History of Seattle Since 1940 - Music

Music

Seattle has long had a rich musical heritage, as many of rock's top names since the '60s have hailed from the area. In the mid-20th-century the thriving jazz scene in the city's Skid Road and Central Districts launched the careers of such luminaries as Ray Charles and Quincy Jones. Both Jones and, later, Jimi Hendrix attended Garfield High School, and in the '60s, such garage rock/proto punk bands as the Sonics and the Wailers emerged, and in the '70s, Heart. The '80s saw such Seattle heavy metal acts as Queensrÿche and Metal Church gain popularity, while Seattle native Duff McKagan went on to massive success with Guns N' Roses after relocating to Los Angeles. But it was perhaps the early '90s grunge movement for which Seattle is best known from a musical perspective. During this time such acts as Mother Love Bone, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Temple of the Dog, Alice in Chains, and Mudhoney (band) scored massive worldwide hits, and turned the musical tide from glam metal to a style that borrowed equally from garage rockers (the Sonics), punk (the Stooges), and '70s heavy metal (Black Sabbath).