History
In the late 1960s and early 1970s there were few "positive women's images within popular music" and a "lack of opportunities for female performers". Women were viewed as having a disadvantage in the field because of their difference in gender. At the time, major record labels had only signed a few women's bands including Fanny, Birtha, The Deadly Nightshade, Goldie and the Gingerbreads and the band that they evolved into, Isis. The lack of inclusion of women in the mainstream made it necessary for women to create a separate space for women to create music. Lesbian and feminist separatism was then used as a "tactic which focused women's energy and would give an enormous boost to the growth and development of women's music".
Out of the separatist movement came the first distributed examples of music created specifically for lesbians or feminists. In 1972, Maxine Feldman, who had been an "out" openly gay performer since 1964, recorded the first lesbian record, "Angry Atthis," (Atthis was lover of the poet Sappho) a single with lyrics specific to her feelings and experiences as a lesbian. In 1973, Alix Dobkin, flautist Kay Gardner, and bassist Patches Attom created the group Lavender Jane, and recorded an album entitled Lavender Jane Loves Women, the very first full-length album for and by lesbians. In the same year the feminist all women band The Chicago Liberation Rock Band recorded Mountain Movin' Day. These early recordings were successful despite the lack of traditional distribution and promotion. They were sold through mail order and in a few lesbian-feminist bookstores, like Lambda Rising in Washington, D.C., and were promoted by word of mouth.
Because rock music was viewed as such a male-dominated genre, women seemed to have a weakness concerning their progress in the music industry. However, women were able to use their difference in gender to their advantage by showing a positive, proactive, and assertive image of women that not only critiqued the rifts in regards to gender, but also demonstrated the goals of the feminist movement. These goals included social justices regarding gender as well as the right of privacy concerning abortion and birth control. One example of how women worked to break down the gender divide and level the gender differences was by "adopting male dress codes and hair styles". Women also voiced their opinions and the goals of the feminist movement through lyrical contributions. In "I Am Woman," Helen Reddy sings, "I am woman/hear me roar/And I've been down there on the floor/No one's ever gonna keep me down again. Reddy creates a feeling of "girl power" that reflected the ambitions of the feminist movement. In this way, females used their sexuality to their advantage by attracting attention and expressing ideas of balancing male and female rights.
Read more about this topic: Women's Music
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