Post War Recording Industry

Post War Recording Industry

RIM 3000 - S.I.

Multiple Choice

Due to the post-depression consolidation, many record labels went out of business.

In the post WWII era, there were essentially only ____ record labels left in business.

• 1

• 2

• 3

• 4

The Big Four

There were really only four labels left after the depression:

RCA - Victor 

Columbia  

Decca 

Capitol Records

Multiple Choice

The improvement of microphone technology in the post WWII era allowed for this vocal style to gain popularity

• Crooning

• Hollerin'

• Rap

• Opera

Crooning

• Vocal style that involved quieter voice 

• Made possible by improved microphone tech 

• Previously, you had to basically yell into microphones to be heard; Now even a soft talking voice could be picked up and crooning was born 

Important Crooners

• Bing Crosby

• Nat King Cole 

• Frank Sinatra 

Multiple Choice

This crooner was the first African American to host his own TV and Radio show

• Frank Sinatra

• Al Jolson

• Nat King Kole

• Marvin Gayr

Nat King Cole

• First African American to host a weekly radio show (1948-49) and a television show (1956-57) 

• His hits crossed over from race (R&B charts) to both pop and country charts. 

Multiple Choice

This crooner from NJ created a mania amongst teenage girls in the 1940s had success in music and film for several more decades.

• Perry Como

• Al Jolson

• Frank Sinatra

• Bing Crosby

Frank Sinatra

• Created mania amongst young teenager girls at the "Columbia Riot"

• Set the trend of residencies in Vegas with his friends the “Rat Pack” 

• Founded Reprise records

Multiple Choice

This Jazz and Pop singer, discovered by John Hammond, had many hits and closed each concert with "Strange Fruit."

• Bessie Smith

• Billie Holiday

• Aretha Franklin

• Big Mama Thornton

Billie Holiday

• Recorded with Bennie Goodman 

• Her style featured intentional phrasing and unique tone 

• At the Café Society in NYC, she debuted her two most famous songs: 

  “God Bless the Child” & “Strange Fruit” 

• Recorded her music with Commodore Records because Columbia did not like “Strange Fruit”

"Strange Fruit"

An important song to the history of music and of our nation.

Describes the lynching of African Americans in the American south

Reportedly not disproved by Columbia because of its "controversial" subject matter; but rather because of its lack of a chorus

Sold a million copies with Commodre Records

Multiple Choice

This jump blues artist had a major hit with "Choo Choo Ch-Boogie" in 1946.

• Chet Atkins

• Muddy Waters

• Louis Jordan

• Louis Armstrong

Louis Jordan

• Played jump blues 

• Influential on the development of rock and R&B 

• Popular with both black and white audiences 

• had a major hit with "Choo Choo Ch-Boogie" in 1946. 

Post WWII Technology

Important Post WWII technologies

• Tape and Multitrack recording

• Electric Guitar

• TV

• The LP and the 45 RPM discs

• Juke Boxes

• Radio formatting

Multiple Select

Check the boxes that appear next to names of figures who were influential in the innovation of recording to tape

• Les Paul

• Tom Dowd

• Bing Crosby

• John Mullen

• Alan Freed

Recording to Tape

• John Mullen - worked on making American radio imitate the quality of that of the Germans during WWII (brought two German magneto phones to America)

• Bing Crosby - worked with Mullen and founded Ampex to bring recording to tape to the radio industry

• Les Paul - developed his own tape recording machine for the use of multi-tracking and overdubbing in his home studio

• Tom Dowd - worked with Les Paul

Ampex

founded by Crosby and Mullen

In 1948 they  introduced the reel-to-reel tape recorder; they did not foresee how valuable it would be in the studio 

Aimed at the radio market 

Multiple Select

Which two electric guitar brands gained significant popularity during post WWII era

• Fender

• Paul Reed Smith Guitars

• Gibson

• Guild Guitars

Guitars

• Leo Fender - Introduced the first solid-body electric guitar (Telecaster:1950; Stratocaster 1954) and electric bass (Precision, 1951).

• Les Paul - Gibson introduced the solid body Les Paul in 1952 , named after the multi-tracking innovator

Multiple Choice

This emerging technology was once thought of as "too expensive" for the average American, however the post war economic boom allowed for these to spring up in homes all across America.

"In the 50s and 60s, _____ was the most important medium to launch an artist's recording career"

• TV

• Radio

TV

• By 1951, 12 million TVs are in American households 

• Early TV copied the format of radio and motion pictures 

• Became important for all recording artists but specifically it had a massive impact on the likes of The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and Elvis

Multiple Choice

This machine held a library of many 45s that could be selected and played in exchange for 10 cents; popular among the youth

• Juke Boxes

• Nickelodeons

• Pay-to-play Radios

• Music Vending Machines

Multiple Choice

This crooner from NJ created a mania amongst teenage girls in the 1940s had success in music and film for several more decades.

• Perry Como

• Al Jolson

• Frank Sinatra

• Bing Crosby

Juke Boxes

• Seeburg introduced the 45 RPM jukebox in 1950 

• Important in the growth of R&B, country, and rock 

• Placed in areas where the youth gathered after school 

• It was so successful that it got its own charts in the Billboard and Cashbox magazines

Radio Formatting

How the popularity of radio led to the payola scandal

Multiple Choice

1950s personality disc jockey who is 'credited' with coining the term "Rock and Roll." His career was ruined in the 1960s payola scandal.

• Dick Clark

• Aland Freed

• Todd Story

• Charles Berry

Multiple Choice

who introduced the "Top 40" radio format in 1950.

• Todd Storz

• Dick Clark

• Charles Berry

• Johnny Carson

Radio Formatting

• Before Todd Storz introduced the Top 40 format, Radio DJs were allowed to choose what music they wanted to play on their station

• Eventually, DJs such as Alan Freed, were paid money by record labels in exchange for the prime airplay of their artist's songs

Top 40

• Todd Storz noticed that teenagers always played the same few songs on the jukebox

• He instructed his radio DJs to make a playlist of the most popular 40 songs (based on listener feedback) and only play those songs

• The exclusion of the DJ in the song selection process made Top 40 Radio Personalities safe from the Payola investigations

Payola Scandal

• in an effort to keep bribery out of radio airplay, congress opened investigational hearings in 1959 

• Originally no criminal charges were brought forward

• A second case was brought based on an old New York bribery law, which did result in criminal charges

Multiple Choice

The two main targets of the Payola Hearings were Dick Clark and Alan Freed.

Only one was charged with accepting bribes. Who was it?

• Dick Clark

• Alan Freed

Payola Cont.

• The indictment of Freed proved that Payola was indeed illegal (it wasn’t before this case)

• Eventually, a law was written that explicitly stated that payola, the practice of a radio DJ accepting payment from a label in exchange for radio airplay, was a federal crime 

• In the 70s, 80s and 90s, the Mafia found a loophole in this because it only made it illegal for the label to pay a DJ