Part of the goal of this class is to help us understand why we care about the music we listen to, and to understand the process by which popular music is both affected by, and in turn impacts upon, the culture it emerges from and ultimately becomes a part of.
For this paper, choose THREE full-length albums that have made a difference in your life, with the following requirements:
1. At least one of the collections must contain music more than ten years old (recorded and released before 2006), and at least one of the collections must contain music less than five years old (recorded and released after 2011).
2. All three must fall within the parameters of pop music–rock,folk,blues,etc.(NO classical or jazz albums)–and all three must be distinct from each other in terms of general style (in other words, do NOT pick three metal albums or three hip-hop albums, etc.)
3. While you may pick any combination of individual performers or groups, the collections should NOT be related to each other in terms of the artists involved (No more than one album per single performer or group)
For each album, discuss the following:
1. What were the roots and origins of the music–what tradition or movement did the artist(s) emerge from?
2. How did the artist(s) reflect, extend, or alter that tradition or movement?
3. What does each work say to you, specifically, that has caused it to stand out in your life?
4. What does each work say about our collective culture that you feel is important?