Hair Metal, Conservatism, and the End of the Cold War in the 1980S Chelsea Anne Watts University of South Florida, [email protected]
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View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Scholar Commons | University of South Florida Research University of South Florida Scholar Commons Graduate Theses and Dissertations Graduate School 11-30-2016 Nothin' But a Good Time: Hair Metal, Conservatism, and the End of the Cold War in the 1980s Chelsea Anne Watts University of South Florida, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd Part of the Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons, Music Commons, and the United States History Commons Scholar Commons Citation Watts, heC lsea Anne, "Nothin' But a Good Time: Hair Metal, Conservatism, and the End of the Cold War in the 1980s" (2016). Graduate Theses and Dissertations. http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd/6601 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at Scholar Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Scholar Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Nothin’ But a Good Time: Hair Metal, Conservatism and the End of the Cold War in the 1980s by Chelsea Anne Watts A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of History College of Arts and Sciences University of South Florida Major Professor: David K. Johnson, Ph.D. K. Stephen Prince, Ph.D. Julia F. Irwin, Ph.D. Andrew S. Berish, Ph.D. Date of Approval: November 21, 2016 Keywords: Gender, Capitalism, Transnational, Rock Music Copyright © 2016, Chelsea Anne Watts Acknowledgements In 2010 I enrolled in a graduate seminar on American culture in the 1980s. At the time I was a master’s student, and I had no idea that my term paper on hair metal would one day become the topic of my doctoral dissertation. Along the way I have received support and encouragement from a number of people. Without them, this dissertation would not exist. During my time as a graduate student in the History Department at the University of South Florida I was privileged to work with a number of outstanding professors all of whom deserve thanks. In my first semesters as a Ph.D. student Barbara Berglund, Brian Connolly, and Philip Levy all listened to early iterations of this project and encouraged me to press forward with the idea. I was fortunate to have four exceptional professors on my committee. In the classroom and in numerous advising sessions, my major professor, David Johnson, pushed me to become a better writer and a more thorough historian. Julia Irwin helped me to embrace my inner transnational historian, which ultimately influenced the last chapter of this dissertation. Stephen Prince believed in this project from the beginning and continued to offer support and constructive critique, especially during the numerous moments when self-doubt was hindering my productivity. Even before I began writing Andrew Berish enthusiastically supported my idea and offered insight into the musicological aspects of my research. Thanks also go to Julie Langford, Tami Davis, Theresa Lewis, and Connie Bryan who have helped in various ways along this journey. I also received a generous grant from the Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation which allowed me to travel to Cleveland, Ohio to perform research in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Library and Archives. A special thanks to Jennie Thomas and the staff at the Rock Hall Archives for their assistance before, during and after my visit. My family and friends have been an irreplaceable support system throughout this process. I cannot express deeply enough the gratitude I have for each of you. Special thanks to my office mate and best friend Lina Chaves, who fielded a daily barrage of text messages and gladly empathized and commiserated with me; to Stratton “Dave” Nauman, who hashed through my ideas with me over beer on numerous occasions; to Ron Arbisi, whose knowledge of heavy metal music and enthusiasm for my project proved an invaluable contribution. Thank you to my grandparents, Robert and Annette Payne, who made continuing my education a reality and to my parents Ralph and Margaret Watts who have offered their support and encouragement in a variety of ways throughout this long journey. A special thank you to my partner, Joseph Arner, who listened to all my ideas, frustrations, and worries and believed in me even when I did not believe in myself – without you I truly would not have made it to this point. And finally, my children – Raleigh and Aiden, who may not have understood why I spent so many hours at the office working over the past four and a half years – I hope I have made you proud. Table of Contents Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... ii Chapter One – Introduction: Welcome to the Jungle ...................................................................... 1 Chapter Two – We’re Not Gonna Take It: The Parents’ Music Resource Center Attacks Heavy Metal .............................................................................................................................. 18 Cum on Feel the Noize: The Creation of the PMRC ........................................................ 21 Youth Gone Wild: A Culture of Fear ............................................................................... 36 Talk Dirty to Me: Heavy Metal Comes to Capitol Hill .................................................... 53 Parental Advisory – Explicit Content: The Lasting Impact of the PMRC ....................... 76 Chapter Three – Everybody Wants Some: Hair Metal’s Rags-to-Riches Pursuit of the American Dream ....................................................................................................................... 83 And the Cradle Will Rock: Van Halen Charts a Course for Heavy Metal Stardom ......... 85 I’m Always Working Slaving Everyday: Hair Metal and the American Dream .............. 92 Take a Ride on the Wild Side: The Commodification of Subversion ............................ 112 Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinkin’ Rich: Hair Metal Excess Breeds Success .......................... 125 Chapter Four – Look What the Cat Dragged In: Articulations of Gender in Eighties Hair Metal ............................................................................................................................. 129 Looks that Kill: The Aesthetics of Hair Metal Masculinity ........................................... 130 Appetite for Destruction: Aggression, Misogyny, and Hyper-Masculinity .................... 143 Boyz are Gonna Rock: Gender Constructions in Hair Metal Videos ............................. 165 Same ol’ Situation: Reaffirming Patriarchal Power ........................................................ 179 Chapter Five – Standin’ on Top of the World: The Transnational Influence of American Hair Metal ............................................................................................................................. 180 Hello America: Hair Metal and Transnational Exchange ............................................... 183 This Ain’t Glasnost, It’s ROCK-nost!: Heavy metal Diplomacy in the USSR .............. 202 Rock[ed] You Like a Hurricane: The Globalized influence of Heavy Metal ................. 220 References ................................................................................................................................... 222 i Abstract This dissertation offers a cultural history of the 1980s through an examination of one of the decade’s most memorable cultural forms – hair metal. The notion that hair metal musicians, and subsequently their fans, wanted “nothin’ but a good time,” shaped popular perceptions of the genre as shallow, hedonistic, and apolitical. Set against the backdrop of Reagan’s election and the rise of conservatism throughout the decade, hair metal’s transgressive nature embodied in the performers’ apparent obsession with partying and their absolute refusal to adopt the traditional values and trappings of “yuppies” or middle-class Americans, certainly appeared to be a strong reaction against conservatism; however, a closer examination of hair metal as a cultural form reveals a conservative subtext looming beneath the genre’s transgressive façade. In its embrace of traditional gender roles, free market capitalism, and American exceptionalism, hair metal upheld and worked to re-inscribe the key tenants of conservative ideology. Historians have only recently turned an analytical eye toward the 1980s and by and large their analyses have focused on the political and economic changes wrought by the Reagan Revolution that competed America’s conservative turn over the course of the decade. This study adds to historical understandings of the decade’s political history by telling us how non-political actors – musicians, producers, critics, and fans – shaped and were shaped by the currents of formal politics. Though heavy metal music and the rise of conservatism seem to share little common ground, by putting these two seemingly disparate historiographies into conversation with one another, we gain a clearer picture of the breadth and depth of conservatism’s reach in the 1980s. ii Chapter One Introduction: Welcome to the Jungle “What’s your philosophy on life?” a young woman jokingly implored a group of her teenage friends who had gathered to tailgate before the Judas Priest concert that evening. At only sixteen-years-old