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There is no denying Rock n Roll had some major impacts on Australian culture and society, without it society would not be the same today. Rock n Roll was first introduced into Australian society after World War II. Many soldiers had come across African American music during the war and brought it back to Australia. Rock’ n Roll is defined as a type of dance music originating in the 1950s, characterized by a heavy beat and simple melodies. A blend of black rhythm and blues with white country music. Rock n Roll engendered several significant changes in Australian culture and society.
With WWII ending and ending the great depression with it, an economic boom fast arising, mainly from the increase in European immigrants arriving in Australia. Middle-class families now had disposable income and more leisure time. Before and during WWII, the majority of teenagers were either working to support their family, studying, soldiers at war, or married and raising a family. The end of WWII signified a change in family values and roles. Parents tended to wait longer before married their daughters and the mean years of schooling were slowly increasing. This created an increase in leisure for young people, creating a new demographic, teenagers. Companies quickly took advantage of this and by the end of the 1950s, $10 billion were being spent on developing products aimed at teenagers. Producers quickly took advantage of this, creating music aimed at young people. Rock and Roll soon became known as young people’s music.
Rock n Roll became an important part of popular culture in the 1950s and 60s. The lyrics of the songs were relatable to teens, talking about love, parties, rebelling, etc. This created mass concern from parents. Soon Rock n Roll was banned from households, and the government and media set out on a war against it. Many people said it was the music of the devil. Parents were concerned with the sexuality of the songs and thought that it would discourage abstinence and encourage juvenile delinquency. For example this newspaper article by the Sydney Morning Herald on March 4th, 1964, there is an entire column devoted to complaining about the Beatles, calling them a cult. “The Beatle ritual is only another example of teenage stupidity in the least fortunate of their generation. Those whose sloppy speech, sloppy hair, untidy dress and beards, and bad manners are such harm to the youth of our day in general.” This shows the attitude of many adults in the community, feeling that the youth of that time were reckless and only causing trouble and that it was Rock and Roll that was causing it.
This only made teenagers want to listen to it more. They wanted to rebel and create their image. Previously parents had dressed their kids in the same way as they dressed. Boys wore collared shirts and ties, while girls wore long dresses with their hair done in curls. The economic boom in the 1950s gave young people much more economic power than the youth before them. This desire for a new image created new fashion. As young people idolized Rock n Roll stars, their fashion, and hair began to reflect that. For example, the famous mop fringes. The Beatles had one, so it became the fashion for young men to grow out their hair into this long fringe. Another icon to impact Australian fashion was Elvis Presley. Not only did his dance moves become the latest fashion, but so did his hair and clothes, young boys began to imitate his slicked-back hair and flashy colored shirts. While rock ‘n Roll was impacting fashion, it was also impacting the ideology of young people.
Rock’ n’ Roll used lyrics that were relatable to teens, but also considered scandalous by adults. The ideas coming through Rock and Roll spread into most aspects of life. Common lyrical themes include love, sex, drugs, and wild parties. Even though it was often subconscious, Rock and Roll were helping break the taboo around these topics. Around the time of Rock n Roll, the sexual revolution was fast developing. With the invention of birth control in May 1960 in the US, it was available in Australia just nine months later. Rock’ n Roll helped lead to the sexual revolution and further on the hippie movement by normalizing these topics, which had previously been thought of as vulgar to even mention.
Rock’ n’ Roll also subconsciously affected the civil rights movement in Australia. While it mainly affected the civil rights movement in America, it also greatly affected the movement in Australia. Previously black artists’ records would be sold in different stores to white artists’ ones, blues was seen as a predominantly black style of music. Rock’ n’ Roll was helping blur the color line by mixing previously thought African American blues and jazz music with white country music. Even the phrase “Rock ‘n Roll” was a step towards equality, as it was the first type of music to be used to describe both black and white music. It was first used by Alan Freed, a disc jockey, in Ohio, as he introduced the Rock and Roll session, used to describe a mix of blues and country music he made. As well as forcing people to think about racism, it also forced racist companies to sell black records as they were so profitable and popular. While this change was more evident in America, it still greatly impacted Australian society and challenged racial ideas.
Rock n Roll has greatly impacted Australian society and culture, not just in the 1950s and 60s but also today. It forced Australians to rethink many social normalities and boundaries, creating a more thoughtful and open country,
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