American culture breeds irony. Almost everything that America has created in the later half of the 20th century has become in many was ironic. A prime example of this is the progression of Rock n Roll from an anti-political/social rebelion to the mainstream/conservative openly accepted by all platform which it has become. From Elvis to Christian rock, this art form has evolved into a true American Irony. Rock n Roll emerged from the convergence of social transformations that resulted from World War II (Ryan 927). Rock music is very possibly one of the strongest cultural movements to develop in this century. Artists such as John Lennon, Paul McCartney and Bob Dylan represented the emotions of a generation. In order to understand how rock went from a sign of rebellion to a cultural icon, it is necessary to understand where it came from.Albert Murray once said, the African-American musical tradition is fundamentally stoical yet affirmative in spirit, (Star 3). Through the medium of the blues, African-Americans expressed a spirit, which refused to be stopped by poverty or racism. It was through music that the energies of black American life are sounded and expressed (Star 39). For the African American culture in this country, the music of Basie or Ellington expressed a wide awake, forward-tending rhythm that one can not only dance to but live by (Star 39). Through Elvis Presley, Rock n Roll changed the face of American music, and fueled an entire generations political beliefs. Composer Leonard Berstein once said, He introduced the beat to everything and changed everything-music, language, clothes; its a whole new social revolution-the 60s come from it (Wattenberg 6B). Elvis embraced rhythm and blues as a form to be honored and interpreted (Wattenberg 6B) and helped to break down the barriers between white and black music. Repeatedly, Elvis credited black artists in public, even though such acts were frowned upon in the 1950s.Rock n...
