This document provides an overview of popular music in the 1960s. It discusses the rise of genres like rock 'n' roll and the twist, influential producers and songwriters of the era like Phil Spector and Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, and iconic songs from artists like The Crystals, The Shirelles, and The Beatles. Performance reports for a class on 1960s pop music are also mentioned.

1. MUSC 1800: Popular Music
1960s Pop
Dr. Matthew C. Saunders
Lakeland Community College
C-1078

2. Performance Reports
• Don’t forget to attend a concert!
• Turn in your report at any time—you don’t
have to wait until the due date!

3. And now, a message from our 1960s
sponsors…
• By the 1960s, the health effects of smoking
were beginning to be understood… by some.

4. Dancing to Rock’n’Roll
• American Bandstand:
– Dick Clark
– Danny and the Juniors,
“At the Hop,” 1958
• The Twist
– 1959: “The Twist,”
Hank Ballard and the
Midnighters
– Cover version by
Chubby Checker, 1960

5. Why is the Twist such a big deal?
• Completely new
• Free-form
• Discotheques

6. Rock’n’roll and Songwriters
• Importance of
songwriters
• Jerry Leiber and Mike
Stoller
– Songwriters for a
variety of performers
• “Love Potion No. 9,”
The Clovers, 1959

7. Producers
• Vocal talent often somewhat interchangeable
• Phil Spector (b. 1939)
– “teenage symphonies”
– “Then He Kissed Me,” The Crystals, 1963
• Quincy Jones (b. 1933)
– Highly influential African-American producer
– “It’s My Party,” Leslie Gore, 1963

8. The Brill Building
• Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil: “On Broadway,” The
Drifters, 1963
• Carole King and Gerry Goffin: “Will You Still Love Me
Tomorrow,” The Shirelles, 1960
• Neil Sedaka: “Breaking Up is Hard to Do,” 1962
1619 Broadway at 49th Street, Manhattan

9. Pop Songs Something More?
• The Beatles
– “Eleanor Rigby,” (Lennon/McCartney,
1966)