The Girl Singer

Female singers in Popular Music since the 1950s

Books

  Bayton, Mavis (1998): Frock Rock (Oxford, OUP)   Garr, Gillian, G (1992): She's a Rebel

(Washington)   McClary, Susan (1991): Feminine endings, music,

gender, and sexuality (Minnieapolis: Minnesota University Press)

  Reynolds, Simon and Press, Joy (1995): The Sex Revolts: Gender, Rebellion and Rock'n'roll London, Serpent's Tail)

The Message

  That the trajectory of women in popular music - as singers, song writers, instrumentalists, DJs, producers and commercial directors/company owners - has mirrored and in some ways led the way towards equality of opportunity in Western Society.

  Because popular music pervades modern life the images and messages about gender in popular music matter in the world of sexual politics.

1950s Female singers of Jazz and R&B

1. Heritage of great Jazz singers - Bessie Smith, Billy Holliday. Film

of Billie Holliday 2. 50s saw solo performers

(e.g.Peggy Lee) give way to girl-singer groups both black and

white. E.g. Bobbets, Chantelles, Shirelles

1960s and the formula   Once a winning formula had been identified it

was repeated in subsequent singles until the hits ended. (Shirelles)

  Shangri Las and Crystals - White teenage angst - Example of Shangri Las - Leader of the pack

  Manufactured bands with no control (Ronettes).

  Svengali producers (Phil Spector).   Recording label held all the cards.   Singers in tradition of chanteurs - to be sexy,

look pretty and do as they were told.

Supremes – Diana Ross

Back to solo singers

 Case of Supremes and the promotion of Diana Ross - Video

 Brassy soulful white singers using black singing styles - Petula Clark, Dusty Springfield, Sandie Shaw, Lulu, Cilla Black –

  Ex. Dusty Springfield.

Talkin `Bout a Revolution

  Female singers become empowered   Aretha Franklin - Respect (1967) A clarion for

female rights   The Case of Tina Turner   Joan Baez   Mama Cass   Janis Joplin   Carole King

You don’t own me – Leslie Gore 1964

Women’s Liberation

 Helen Reddy - Hear my Prayer. The impact of feminism.

 Olivia Records - female owned recording company

 Girl groups begin to come back - The Deadly Nightshades, Svelts

 Gay Beginnings - Redwood Records  Case of Karen Carpenter

Diverse Directions

  Female Singer Songwriters - Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Judy Collins, Carly Simon - play Carole King and Joni Mitchell

  British female Singer Songwriters and the folk connection

  Black singer songwriters - Joan Armatrading, Tracy Chapman

Carole King

Pre-Punk

  Suzi Quattro and the break-through into metal

  Experimentalism and Yoko Ono - underground art scene

  Patti Smith and US scene

Punk Liberation

 All girl groups - Slits, Penetration, Delta 5, B-52s

  Performers - X-Ray Specs, Siouxsie, Toyah Wilcox, Hazel O’Connor

  Punk influenced rock/pop lead fronted by a distinctive female singer - Pretenders, Blondie

Post Punk - Girls in Control

 Go Gos - all girl band   Laurie Anderson - mixing pop with art

music   Individualist female singers - Kate Bush,

Annie Lennox,  Girls in rock - Pat Benata,

The 70s and dance

 US all girl disco groups - e.g. Sister Sledge,

 Donna Summer   European disco and ABBA

Donna Summer

The 80s and the girls on top

 The Madonna phenomena - dance based singers with huge video potential

 The influence of MTV   Eurythmics and gender play  KD Lang and the gay angle

Madonna

90s phenomenas

 Bjork  The all girl `manufactured’ band with

attitude - Spice Girls, All Saints, Destiny’s Child

 Multi Media personalities and `R&B’

Spice Girls – 1990s Cologne