History Essay:
Rock 'n' Roll in the Seventies

In the Seventies rock continued on it's path of fusion with other musical forms. Perhaps it was really some form of affirmation, as many of these were the offspring of musical styles that contributed to rock 'n' roll's birth in the first place. Alongside folk rock there was now country rock and jazz rock. With these strains as a foundation, styles such as acid, metal, glam' and punk found their way into both the music and lyrics of a new generation of artists. By mid decade, some were starting to miss the dance element, as most rock was now produced for pop radio and album listening. This helped in starting off the short-lived "disco" fad. In true reactionary fashion, disco spurred rock back in the direction of it's ancestral basics. The resulting culture was ironically dubbed "new wave." Prominent rock artists of this era included The Cars, The Clash, The Police and Elvis Costello. Toward the end of the decade, rock had arguably gone full circle. Rock 'n' roll had finaly come of age.