banner. Tours in Europe and the States continued, with a confused
series of arrangements of band line-ups (now called the Band of Gypsies).
Hendrix died in 1970, apparently of alcohol-related choking (though many suspect foul play), just after he
had become one of the first artists to open his own studio. His was an extravagant character who indulged
in lots of drugs, including heroin and LSD, and had a loud fashion sense, with colourful clothes and lots of
jewellery and scarves. Although Hendrixs music was never straight heavy rock fusing diverse elements

Classroom Music I spring term 1 I 2009/10

of funk, soul, psychedelia and jazz with his heavily blues-fuelled playing his attitude and style certainly
contributed massively to the sound of heavy rock as it developed in the early 1970s.
The 1970s
Other guitarists from the 1960s who were taking the blues style and making it harder and heavier included
Eric Clapton (Cream) and Pete Townshend (The Who), but the next crop of bands to really develop the
style included Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple in the early 1970s, when the style started to develop a following and an identity in the UK. The image of fans and bands was about leather and denim, long hair and
motorbikes. Bikers are synonymous with heavy rock, and the dancing (if it can be called such) consisted
of headbanging rocking back and forwards with lots of up-and-down head movement, and of course the
employment of air guitars. Stage acts were extravagant, long and loud. The image was about rebellion, the
freedom to be individual and the motto Live hard, die young.
Bands such as Kiss, Queen, Thin Lizzy, Alice Cooper and Aerosmith were all successful in the UK and US
in the first half of the 70s, and many others adopted the influence of the sound while staying in a slightly more
pop-oriented, polite vein Suzi Quatro, Nazareth, and glam bands such as the Sweet and Slade. By the mid
70s, Deep Purple had ceased to be, and though Zeppelins tours were outselling the Rolling Stones, heavy
rock was becoming unfashionable although the fanbase was always large, it was becoming something of
a spent force and the butt of many musicians jokes.

HEAVY ROCK VS. HEAVY METAL

We have to make a distinction between heavy rock and heavy metal. Newer bands emerging in the late
70s and early 80s had less of a blues influence, and for the purposes of the AS exam, some metal sub-styles
such as thrash metal, death metal, black metal etc. should be considered as a separate style from heavy
rock. Examples of heavy metal at this time include Motrhead a faster, punk-influenced version of heavy
rock; and the new wave of British bands that followed at the end of the 70s, led by Iron Maiden, Saxon and
Def Leppard, and in the US by Metallica and Megadeth. The relationship with heavy rock is close, and many
bands interchange between the two.
The 1980s and beyond
The decline in popularity wasnt enough to make heavy rock go away though. Two major acts emerged at
the end of the 1980s Van Halen in the States and AC/DC from Australia. Both enjoyed massive worldwide
success, with Eddie Van Halen guesting on guitar for Michael Jacksons Thriller, and his own single Jump
reaching number 1 in 1984, while AC/DC released the massively successful Highway to Hell in 1979 and
followed it with Back in Black.
The influence of heavy rock has continued through the decades since the 1980s, though only a few of the
original bands still remain active including Aerosmith, Bon Jovi and Van Halen. Newer styles such as
grunge and the many sub-species of metal are direct descendants of the heavy rock of the 1970s and 80s.

HEAVY ROCK: MUSICAL FEATURES

Most conspicuous in heavy rock is the role of the guitar: the use of distortion and other effects create a
massive sound central to the whole music, driving the insistent rhythms as well as taking the form of virtuoso
soloing. Many bands use two guitarists, and drums, bass and vocals complete the line-up (keyboards are
fairly common, though not often in a prominent role). Vocals are high-powered, sometimes very high in the
register, and almost delivered at screaming levels (listen to Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin), though they can
also be rough and lower-pitched. Drums and bass are thick and heavy; drum parts feature lots of cymbals
and toms and can be very technical. It is loud music, and the quest for the most powerful sound is part of
each bands approach to the music.
The main features of the role of the guitar are riff-based patterns, the use of power chords (root and 5th only),
and soloing that includes fast, technically difficult work.

