Date of Completion

1-11-2013

Embargo Period

1-11-2014

Major Advisor

Jeffrey O.G. Ogbar

Associate Advisor

Peter C. Baldwin

Associate Advisor

Micki McElya

Field of Study

History

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy

Open Access

Open Access

Abstract

Between the mid-1960s and early-1970s, the genres of folk and rock music were often culturally subversive forces that, at times, supported such countercultural mores as illegal drug use, obscenity, and a hedonistic sexuality which offended some governmental agencies and law enforcement authorities in the United States. Although the countercultural subversion frequently attributed to such music was neither the same as nor necessarily inclusive with revolutionary, leftist political ideologies and movements, such music commonly provided the soundtrack and inspiration for various counter-hegemonic political groups as the antiwar movement, the Youth International Party, the Black Panther Party, and the Weather Underground (all of which challenged government authorities which they condemned as imperialist, racist, and oppressive). Consequently, a variety of officials, including FBI agents, the U.S. Military, and local law enforcement officers, including municipal narcotics and vice squads, instituted various forms of repression or harassment against certain musical performers, promoters, or concertgoers. Frequently working as independent actors or bureaus, these political officials and law enforcement agents imposed varying degrees of repression or harassment upon musicians, depending on the degree to which they felt threatened. Targeted by such acts, musicians sometimes witnessed a deleterious effect on their emotional state, careers, and even the general direction of the music industry. Others, however, seemed little affected by police harassment or political repression, suggesting that the thought of dealing with law enforcement authorities did not completely deter all musicians from writing, recording, or performing whatever they wished.

Download

Share

COinS