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time singers used to dress smartly and have short hair. Then there appeared groups, not solo singers. And they started to wear crazy clothes and their hair got longer and longer. By 1968 groups were all in 'hippie' gear1. The guitar became as important as the voice: Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton were guitarists more than singers.
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In the 1970s rock went in two different directions. On the soft side, Elton John, Rod Stewart and the Swedish group Abba became very popular with people of all ages. On the hard side, The Sex Pistols, The Stranglers and The Banshees, and a few other bands started to play loud, violent music called 'punk'. Punk was also important as a fashion in clothes. The punk 'look' is still around today.
Something new and different arrived in 1975. It came from Jamaica in the Caribbean. It had a heavy dance beat, but was not too fast. It was called 'reggae', and its superstar was Bob Marley. Reggae was a mix of rock, African and South American music. It had a message of peace and optimism. Marley sang:
'Don't you worry about a thing
'Cos every little thing
Gonna be all right.'
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Today there is a number of different popular music styles — pop, heavy metal, rap, dance, indie, etc. But they all originate from good old rock 'n' roll.
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