OPINION: I love rock history

Thinking back to my freshman year at IU, I remember knowing before I even enrolled in classes that I wanted to take at least one of the rock music history courses offered. My older brother had told me how much he enjoyed it, and I became curious when I saw how many Spotify playlists he had downloaded for the course.

Unfortunately, I was unable to take any of the courses my first semester. When I enrolled for my second semester last fall, I revised my plan while sitting on one of the couches in my lounge at Forest Quadrangle, trying to substitute the courses that were full just days before my assigned registration date. Almost instinctively, I swapped one of the full courses for “History of Rock Music II.”

The first of the three rock history courses begins with the earliest recordings of rock music and continues through the late 1950s; the second focuses on the “classic era,” which began in 1964 and lasts covers the 1970s and 1980s. My brother, who had taken all three books, said the second book would be a good place to start. Sure, it would mess up the chronology, but he said I would enjoy it more because it included revolutionary, iconic bands I already knew.

On the first day of the course, I didn’t know what to expect. However, when Professor Andy Hollinden showed his great enthusiasm for teaching music history, I was immediately hooked. And when I saw how the lectures incorporated listening to music during class, I knew this was probably going to be the most fun I’ll have at Ballantine Hall.

Not only was I allowed to listen to music during class, but I also got to do it as homework. I heard the music on my walks around campus and it made the harsh, cold weather more bearable. My walks with music also served as an interesting time for reflection. I often recognized unique aspects of songs highlighted in lectures, and I practiced active listening and taking apart the instruments I was listening to to see how they all worked together, which taught me a lot as a musician. There were many instances where the professor advised us to pay attention to what each musician was doing to complement each other on a recording, and that’s exactly what I tried to do.

The first two lectures of the semester were a complete package that focused exclusively on the work of the Beatles and the beginning of the so-called “British Invasion” of America. I grew up with a father who is something of a living, breathing music encyclopedia in my family, and I thought I knew most of the important things about the Beatles. I quickly found out I was wrong. Perhaps the most interesting thing I learned in the class, and what has stuck with me, was the large role that psychiatric drugs played in their careers.

I was also impressed by the rich history of the Beatles’ American counterpart, the Beach Boys. I must confess, before the course I only knew them as the guys who made “Surfer Girl” and “God Only Knows,” but I knew nothing of the personal struggles and absolute genius of their leader Brian Wilson, or of the relationship with Manson.

The Beach Boys were a group I rediscovered during the course and they are now one of my favorite bands. As the course progressed I put together a playlist of all my favorite songs that were performed in the class. I think there are six or seven Beach Boys songs that appear one after the other on the playlist, which is a testament to how much I end up liking their music.

My rock history classes started at 4:45 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays and ended at 6:00 p.m. I would usually go to the Forest cafeteria with my friends for dinner about 15 to 30 minutes after class, often bringing stories from my class to the table.

After removing my noise-canceling headphones, which played music from the class listening list, I would often talk about a new band I had discovered or an interesting or shocking fact I had learned about a music act.

I also frequently took note of asides from the professor, whether during one of his interesting philosophical rants or his brief stand-up comedy routines. One moment he was talking about how it was OK to feel human and imperfect at times, and the next he was doing a funny imitation of Mick Jagger trying to avoid a heated argument with James Brown.

I think the most important thing I learned from this course was that I can appreciate music and listen better. It was a very fun experience that now motivates me to look for more courses that match my interests and are not related to my major.

Joaquin Baerga (he/him) is in his second year studying journalism.