The Politics
COURSE DESCRIPTION & OBJECTIVES: In “The Poli cs of Popular Music,” you will examine popular UNIVERSITY music as an art form, a social movement, and a business. In doing so, you will consider what studying pop music — including songs, EGMT 1510 albums, videos, and performances — can tell us about the Fall 2018 poli cal context and historical moment in which it was created Monroe 134 and, in turn, the world it helped create. Mon/Weds You will ask serious ques ons about the produc on and 3:30 to 4:45 recep on of popular music, such as: Why did it take a white ar st like Elvis covering a song like “Hound Dog” to make it a hit, and OF VIRGINIA why did his performance of the song on television ignite such controversy? Who decided holding a “Disco Demoli on Night” between the two halves of a 1979 Chicago White Sox/Detroit Tigers doubleheader was a good promo onal idea, and why did it turn into a riot? What made Ronald Reagan praise Bruce Springsteen at a 1984 campaign stop, and why did Springsteen UNIVERSITY tell a concert audience two days later that Reagan must not have understood his songs? Why did a conserva ve pundit dismiss Childish Gambino’s “This Is America” as “paranoi[d]…Millennial Professor groupthink,” and what does that reac on have to do with the Josh Mound song and its video’s content?
mound@ You will learn to think cri cally about the nature of popular music as an art form and musicians as ar sts. You also will learn virginia.edu how to analyze popular music as an aesthe c object and how to describe sounds and lyrics and the emo ons they evoke. Finally, OF VIRGINIA you will reflect on how listeners’ iden es and the broader cultural context in which the music is heard affects how the music is interpreted and received. GRADING 15% A endance, Par cipa on, and Piazza 25% In-Class Quizzes and Ac vi es 10% “Give Me a Thousand Words On…” 20% Lyrics 30% Album Analysis Final Project
A endance: Because this course only has 13 mee ngs, all unexcused absences will nega vely affect your grade. If you must miss a class, please contact me ahead of me. Par cipa on: This course depends upon mutual engagement (no pun intended) among the par cipants during both small-group ac vi es and full-class discussions. As part of your par cipa on grade you are expected to be prepared for each class mee ng. You should come to class on me having read all of the required material, and you should be prepared to par cipate fully in any class discussions or ac vi es. This means not only verbally par cipa ng in discussion, but also modeling engaged listening by providing the speaker with respec ul a en on and eye contact. Piazza: As part of your par cipa on grade, you should post two ques ons about that day’s materials on Piazza by 10:00 am the day of class and post two comments on others’ ques ons by the start of class. Quizzes: Each course mee ng may begin with either 1) a short, individual mul ple choice reading quiz, 2) a 20- minute group essay quiz, or 3) a 20-minute “blended” short-answer quiz, offering opportuni es for individual and, a er reflec on, group responses. These quizzes are designed to make sure everyone is on the same page when it comes to the significant ideas contained in the readings, and they also will give you an opportunity to begin applying those ideas (either individually or in groups) to topics beyond the readings. (Note that group quizzes will incorporate peer evalua on.) Assignments: You will receive detailed instruc ons for each wri en assignment in advance. The grade for your final research paper includes points for a proposal and an office-hours mee ng to discuss your proposal. All course assignments should be turned in digitally by midnight on the date due, unless otherwise noted. COURSE EXPECTATIONS This course deals with controversial and some mes sensi ve and difficult topics. Many of us will have different opinions about these topics. We should express these disagreements. However, even in when we disagree, we must treat each other with respect at all mes. Failure to be courteous and respec ul will nega vely affect your par cipa on grade. Throughout the course, technology should only be used produc vely for course needs. The non-produc ve use of smartphones and laptops during discussion is distrac ng for and disrespec ul to your fellow course members.
ACCESSIBILITY
The classroom and course must be accessible and welcoming to all. If you require accommoda ons, please consult with the Learning Needs and Evalua on Center and inform the instructor.
