Psychedelic Rock
Although psychedelic rock had already solidified its place in the counterculture of the late 1960s, the Moog began to infiltrate the genre after its popularity boom in 1969. As opposed to the previous emphasis on live performance, many musicians began to value production. The role of producers in popular music grew, and recording became more of an art form. The Beatles are an example of this occurrence, as exemplified by their use of the Moog in the 1969 song “Here Comes the Sun,” off of their album Abbey Road. This was in part inspired by George Harrison after he bought his own Moog and took lessons from Bernie Krauss, a Moog expert (Machover 1186). Although understated, the use of the Moog in this hit song exemplified technology’s place in musical experimentation within various genres (in this case, rock). Especially at 1:00, the Moog’s distinct timbre can be heard along with the sung melody. This, as well as the slight reverberation of the notes and the wobbling effect on the pitch, gives the second verse a unique texture. These kinds of experimentation with sound were new and novel at the time; the Moog was even rarer in the United Kingdom than the United States in 1969. Harrison’s eagerness to use the Moog showed how quickly and how far the technology spread once popularized.
Disco
The Moog synthesizer played a significant role in disco music as a genre. Disco is a beat-driven type of music that grew popular in the 1970s, and was primarily intended to be coupled with dancing (“Disco”). This kind of music was exemplified by the Bee Gees, an English-Australian pop-rock band that adapted to the changing musical styles of the 1970s (“The Bee Gees”). In 1975, their single “Jive Talkin’” topped the charts, and placed the Bee Gees at the forefront of the disco movement and contributed to their popularization as a group- their 1977 album Saturday Night Fever won several Grammys as well as album of the year (“The Bee Gees”).
“Jive Talkin'”- Bee Gees
How did Jive Talkin’ place the Bee Gees in the center of disco? The song has a four-on-the-floor beat, with each beat emphasized equally, making it suitable for dancing. The lyrics regarding the jive also directly connect the song to dancing. However, the Moog synthesizer also greatly contributes to the labeling of the single as disco; it greatly impacts the texture of the song. It helps keep the upbeat, rhythmic pulse; the Moog can be heard in the background playing a rhythm throughout the duration of the song. Its sound mimics that of a bass in this context, as many of the notes are played in a lower range. There is also a prominent melodic riff between verses. In this riff, the Moog sounds higher pitched with a different timbre and more reverberation, demonstrating the versatility of the instrument even within one song. Without the distinct sound of the Moog, “Jive Talkin’” may not have been distinguished as distinctly disco in the same fashion, as instrumentation often plays an integral role in genre categorization.
Hip-hop
Hip-hop originated in the Bronx in the late 1970s and early 1980s. It focused on sampling, using part of a pre-existing record to incorporate into something new. Influences from R&B, disco, and funk bled into early hip-hop as it morphed into its own genre. One of the most influential figures of this movement was Grandmaster Flash. Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five’s 1992 song “The Message” was one of the first tracks to establish hip-hop as a genre entirely distinct from previous movements (Wang).
The tempo is distinctly slower than other early hip-hop tracks. Perhaps most significantly, a distinct, spacey synthesizer rhythm can be heard in the background of the verses, as Grandmaster Flash raps. The song also opens with a synthesizer riff, immediately capturing the listener’s attention. The riff demonstrates the Moog’s wide range and variability of sound, including many different timbres in the same bar. The Moog continues to play a staccato rhythm that emphasizes the beat through the rapped verses. Although the same technology was used here as was with “Jive Talkin’”, the use of the Moog synthesizer paired with rap in this context placed an emphasis on musical technology in hip-hop as a genre. In a way, the use of the Moog here foreshadowed how advancements in production would continue to shape hip-hop and rap.
“The Message” – Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five