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10

KEY POINT
One of the main distinctions between heavy rock and heavy metal is that, while heavy metal uses modal
scales and chromaticism in the construction of riffs and solos/lead lines, heavy rock is blues-based, using
pentatonic scales and blue notes.

Listening example: Purple Haze the Jimmy Hendrix Experience

This track is included in the iTunes
playlist for this article (link provided
on page 1) and you
can also listen to it
on YouTube.

Identified as one of Hendrixs classic tracks (along with Hey Joe, All Along the Watchtower and Voodoo
Child), Purple Haze was a successful single in the UK but was only released on the US version of the album
Are You Experienced, although more recent album pressings in the UK do include it.
LISTENING POINTS
1. The psychedelic influence is clear, with the heavily effected spoken and whispered vocals, and the squealing guitar towards the end as well as the meandering guitar solo. The blues influence shows in other parts
of the lead guitar work, with bent notes, wailing tone, vibrato, and quick, slick fills between vocal lines on the
bridge (help me) section; the stop at the end of the verses is also typical blues. The heavy, distorted chords
under the verse (purple haze) section are typical heavy rock, though the use of the Hendrix chord (see
below) is not typical nor are the riffing sections and the pick-up after the stop at the end of the verses, all of
which are cleverly constructed to stay just this side of being obvious and bland.
2. Vocals are high-energy and intense, again with plenty of blues influence in the vocal tone and delivery,
with frequent slides and bends. The lyrical theme is psychedelic, based on a dream according to Hendrix.
3. The drums sound thick and busy, with lots of ride and other cymbals work. There is a syncopated kick
drum on the intro, and backbeat snare with busy kick drum and lots of fills on the verse, closely syncopated
with the pick-up after the verse-stops.
4. The bass plays an R&B or soul-type figure, following the chords on the verse, and plays unison with the
guitar on the pick-up. Again, this is embellished with slides and runs, though not as often as the drums, so as
to leave space for fills.
5. Rhythmically, there is a lot of looseness in the performance, especially by todays standards, particularly
in the introduction. However, the groove is solid and the song does not suffer from uncomfortable tempo shifts.
6. Students could also study the structure of this piece, identifying the lengths of sections and the different
parts of the song. Notice how the sections are put together with slight variations to keep interest and development in the arrangement.
The Hendrix chord
The Hendrix chord, as heard here after the intro riff and during the verses,
is a dominant 7th plus a sharpened 9th. It wasnt invented by Hendrix its
a well-known extension in jazz to add extra tension to a dominant 7th. The
sharpened 9th is actually the minor 3rd an octave above, so there is quite dramatic tension with the major
3rd playing lower again, typically bluesy. The full chord pattern moves from this chord on E, to a plain G
major chord, then a plain A major chord, before repeating.
It uses (major) chords with root notes of the minor pentatonic scale. This is common in heavy rock and demonstrates its blues roots.
Students could learn this chord pattern if they dont know it already and see how it fits with the intro riff
(note the variations in each statement of the riff). They could research how to voice the chord correctly on
the guitar, either by studying video material of the song or by searching for tutorials on the correct fingering.

VOODOO CHILD
Another Hendrix song worth looking at is Voodoo Child this YouTube video is a live performance.
Here, the blues influence is much clearer, and apart from the funky intro, the piece is archetypal of the
heavy rock sound. Students can list the similarities to blues as an exercise the lead guitar work has plenty
of examples, as do the vocals. The structure has elements of 12-bar blues. Look also for the differences
heavier, thicker drum and guitar sounds, a funkier intro, and less of a swing rhythm.

