How Did Van Morrison Impact Society

"If you fall behind, run faster. Never give up, never surrender, and rise up against all odds." That’s Jesse Jackson at one of his speeches in 1984, he went against all odds himself, overcame the risks and proved to America that color didn’t matter making him one of the most influential characters in American history.  Jacksons rough childhood, bravery, and human rights activism is what I think it took to get the courage to do something as big and selfless as Jackson brought himself to do.

The decade of the 1960s can be said to be a subversion of the United States. From the civil rights movements, anti-Vietnam war demonstration, Kennedy’s presidency, to the assassination of the civil rights leader Martin Luther King, the impact of the surging social movements and political turmoils to the American society is extremely far-reaching. There has been a lot of researches on the various social movements in this period. However, people 's attention seems to be limited to another important cultural phenomenon of this period, that is the prosperity of rock & roll. This paper is intended to analyze the

With an estimated one billion units sold and counting, Elvis Presley is thought to be the most commercially successful solo musical artist of all time (Meacham 1) Born in Tupelo Mississippi and later relocating to Memphis Tennessee, Elvis was a natural star. At just age ten he won fifth place at his first singing contest and at 11 gets his own guitar. Elvis then won a school talent show by singing and playing his guitar, earning the most applause out of any of the contestants. He would soon after that become a trucker, but his dreams of becoming a star were not crushed yet. Elvis gyrated his hips into America's heart as the most influential figure in American history.

Michael Jordan was one of the most liked and influential Nba player of all time. He’s impacted more people in sports, Fashion, and overcoming Racial discrimination than any professional athlete ever.

Popular singer Elton John once said; “music has healing power; it has the ability to take people out of themselves for a few hours”, and for most, music is the portal to an out of body experience. African American lyricists especially have been found to use the art of music to escape the real world, commencing from the slavery era and onward. The blues song titled The Tracks of My Tears does just that; expresses the ability to remove your soul from a treacherous reality. Similarly, the lyrics from popular modern songs, written by black artists, speak volumes about what is presently going on in the country, parallel to the way African American slavery songs did. Music written at an earlier period have been found to correlate to music of the past through providing strong emotion toward present day commentary.

The Sixties were an exciting revolutionary period of time with great social and technological change. Some people called it the “decade of discontent” because of the race riots in Detroit and La, and the demonstrations against the Vietnam War. Other people called it the decade of “peace, love, and harmony”. It was called this because of the peace movement and the emergence of the flower children. (Britannica) The sixties were about assassination, unforgettable fashion, new styles of music, civil rights, gay and women’s liberation, Vietnam, Neil Armstrong landing on the moon, peace marches, sexual freedom, drug experimentation, and Woodstock. All of these components caused a revolutionary change in the world of popular Music.

Elvis Aaron Presley, otherwise known as “The King” was born on January 8th, 1935. He came from simple beginnings; being born into a lower-class family in Tupelo, Mississippi. In 1948, at the age of 13 Elvis Presley and his family moved to Memphis, Tennessee. Soon he launched his incredibly successful music career with Sun Records at the age of 19 in 1954. His music was influenced by both African American and White artists causing his unique blend of country, pop, rhythm and blues, and gospel music. Presley was heavily influenced by artists such as Chuck Berry, Fats Domino, and Buddy Holly. Though Presley was widely known for his “provocative” dances moves and his popularization of Rock n’ Roll Presley impacted American culture in a much larger aspect. His influence on Americans and American culture aided desegregation and civil rights during his period of influence and helped create “youth culture”.

There are a revolutionary of unique voices before the music formation in the contemporary art music. The feeling of the new art music has its foundation on a progression of works and spirituals of the past musical legendries including Billie Holiday. Before her demise, Billie is noted to have had a flourishing career as a jazz singer. Meanwhile, she is still known as one of the singers who has had a significant influence on the history of Jazz music. Her legacy is re-stated in the music landscape in ways that prove her as a reflection of the foundation of the major transformations in jazz and the whole American music.

President Andrew Jackson was known as "the peoples President" and rightly so due to his life before he became president. He was a lawyer and a soldier which led him to an understanding of what the American people wanted or didn't want. His beliefs of an equality spread through American politics and his decisions throughout his presidency made a lasting impact on America.

In the 1960’s music had a lot of influences on everyone not only adults but teens too. Starting from RnB music to blues to rock n roll to even folk music it all had an impact on the people that listened to it. Rnb music around this time was thought of as the heart of music it originated from different genres. It started to have more of a gospel sound in the 60’s with artists such as Sam Cooke, James Brown and Ray Charles. And as years passed a new style of music came about and it

Rock 'n' roll is an important genre of music. It not only have the power to influence but also sustain itself throughout many generations. American society has been hugely impacted by rock 'n' roll consistently setting trends for pop music and persuading other genres of music. Rock 'n' roll has bricked the road for originality, creativity, and broad-mindedness. Artist have been allowed to speak on political issues and even perhaps have persuaded government. Rock 'n' roll has been attributed with desegregation of teens in the 1950's through the 1970's along with assisting black artist to being played on mainstream radio. Rock 'n' roll is responsible for helping cultures in several different parts of the world, specifically Europe. With many different styles existing such as: grunge, heavy metal, punk, classic rock, and alternative rock 'n' roll has allowed many music producing companies to surface and endorse artist that are still admired and acknowledged among countless audiences today. There are people that believe Elvis is still alive and if not for Little Richard the social scene in regards to blacks and

Bob Dylan still tours to this day for his spectacular songs he has written. Many modern singers still look up to Bob Dylan today. As a result, he may be the best songwriter of the 1900’s. On the other hand, he may not be a good singer. In conclusion, Bob Dylan is an amazing lyricist at the current age of 74, but may not might have the best voice. All in all, he is a great

The 1960’s was one of the most controversial decades in American history because of not only the Vietnam War, but there was an outbreak of protests involving civil and social conditions all across college campuses. These protests have been taken to the extent where people either have died or have been seriously injured. However, during the 1960’s, America saw a popular form of art known as protest music, which responded to the social turmoil of that era, from the civil rights movement to the war in Vietnam. A veritable pantheon of musicians, such as Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, Phil Ochs, Joan Baez, and Bob Dylan sang their songs to encourage union organizers to protest the inequities of their time, creating a diverse variety of popular

In almost all lists of famous serial killers, probably the most mentioned among them all is Charles Manson. With more than 35 documented killings and a cult of disciple murderers, Manson has become the living embodiment that the devil walks on earth. But what has made this troubled youth into one of America’s feared monsters?

Rock and Roll has has had an impact on several decades of generations of people. It has also sustained itself throughout this period without dropping in popularity. Rock and roll has had a huge impact on the society we live in today because it affects other music genres such as hip hop and neo-soul. It has not only affected other genres but also opened up a way for originality, self-expression, and free thought. It also influenced artists to give political opinions through their songs which also influences the government and how it governs specific laws including many that were apart of the civil rights act. It has been given credit for integrating teens and adults through 1950’s-1970’s. It has also helped with equality with races being able to perform and be successful without being treated unfairly about their quality of music because of their race.