READINGS & RESOURCES
Assigned readings are available on the course Collab site. The Collab site also includes several folders with resources on listening skills and audio basics and how to write about music. I will be adding to those folders periodically and also may post new ps and resources on Piazza when appropriate. Students who would like extra help with wri ng are always welcome to a end office hours for help with wri ng, and they are also encouraged to visit UVA’s Wri ng Center. Meeting One - Mon 10.22 “Writing About Music,” The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Meeting Two - Weds 10.24
John Covach and Andrew Flory, What’s That Sound (W.W. Norton, 2012), 23-36 Simon Frith, “Towards an Aesthetic of Popular Music” in Taking Popular Music Seriously (Ashgate 2007), 18 pages George Lipsitz, “The Long Fetch of History; or, Why Music Matters,” in Footsteps in the Dark (University of Minnesota Press, 2007), vixx-xxv
Personal Music Reflection Due on Piazza Before Class
Meeting Three - MON 10.29 Glenn C. Altschuler, All Shook Up: How Rock N Roll Changed America (Oxford, 2003) 3-127
Meeting FOuR - Weds 10.31 Grace Elizabeth Hale, “Black as Folk: The Folk Music Revival, the Civil Rights Movement, and Bob Dylan,” in A Nation of Outsiders (Oxford University Press, 2014), 84-131 John Covach and Andrew Flory, What’s That Sound (W.W. Norton, 2012), 154-214 Meeting FIVE - Mon 11.5 John Covach and Andrew Flory, What’s That Sound (W.W. Norton, 2012), 222-253 Jack Hamilton, Just Around Midnight (Harvard, 2016), 121-168 Dorian Lynskey, “Say it Loud - I’m Black and I’m Proud,” in 33 Revolutions Per Minute (Harper Collins, 2011), 109-125
Meeting SIX - Weds 11.7 John Covach and Andrew Flory, What’s That Sound (W.W. Norton, 2012), 254-296 “It Was 20 Years Ago Today” (Documentary)
Meeting SEVEN - MON 11.12 Jack Hamilton, Just Around Midnight (Harvard, 2016), 169-213 Ann Powers, Good Booty (HarperCollins, 2018), 155-198
Meeting EIGHT - Weds 11.14 Jack Hamilton, Just Around Midnight (Harvard, 2016), 246-276 Dorian Lynskey, “Ohio,” in 33 Revolutions Per Minute (Harper Collins, 2011), 159-179 “Hotel California” (Documentary)
Lyrics Project Due Friday 11.16 by Midnight Meeting NINE - Mon 11.19 John Covach and Andrew Flory, What’s That Sound (W.W. Norton, 2012), 300-341 Ann Powers, Good Booty (HarperCollins, 2018), 199-244
Meeting TEN - MON 11.26 John Covach and Andrew Flory, What’s That Sound (W.W. Norton, 2012), 342-365 Dorian Lynskey, “War,” “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised,” and “Living for the City” in 33 Revolutions Per Minute (Harper Collins, 2011), 143-158, 180-214 “The Story of Funk: One Nation Under a Groove” (Documentary)
Meeting ELEVEN - WEDS 11.28 John Covach and Andrew Flory, What’s That Sound (W.W. Norton, 2012), 374-409 Dorian Lynskey, “White Riot” and “Holiday In Cambodia” in 33 Revolutions Per Minute (Harper Collins, 2011), 265-282, 315-328
Meeting TWELVE - MON 12.3 Alice Echols, Hot Stuff (W.W. Norton, 2011), 71-120, 195-232 Dorian Lynskey, “I Was Born This Way,” in 33 Revolutions Per Minute (Harper Collins, 2011), 283-298 “Once Upon a Time in New York” (Documentary) Meeting THIRTEEN - WEDS 12.5 John Covach and Andrew Flory, What’s That Sound (W.W. Norton, 2012), 463-476 Dorian Lynskey, “The Message,” in 33 Revolutions Per Minute (Harper Collins, 2011), 329-339 “Hip Hop Evolution” (Documentary) (Selected Episodes) Kelefa Sanneh, “The Rap Against Rockism,” New York Times, October 31, 2004 Michael Hann, “Bland on Blonde: Why the old rock music canon is finished,” The Guardian, August 29, 2018 Jody Rosen, “The Perils of Poptimism - Does hating rock make you a music critic?” Slate, May 9, 2006 Michael Hann, “Is Poptimism Now As Blinkered As The Rockism It Replaced?” The Quietus, May 11, 2017
Final Project Due Sat 12.15 by 5:00 p.m.