2008 Woodie Awards
I am woman, hear me whine
The demise of girl rock becomes increasingly apparent
Bonnie Curtis
Issue date: 3/25/05 Section: Tempo
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It wasn't until it became the "norm" for women to front bands and headline tours that women were seen (to at least some extent) as a rock staple. Some of the mid-60s forerunners of lady rockers include Joni Mitchell, Grace Slick of Jefferson Airplane, Janis Joplin, Stevie Nicks of Fleetwood Mac, and Mama Cass and Michelle Phillips of the Mamas and the Papas. They seemed to set the precedent for what rock should look like, lady-style, which was actually in pretty close relation to what rock 'n' roll was in the male-oriented traditional sense, with the exception being that the women wore bras every once in a while. Those original women showed (or at least tried to) that women have the same edge and passion as their male counterparts and that they had something real to say. Some misconceptions that often surround the genesis of women being involved in rock music, are that some of the pioneers of the said genre took their cues from male musicians and were inspired by them. When actually, if one were to specifically trace the origin of each band and specific genre of rock, it would be evident that all of the pioneers of rock of both sexes spawned from each individual's love of several types of music such as surf, folk, jazz, pop, and most of all, the blues. Really, there is only a time difference in between when each facet got started simply because men got noticed first.
Then came the 70s, which brought Debbie Harry (of Blondie), Ann and Nancy Wilson (of Heart), Patti Smith, Joan Jett (of the Black Hearts and The Runaways), The Raincoats and the Slits, just to name a few. This decade saw women finally being recognized as musicians and not just a voice. The idea of women singing made sense, and after the birth of rock, it still made sense, but the thought of a woman with an electric guitar and playing rock music was an entirely different animal. It took quite a while, but during this time, women became increasingly accepted as actual rockers and not just performers. This era also saw the birth of the all-girl rock group. Groups such as the Runaways, Girlschool, X-Ray Specs, the Slits, and the Raincoats laid out the groundwork for groups today like The Donnas, the Sahara Hotnights and Le Tigre.
After the haze of the 70s, the 80s got started off right with the commercial success of Pat Benetar and Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders. The Pretenders stand out especially because their formula was spot on. Chrissie Hynde didn't try to be super sexy or anything; she was laid back and she rocked hard. The Pretenders played classic rock and just so happened to have a female lead singer. The rise of the true 80s rock chicks was somewhat over-shadowed by the barrage of girl groups such as The Go-Go's and the Bangles, just to name a couple. The girl group phenomenon took the progress that had been made a step or two with it's sugary sweetness, the upside being of course that the sickeningly sweet sound was gobbled up by millions and at least spread some exposure to the masses.
When the hair spray fog of the 80s faded, the 90's ushered in an array of new genres of music, each having their own flock of new bands. One of the most underrated but perhaps most interesting of these rising genres was Riot Grrrl. Riot Grrrl is often lumped in grunge rock but the genre itself actual draws from more aggressive, punk, experimental art-rock influences. Riot Grrrl was the cause of bands like Bikini Kill, L7, 7 Year Bitch, Sleater-Kinney, and many others.
It was then that record companies started cracking down on the number of women they gave contracts to and put on the air. In a interview with VH1, Alanis Morisette told the interviewer that in 1993 while auditioning for a record executive and an unnamed record company, the record executive told Morisette that the company didn't feel comfortable giving her a record contract because Natalie Merchant was already on the radio and they didn't feel there was room for a another female singer. Despite that there was a boom of commercially successful female vocalists and musicians. This was the dawn of such contemporary greats like Tori Amos, Sara McLaughlin, Ani DiFranco, Lunachicks (most of these women actually got started in the late 80s, but it wasn't until the 90s that they gained recognition), Alanis Morisette, Elysian Fields, No Doubt, P.J. Harvey, Bikini Kill, Sleater Kinney, Garbage and Fiona Apple.
There was also a rash of female-fronted bands that thought successful at the time, didn't quite make it out of the decade, such as Veruca Salt, Letters To Cleo, Save Ferris, Hole, Tracy Bonham, Luscious Jackson, Patti Rothberg, Artificial Joy Club and Poe. There was chick rocker everywhere. For a split second it almost seemed accepted for an emancipated female rocker to be successful. Actual, relevant and intelligent messages were being spread from the female musicians to the masses. The idea of 90s angry, independent women, complete with knee-high Doc Martens and an Ani DiFranco album became part of an integral part of pop culture. But, by the start of the new century, the state of chick rock had dwindled down to Sheryl Crow, Bjork and Gwen Stefani running around wearing nothing but bikini tops, Dickies and heels. Currently with the exception hardcore experts Kittie, punk rock's own Tsunami Bomb and indie darlings Rilo Kiley and the new Garbage album coming out there isn't a whole lot of hope for the sake of lady rock. It is also very curious that someone in the last 10 years decided that you couldn't be a woman in rock unless you were, tattooed, pierced, dyed, wearing nothing but fish nets, or sang like you were giving birth to an orangutan. The guts of chick rock were swallowed in part by our fashion conscious nation and the average person's willingness to settle for whatever crap the executives decide is profitable enough to produce. The beauty of the women in the decades before is they could sing, and rock out without having to physically prove to the audience that they were worth watching.
Fortunately, the fate of music and pop culture in general is a cycle. Every few years, whatever was cool 10 years ago is cool again,and this time with a twist. So, it is inevitable that it will cycle around again and women will be able to be successful in rock again with out having to perform with a forehead piercing and wearing nothing but cellophane. And if not, after the apocalypse comes we will have to start over from scratch anyway and hopefully we will be able to get it right next time.
