Rock group (or later rock band) is a generic name to describe a group of musicians specializing in a particular form of electronically amplified music. Deriving its name from the musical style which was its immediate progenitor, rock and roll, the type of music played by rock groups has its roots deeply steeped in both rock and roll, and its immediate forebear, rhythm and blues. In Britain in the early 1960s, the term rock group was not used; instead, the common term in use was Pop Group, and the individual musicians were known as Pop stars or Pop Singers, who were decribed as working in the genre of Pop music. However, as psychedelia approached two changes in terminology emerged: first, the name band rather than group came into vogue, typified by The Band; second, the term Pop was dropped in favour of Rock by most musicians working in the popular music field. Various sub-categories were created (such as Folk-Rock, Jazz-Rock, Progressive-Rock) which allowed musicians to distinguish their particular specialty from that of others.
A rock group or band tends to have a heavy focus on certain instruments, principally electric guitar, bass guitar, and drums (prime examples of this are The Kinks, The Who, Cream, and The Jimi Hendrix Experience), with keyboard instruments such as electronic organs being featured from the outset by groups such as Manfred Mann and The Animals. Later in the 1960s, rock bands such as The Who, Pink Floyd and Hawkwind experimented with electric organs and synthesizers. Other instruments deployed within the context of a rock band include the electric violin (as used by Curved Air, Dave Matthews Band or Yellowcard), the kettle drum (as played by Butch Trucks of The Allman Brothers Band), and the flute (as played by Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull), among others.
A rock group or band tends to have a heavy focus on certain instruments, principally electric guitar, bass guitar, and drums (prime examples of this are The Kinks, The Who, Cream, and The Jimi Hendrix Experience), with keyboard instruments such as electronic organs being featured from the outset by groups such as Manfred Mann and The Animals. Later in the 1960s, rock bands such as The Who, Pink Floyd and Hawkwind experimented with electric organs and synthesizers. Other instruments deployed within the context of a rock band include the electric violin (as used by Curved Air, Dave Matthews Band or Yellowcard), the kettle drum (as played by Butch Trucks of The Allman Brothers Band), and the flute (as played by Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull), among others.