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Classroom Music I spring term 1 I 2009/10

Listening example: Black Night Deep Purple

LISTENING/DISCUSSION POINTS
1. The signature rock-guitar sound, and the intro riff that also acts as a link between sections.
2. The chugging, swung rhythm, and plenty of extravagant rolls and cymbals on the drums.
3. The use of Hammond organ including a solo section (although it is often in unison with the bass and guitar).
4. The live version gives a chance to see the techniques used in the live solo in particular, the whammy
bar for short, fast bends, close to the speaker stack to create extra harmonics through feedback; and the divebomb at the end in the final guitar solo.
Deep Purple are of course responsible for other great rock classics such as My Woman from Tokyo and

This track is
included in the
iTunes playlist for
this article, and you
can also listen to a
live version on
YouTube . Again,
there is a strong
blues influence
in Deep Purples
biggest hit, which
reached number 2
in the UK in 1970.

Smoke on the Water. Child in Time is an example of a heavy rock ballad slower, anthemic songs with quiet
and heavy passages that crop up regularly in the style. The Machine Head album from 1972 is considered
to be perhaps their best studio album.

LED ZEPPELIN
Led Zeppelin were responsible for quite a few slower ballads such as Dazed and Confused, Since Ive
Been Loving You and Stairway to Heaven. Zeppelin songs that are straight heavy rock include Black Dog,
Whole Lotta Love and Rock and Roll all worth studying for great examples of riffing, guitar soloing and,
of course, Robert Plants vocal style.

Listening example: Runnin with the Devil Van Halen

An example of the second generation of artists, Van Halen uses many of the typical features of heavy rock
though he has developed his own guitar sound. Here the chordal riff drives the song, and the soloing is
kept short, though it still has dramatic impact. The vocals are screamed, vibrato-heavy and the song features

This track is
included in the
iTunes playlist for
this article, and you
can also listen to it
on YouTube .

massed backing vocals. Performances are rhythmically tighter than older material and the sound, while still
heavy, is a lot more focused and clean.

OTHER RECOMMENDED LISTENING

Born to be Wild Steppenwolf
Whole Lotta Rosie and Highway to Hell from Let There Be Rock AC/DC
Dont Fear the Reaper Blue yster Cult

HEAVY ROCK: RECORDING AND PRODUCTION

In many ways, heavy rock is the story of the electric guitar and amplifier as an instrument and as pioneering
technology. The development of the overdriven, distorted valve amp sound, the use of effects such as
wah wah and phaser, and original performance techniques such as feedback and finger-tapping all come
from exponents of the style.

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12

FOR THE EXAM

Exam questions usually focus on recording techniques and students would not be expected to know great
amounts of detail (which can get very technical) on how the distorted guitar sound is created. They will
need to know what distortion is, however, be able to recognise it aurally and describe the basics of how it
is created; this will include knowledge of guitar amps, particularly valve types.
It is, nevertheless, a valuable subject for students to study, and many students will be keen to explore it.
They can be encouraged to research recording methods of heavy-rock guitarists, and find out about how
they get their sound type of guitar, amplifiers, speaker cabs and settings using articles and videos.
The article about engineer Eddie Kramer found here is a good starting point, describing Hendrixs recording
sessions at Olympic Studios in London for the Electric Ladyland project. It will be valuable for students to
practise guitar recording techniques and try to recreate a convincing heavy-rock sound.

