Not to be confused with Pop Rocks
Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock[4]) is a fusion genre characterized by a strong πͺ commercial appeal,[5] with more emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than standard rock music.[6][7][1] πͺ Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, early pop rock was influenced by the πͺ beat, arrangements, and original style of rock and roll (and sometimes doo-wop).[1] It may be viewed as a distinct genre πͺ field rather than music that overlaps with pop and rock.[4] The detractors of pop rock often deride it as a πͺ slick, commercial product and less authentic than rock music.[8]
Characteristics and etymology [ edit ]
Much pop and rock music has been πͺ very similar in sound, instrumentation and even lyrical content. The terms "pop rock" and "power pop" have been used to πͺ describe more commercially successful music that uses elements from, or the form of, rock music.[9] Writer Johan Fornas views pop/rock πͺ as "one single, continuous genre field", rather than distinct categories.[4] To the authors Larry Starr and Christopher Waterman, it is πͺ defined as an "upbeat variety of rock music" represented by artists and bands such as: Andy Kim, the Bells, Paul πͺ McCartney, Lighthouse, and Peter Frampton.[10]
The term pop has been used since the early forties to refer to popular music in πͺ general, but from the mid-1950s it began to be used for a distinct genre, aimed at a youth market, often πͺ characterized as a softer alternative to rock and roll.[11][1] In the aftermath of the British Invasion, from about 1967, it πͺ was increasingly used in opposition to the term rock, to describe a form that was more commercial, ephemeral and accessible.[12]