Roots rock

This article is about the movement in rock music. For the subgenre of reggae (Roots rock reggae), see Roots reggae.
Roots rock
Stylistic origins
Cultural origins1960s, U.S.
Other topics

Roots rock is a genre of rock music that looks back to rock's origins in folk, blues and country music.[1] It is seen as responses to the perceived excesses of the dominant psychedelic and the developing progressive rock.[2] Because roots music (Americana) is often used to mean folk and world musical forms, roots rock is sometimes used in a broad sense to describe any rock music that incorporates elements of this music.[3]

After a further decline, the 2000s saw a new interest in "roots" music. One proof of that is the specific Grammy Award given since 2015, notably to Jon Batiste in 2022. According to their website, that trophy is defined as: "This category recognizes excellence in Americana, bluegrass, blues or folk recordings in modern and/or traditional vocal and instrumental styles, as well as original material by artists who use traditional and/or modern roots elements, sounds and instrumental techniques as the basis for their recordings."[4]

  1. ^ P. Auslander, Liveness: performance in a mediatized culture (London: Routledge, 2008), p. 83
  2. ^ V. Bogdanov, C. Woodstra and S. T. Erlewine, All music guide to rock: the definitive guide to rock, pop, and soul (Backbeat Books, 3rd edn., 2002), p. 1327
  3. ^ R. Shuker, Popular Music: the Key Concepts (London: Routledge, 2005), p. 235
  4. ^ "GRAMMY AWARDS CATEGORY RULES : American Roots Music Field" (PDF). Grammy.com. Retrieved April 9, 2022.