This article is about folk rock in general, especially American folk rock. For British folk rock in particular, see British folk rock.
Folk rock
Stylistic origins
Folk
rock
pop
Cultural origins
Early to mid-1960s, United States
Derivative forms
Acid rock
roots rock
heartland rock
neofolk
sunshine pop
Subgenres
British folk rock
Celtic rock
folk punk
indie folk
medieval folk rock
Other topics
Folk metal
blues rock
garage rock
singer-songwriters
jangle pop
progressive folk
progressive rock
psychedelic folk
raga rock
rockabilly
soft rock
Folk rock is a genre of rock music with heavy influences from English folk and American folk music.[1] Combining the elements of folk and rock music, it arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s.[2][3] In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music revival. Performers such as Bob Dylan and the Byrds—several of whose members had earlier played in folk ensembles—attempted to blend the sounds of rock with their pre-existing folk repertoire, adopting the use of electric instrumentation and drums in a way previously discouraged in the U.S. folk community. The term "folk rock" was initially used in the U.S. music press in June 1965 to describe the Byrds' music.
The commercial success of the Byrds' cover version of Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man" and their debut album of the same name, along with Dylan's own recordings with rock instrumentation—on the albums Bringing It All Back Home (1965), Highway 61 Revisited (1965), and Blonde on Blonde (1966)—encouraged other folk acts, such as Simon & Garfunkel, to use electric backing on their records and new groups, such as Buffalo Springfield, to form. Dylan's controversial appearance at the Newport Folk Festival on 25 July 1965, where he was backed by an electric band, was also a pivotal moment in the development of the genre.
During the late 1960s in Britain and Europe, a distinct, eclectic British folk rock style was created by Pentangle, Fairport Convention and Alan Stivell. Inspired by British psychedelic folk and the North American style of folk rock, British folk rock bands began to incorporate elements of traditional British folk music into their repertoire, leading to other variants, including the overtly English folk rock of the Albion Band and Celtic rock.
^"Folk Rock Music Guide: What Does Folk Rock Sound Like? - 2023 - MasterClass".
^"Folk-Rock Entry". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 15 March 2010.
^Richie Unterberger (20 February 2014). Jingle Jangle Morning: Folk-Rock in the 1960s. BookBaby. pp. 18–19. ISBN 9780991589210.[permanent dead link]
Folkrock is a genre of rock music with heavy influences from English folk and American folk music. Combining the elements of folk and rock music, it...
British folkrock is a form of folkrock which developed in the United Kingdom from the mid 1960s, and was at its most significant in the 1970s. Though...
the mid-1960s, rock and roll in its purest form was gradually overtaken by pop rock, beat, psychedelic rock, blues rock, and folkrock, which had grown...
Medieval folkrock, medieval rock or medieval folk is a musical subgenre that emerged in the early 1970s in England and Germany which combined elements...
revivals. This type of folk music also includes fusion genres such as folkrock, folk metal, and others. While contemporary folk music is a genre generally...
the American folk music revival. Fusion genres such as folkrock and others also evolved within this phenomenon. While contemporary folk music is a genre...
and various non-Western folk music influences are often found in psych folk. Much like its rock counterpart, psychedelic folk is often known for a peculiar...
musicians who have both significant folk and rock elements in their music, even if they are not considered primarily folkrock artists. Chava Alberstein Eric...
Folk punk (known in its early days as rogue folk) is a fusion of folk music and punk rock. It was popularized in the early 1980s by The Pogues in England...
like blues rock, folkrock, country rock, southern rock, raga rock, and jazz rock, which contributed to the development of psychedelic rock, influenced...
Independent Albums". Billboard. Retrieved March 12, 2011. "Monsters of Folk Chart History – Rock Albums". Billboard. Retrieved March 12, 2011. Ryan, Gavin (2011)...
particularly classical and rock music, influencing musical styles and producing musical fusions, such as British folkrock, folk punk and folk metal. There remains...
hybrids like blues rock, folkrock, country rock, and jazz-rock fusion, many of which contributed to the development of psychedelic rock influenced by the...
Dance-rock Gothic rock No wave Noise rock Post-rock Post-metal Folkrock British folkrock Celtic rock Medieval folkrock Funk rock Garage rock Proto-punk...
Live from the RockFolk Festival, founded in 2003, is an outdoor multistage music festival located at Pull-a-log Park on the north shore of Lake Superior...
Rolling Stone, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and other sources, Buffalo Springfield helped create the genres of folkrock and country rock.[citation needed]...
psychedelic rock musicians were based in folk, jazz, and the blues, while others showcased an explicit Indian classical influence called "raga rock". In the...
Cure. Other subgenres of rock invented by or radically changed by British acts include blues rock, ska, British folkrock, folk punk, shoegaze, and Britpop...
more fully integrated folkrock sound. On July 25, 1965, he performed his first concert with electric instruments at the Newport Folk Festival, joined by...
amateurish versions mainly of American folk songs and encouraged many of the subsequent generation of rock and roll, folk, R&B and beat musicians to start performing...
Folk horror Folk music Folk metal Folk punk FolkrockFolk religion Folk taxonomy Folk Plus or Folk +, an Albanian folk music channel Folks (band), a Japanese...
Indie folk is a music genre that arose in the 1990s among musicians from indie rock scenes influenced by folk music. Indie folk hybridizes the acoustic...
sign of rock music aligning itself with high culture. Dylan also led the way in blending rock with folk music styles. This was followed by folkrock groups...
year. Psychedelic rock particularly took off in California's emerging music scene as groups followed the Byrds from folk to folkrock from 1965. The psychedelic...
British rock of the 1960s, the first rock bands in Japan performed what is called group sounds, with lyrics almost exclusively in English. Folkrock band...
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