Waddaya' mean black folks can't rock.

[Basvarken]

[dadagoboi]

I know no harm was intended but let's not use any terms that we know are considered disparaging, even in jest. We do have at least a few black members here, and even if we didn't let's not do it.

The whole thread is a little dubious.

Let's have a thread about 'rock' bands that weren't influenced by black music.  It would be a lot shorter, especially if you leave out prog...which would be fine with me.

[gweimer]

I think the point is, and this has always been my viewpoint, that music is a universal language.  It doesn't hold barriers of ethnic or social structure.  It speaks to all of us.

[Granny Gremlin]

The whole thread is a little dubious.

This occurred to me, but I ended up landing firmly on the side of the fence that says it's a good thing for a forum of predominantly (I did not know we had any persons of colour here) white dudes, to celebrate non-white excellence in what is inarguably a white-washed musical genre.

This doesn't seem to be about mere influence on the genre (that would be a very long thread indeed); but actual participation and influence upon ourselves.

Carrying on with some more modern stuff:




(Tyondai Braxton has since left the band and gone solo)

[nofi]

i get all wound up if i perceive a hint of racist nonsense might going on. i'll try to stay calm in the future.

[Basvarken]

TM Stevens knows how to rock

[Alanko]

Nah I didn't mean it like that. I find it odd to single out black folk in rock and give them their own thread. Do we do the same for homosexuals, members of the trans community, asians? I don't want to sound like the professionally offended, especially given that I am caucasian myself, but I find this singling out a bit odd, especially when one can basically post any black artists, minus any context, to fit this common theme.

[Basvarken]

Mother's Finest named their comeback album "Black Radio Won't Play This Record".
In those days (early nineties) rock music had become 98% dominated by white musicians.
For Mother's Finest the concept of the title was a reality

This particular song is about that topic:

[Granny Gremlin]

Nah I didn't mean it like that. I find it odd to single out black folk in rock and give them their own thread. Do we do the same for homosexuals, members of the trans community, asians? I don't want to sound like the professionally offended, especially given that I am caucasian myself, but I find this singling out a bit odd, especially when one can basically post any black artists, minus any context, to fit this common theme.

I would argue that there is a bit of a difference considering the history of where rock came from vs the current (for lack of a better term) 'exclusion' from mainstream awareness (though I would argue that this is changing - I see a lot more black 'rockers' out there at shows in the last few years; this can only be a good thing, subcultural segregation is not helpful to mutual understanding). That said, if there were a thread celebrating LGBT achievements in rock, that would be fine by me.  Especially considering some recent controversies in the usually rather progressive-minded punk scene:

http://exclaim.ca/music/article/whirr_dropped_from_run_for_cover_records_over_transphobic_gloss_tweets

[Aussie Mark]

[Dave W]

Nah I didn't mean it like that. I find it odd to single out black folk in rock and give them their own thread. Do we do the same for homosexuals, members of the trans community, asians? I don't want to sound like the professionally offended, especially given that I am caucasian myself, but I find this singling out a bit odd, especially when one can basically post any black artists, minus any context, to fit this common theme.

I know you didn't mean it like that. I didn't consult with nofi about his intent, I just assumed it was because so many black artists dominated rock in the early days yet even by the time of Hendrix, black rock stars were the exception rather than the rule. And that was before the rise of hip-hop. It had nothing to do with singling out blacks compared to other minorities.

[uwe]

Alan, if we do a gay rock gods thread, you know who has to come first!



No issues with that (or with a thread on German rock bands for that matter, ethnicity is nothing to be ashamed of). I also didn't for a second think that Nofi had anything inappropriate in mind, the man is so non-racist (white washed out Euro-rockers excepted!  ), he probably doesn't even drive.

Back to black guys playing great rock (and I out myself as a fan of black lesbians singing rock too, great admirer of Skin of Skunk Anansie!), I like(d) him a lot:

[nofi]

 no good live footage but the slide show is interesting. especially for those of a certain age.

and this

[Basvarken]

Title and looks are (almost) identical.
But I really prefer this one

[slinkp]

I don't know what exactly prompted this thread, but I'm glad to see Bad Brains getting their respect (though, because things are often complicated, it is possible to be kick-ass musical pioneers and also reactionary homophobes at the same time ... who have possibly somewhat evolved in that regard since the old days, maybe ... and I'll just leave that topic alone for now).

On the topic of race and rock, one of the most interesting things I read recently was an interview with a guy I used to play bass for about 9 years ago ... excerpted from http://dylansparrow.com/blog/2015/7/20/interview-with-dylan-sparrow-319-2014 :

J: ... Alright, here’s another thought. I don’t want to be sticky about this kind of thing, but—you’re a black guy…

D: Actually, I’m not.

J: Haha. But um, has that ever been an issue in terms of people you play musically with, or want to play with? I mean, I’ve never witnessed it, but…

D: Well you probably wouldn’t ask this question if I were a rapper or R&B singer. Rock-based music is still largely populated by people with pink skin and straight hair. That’s what you’re getting at.

J: Yeah…

D: I don’t have pink skin and straight hair, so I stand out. Whether I stand out in a goofy way, or scary way, or a sexy way, or an antagonizing way…I’ve felt it all. The rejections are usually subtle but psychically cumulative. And yes that impacts my ability to accomplish certain things, musically or otherwise.

J: Wow. I didn’t…hmm.

D: I mean, sometimes being seen as different is an advantage. Like that Detroit band, Death. If those were a bunch of pink dudes, no one would’ve made a movie about them. On the flipside, they had to wait 40 years for anyone to care! Eh, what can I say. Humanity needs a whole lot of f***in’ work.