10 60s Albums That Shaped Rock
The foundations built from Peace and Love.
The 1960's were a turbulent time for rock and roll. Back in the 50's, rock was treated like a passing fad genre. "Give it just a few more years and it'll die out" they said. Needless to say, rockers would have the last laugh on that one.
Rather than fade into obscurity, rock became one of the prominent artistic expressions throughout the 1960's. Music became much more than just trivial love songs to play in the background of a house party. These songs were like weapons that artists used to combat the cultural norms of how life was "supposed to go."
The overall sound of rock music expanded as well as the decade went on. Many genres had their apex towards the end of the 1960's such as hard rock, heavy metal, psychedelia, and singer-songwriter rock. Now rock could mean anything from Simon and Garfunkel to Deep Purple.
This list compiles a snapshot of the types of changes that were underway in the 1960's. Many of these innovations would go on to influence masses of fans to pick up instruments and form their own bands. So let's take a trip through the cultural touchstones from the era of the Summer of Love.
10. Beggars Banquet - The Rolling Stones
As the decade came to a close, the Rolling Stones had had a tumultuous few years. With founding member Brian Jones spiralling out of control due to drugs and the failed reception of their previous effort, the gig just didn't seem fun anymore for the Stones.
Beggars Banquet served as a way for the band to rediscover their roots in a way. From blues to country music, this record shows a band that is rough around the edges but is still as solid as they ever were. This makes for some great slowburns like "No Expectations" while leaving room for satirical country songs like "Dear Doctor."
At the same time, the album has some of the Stone's greatest rocking moments. "Sympathy for the Devil" is probably the band's most menacing tune along with "Street Fighting Man," which was a direct response to the outbreaks of violence as a result of the peace movements. There is also endless amounts of sleaze on the group's tribute to groupies on "Stray Cat Blues."
While this may have been a low point for the Stones behind the scenes, they were still able to deliver one of the most stunningly beautiful records of their career.