James Brown in 1960s America Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

James Brown in 1960s America - Essay ExampleIt is in large part a testament to his adaptability and creative genius that Browns music evolved through the 60s with such apparent ease. Building on his musical grow in African-American jazz and blues, Brown reached out to a broader and increasingly-eclectic audience as the decade unfolded. Whereas his music had at first been performed for and pitched to a predominately ignominious market, by the mid-60s his hits were to be found on the pop as well as R&B charts. Evidence of his broad cost and ability to appropriate new elements into his music is clearly heralded in his 1965 hit single Papas Got a Brand New holdCome here mama, and dig this crazy sceneHes not too fancy, but his line is pretty clean.He aint no drag.Papas got a brand new bag. Listed among Papas new tricks was a series of new dance moves that were sweeping the body politic and scandalizing parentsamong them, the jerk, the fly, the monkey, and the mashed potato. Since ver y little art is produced in isolation, it is impossible to evaluate Browns music and his influence on the American music scene without in addition looking closely at the tumultuous changes that were straining the cultural fabric of 1960s America. Much has been written about this remarkable decade and of the social movements that characterized it. In the short span of those ten years, Americans made their first flights into space, took dramatic strides toward ending segregation, became mired in a costly and unpopular war in Vietnam, and assassinatefour of their most visionary leaders.