NOTE
While Kramer used an expensive Neumann microphone to close-mic the guitar amp, and a sensitive ribbon
mic for the room sound, this approach should be avoided with students. Engineers who use condenser
mics to record loud sources do so because they have extensive experience of how to handle expensive
equipment, and know what it can and cant handle. A safer approach at this level is to use a dynamic
close-mic (typically a Shure SM57) and a large diaphragm condenser room mic.
Trying to create a big sound
This is what heavy-rock production is about; it starts with the guitarist getting the right sound. A favoured
combination is Marshall valve amps, and a large speaker cabinet such as a 4 x 12. Distortion is created by
driving the pre-amp stage really hard. Technically, what occurs is that the amplification (or gain) is provided
by valves, and if the input signal goes above a certain level that the valve is capable of handling, it clips
the peaks of the waveform, changing its shape. If students have studied synthesis they will know that differently shaped waveforms create different sounds. With the initial stages of clipping, extra even harmonics
are added to the sound. When the input is driven harder, odd harmonics are created giving a dirty, distorted
sound. The sound produced when using valves to achieve this has many pleasing qualities and is the basis
for the heavy-rock guitar sound. All other effects units, transistor amps, and amp-modelling hardware and
software emulate this process.
It is a good exercise to compare valve and transistor amps if available, by doing various recordings, as well
as experimenting with close-mic and room-mic positions. This can also be compared with pod-type guitarmodelling units, effects pedals and software plug-in effects. It will also be valuable to record a complete
performance with vocals, drums and bass so students can practise mixing a complete song in this style.
Production of other instruments will also aim to achieve a big sound. Drums often have plenty of room sound
which can also be created by using suitable reverbs if the kit is recorded dry. John Bonhams drums (Led
Zeppelin) were reputedly recorded in some cases at the bottom of a stairwell, with ambient mics in place
high up to capture the sound as it reverberated. Compression and EQ to create powerful sounds with impact
is also important. Bass is often fairly deep in tone, without much presence in the mid range. Vocals usually
sit in with lead guitar parts, and are not extremely prominent. Fairly large, obvious reverbs are typical. Backing vocals featuring several performers double-tracked are sometimes used, which can be very effective,
though it requires discipline in the performance and capture.
These experiments will be of benefit to techniques needed elsewhere in the course, mainly the multi-track
recording, but also in the wider experience of music production.

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BOTH STYLES: EXAM QUESTIONS

The format of the questions is going to be similar to last year and the published SAMs. There will be several
shorter questions worth a few marks each, and longer questions where students will need to use prose to
construct more detailed answers. There will be one 20-mark question with a listening example for each style.
Questions will not be exclusively on the listening example: students will need to show knowledge of the
background and development of the styles, identify typical musical and production features, and discuss
contributions of particular artists.
Useful preparation work can include study of previous exam papers if you have access to them. The style
of questions has not changed much from the old spec to the new, even though the format has changed for
these longer special focus questions. There have been questions in the past that feature AC/DC, Led Zeppelin, UB40, and also general approaches to guitar recording.
All work with practice questions will be valuable, and can be approached in a variety of ways. It is always
good to do some in the exact conditions students will face in the exam, working individually with the same
headphones they will use in the exam, but there is also much value in getting them to practise in groups so
they can discuss their work, and using the studio monitors to listen in detail to material. All practical work
feeds into the knowledge needed for the written exam and vice versa; it is important students are encouraged to make this connection and not see them as completely separate. Both aspects of the qualification
depend on close, detailed listening; study of commercial work will help students understand how processes
are used by professionals, and they can attempt to recreate this in their practical work.
Summary of knowledge needed for the exam
Musical characteristics of each style
Performance approaches and techniques
Types of instruments, band line-ups, typical sounds and how they are created; includes recording and production
guitars, distortion and amps (heavy rock) and dub mixing and effects use (reggae)
Other techniques used in the recording studio to produce the sound
Social and historical context, development of the styles
Significant artists, including producers and engineers (especially reggae).
General skills in answering exam questions
Students will need to be able to:
Use musical and technical language accurately to describe what they hear, and where necessary be able to
write prose succinctly to make several related points.
Identify musical features aurally melodic movement/intervals; rhythm notation including writing and reading;
harmony, including types of chords and recognition of chord patterns; timbre and texture; and form, including
typical stylistic use.
Be familiar with recording and production techniques mic usage for any scenario found in rock, pop
or jazz; other methods of capture; historical development of recording, including early techniques and limitations; mixing techniques including use of reverb, delay/echo, phaser/flanger/chorus, EQ, compression and other
dynamics-processing.
Be aware of the development of popular music styles since 1910 main styles; historical and social context;
influences.

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