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Ask yourself this: What would the rock industry be like without women? The singular sexiest creature on the face of the earth. What image would the world view of Rock & Roll without the female involvement? Should we change the eternal slogan to simply read Drugs & Rock & Roll! Without the superficial sexual image of la femme's, the industry would be as plain and boring as jean commercials. Any male gender of our species reading this particular mix of letters can appreciate the advantage of the female figurehead. The image of men in rock has remained unchanged, constant, lacking. It's the James Dean bad boy image, the rebel, the London Leatherboys, the Metalheads, the snarled lip; raspy, greased image that epitomizes the rock genre. Women however, have gone from the dainty blondes in dresses with light voices, to raspy Janis types on into hard leather clad bodies and long hair, snarled lips and tattoos. An evolution of being. Frantically screaming, idolizing those before them, with heavy breathing, and faint hearts. Women have given rock some meaning. Love songs and ballads intricately penned by their teen idols just for them. Stories of love on every album, enchanting their souls and breaking their hearts. The elusive image of rock is purely pheromonal. Involvement has changed how we view the Rock Gods. Women have been blamed for the breakup of bands, the selling out of stars, the bad albums, the hard headstrong bitterness, the change in sound, the maturity, the down to earth emotions abnormally expressed, all penned on vinyl to be shared. Names like Yoko Ono and Pamela Courson come to mind. Without women rock would be a constant stream of sewage, never changing and without color. Women share a backbreaking load and have eternal trust. They juggle an intense schedule with constant competition and temptation from others. Most stars fall without female counterparts, moving from sellout to bargain bin. Most stars fall with female counterparts, moving from teen idol to "untouchable". Estrogenic angst has led some women to take the stage themselves, thereby changing roles from tempted to temptress. Successful and strong, these women stand out day to day at near unbeatable odds to achieve their success and to maintain it. The image of women in rock changed drastically in the late 60's. The wholesome Patsy Cline image was disintegrated by the likes of Janis Joplin and Grace Slick. From the ultra pretty mix of Seattle's own Heart to the leather clad femme fatales of the 80's. Other styles included The Plasmatics with heavy metal burner Wendy O. Williams, freewheeling punk/rock chicks Girlschool and the immortal/eternal The Runaways who spawned Joan Jett and Lita Ford. Idols of today's rock and metal leaders like man bashing harmonic Alannis Morissette, German metal legend Doro Pesch, symphonic high ranged screamer Karyn Crisis and many more. From pop and folk rock to thrash and gothic metal, you'll find women. The stereotypical role of man and machine has been overcome. By the early sunshiny days of female fans screaming and fainting at the site of Elvis and The Beatles; the critical marriages of stars and fans; the tragedies of plane crashes and assassinations; the cell splitting 80's which was musically diversified in every aspect; wives and managers being one in the same; the sexually graphic pinups on album covers; the return of folk in the 90's and the onslaught of battle tempered gothic and doom metal of the night, women have been involved in rock. They are the fuel and fire that men use to flash their feathers displaying might and power, or to lend their heart with a gentle touch. They ignite romance and perversion, love and hatred, understanding and prejudice, envy and jealousy, beauty and beast, sex and passion, strength and weakness. They are idolized and forgotten. They are the women in rock. |
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