BibTeX
@MISC{Qirko_raceand,
author = {Hector Qirko},
title = {Race and Rhythm in Rock and Roll},
year = {}
}
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Abstract
This chapter argues that contrary to conventional wisdom and the views of many scholars and critics, rock and roll’s most important rhythmic elements are derived from a complex blend of African, American, and European musical traditions. There is therefore no objective support for racialized characterizations of the “beat ” that often serve, however unintentionally, to perpetuate stereotypes in discussions of both the genre and American popular music more broadly. You take a white right hand, and a black left hand, and what do you got? Son, you got rock and roll. —Sam Phillips (purportedly) The mysteries of black and white in American music are just not that simple. —Greil Marcus Tracking the origins of rock and roll is as difficult as identifying the headwaters of a large river. As Robert Palmer observed, “It would
