Call and Response (music) - Popular Music

Popular Music

The phenomenon of call and response is pervasive in modern Western popular music, as well, largely because Western music has been so heavily shaped by African contributions. Cross-over rhythm and blues, rock 'n' roll and rock music exhibit call-and-response characteristics, as well. Three examples are The Who's song "My Generation", "Black Dog" by Led Zeppelin, and The Pogues' "Fairytale of New York":

Where call and response is most apparent in the secular music arena is in traditional and electric blues, where the most common 12-bar form is an AA'B pattern where the AA' is the call (repeated once with slight variation), and B is the response. But, each A and B part may itself consist of a short call and a short response, and those 2-bar calls and response may also be divided into 1-bar-each call-response pairs.

To make an attempt at diagramming it:

  • Twelve bars:
    • A: 4-bar CALL
      • (2-bar vocal CALL
      • 2-bar instrumental RESPONSE
        • )
    • A': 4-bar CALL (repeated with slight variation)
      • (2-bar vocal CALL
      • 2-bar instrumental RESPONSE
        • )
    • B: 4-bar RESPONSE (repeated)
      • (2-bar vocal CALL
      • 2-bar instrumental RESPONSE/turnaround
        • )

Note that each turnaround can be considered a call which the next A section is the response to.

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