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BBC Born To Be Wild The Golden Age Of American Rock 
       1 of 3 Riders On The Storm

During the era of flower power, Vietnam and LSD, bands such as the Doors, 
Jefferson Airplane and MC5 not only sang about the revolution, they were the 
revolution. This episode explores the artists that made the soundtrack to the 
peace and love generation. The culmination of this era was when half a million 
people descended on a field in the small hamlet of Woodstock. At that moment 
rock music seemed a beacon of hope for those who believed in the ideals of 
equality and freedom. But instead of inspiring a new generation of artists to 
lead the revolution through political songs the festival proved to be a 
watershed moment for rock music's reactionary era. The marketing men lined up 
ready to sign and keen to turn this music from protest into profit.

Interviewees include John Densmore and Ray Manzarek of the Doors, Creedence 
Clearwater Revival's Doug Clifford, Marty Balin of Jefferson Airplane, Alice 
Cooper, Tom Petty, MC5's Wayne Kramer and Steppenwolf's John Kay. 

BBC Born To Be Wild The Golden Age Of American Rock 
       2 of 3 School's Out 

This second part tells the story of the 1970s, when rock stars became multi-
millionaires and the music they made was the soundtrack for middle America. 

After the rage and protest of the previous decade, rock music of the early 70s 
was gentle and sweet - the songs of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and the Doobie 
Brothers. Although the USA was riven by political disasters - the end of the 
Vietnam War, Watergate and the gasoline crisis - rock music seldom commented on 
them, although Alice Cooper's Nixon satire Elected was a rare exception. But in 
the middle of the decade new voices started to emerge, such as Bruce 
Springsteen's songs of working class glory or Tom Petty's tight, 1960s-inspired 
sound. 

The massive success of stadium shows exemplified how big American rock had 
become and, in 1976 and 1977, the genre soared with a string of multi-platinum 
albums by Fleetwood Mac, Boston, the Eagles and Meat Loaf. Unlike in the UK, 
American punk barely diverted the rock gods, but disco did make an impact. Rock 
became smoother and more saccharine and in the corporate offices of record 
labels the drive was for ever larger profits.

With interviews with many of the decade's leading rock musicians, the programme 
also features studio and concert footage including Alice Cooper, Bruce 
Springsteen and the Eagles.

Interviews include: Tom Petty, Alice Cooper, Ted Nugent, Tom Scholz (Boston), 
Todd Rundgren, Don Felder (the Eagles), Tom Johnston (the Doobie Brothers), 
Chuck D (Public Enemy), Peter Frampton, Bill Payne (Little Feat), Pamela des 
Barres, FM DJ Jim Ladd, film director Penelope Spheeris, manager Peter Mensch, 
journalists Sylvie Simmons and Rolling Stone magazine's David Fricke.

BBC Born To Be Wild The Golden Age Of American Rock 
       3 of 3 Welcome To The Jungle 

The final part explores the 1980s and the eventual demise of the golden era of 
American rock. 

The beginning of the decade saw the meteoric rise of MTV which completely 
changed the landscape of rock music. From Los Angeles, a new rock scene emerged 
of party-anthem pop-metal, tailor-made for the visual medium of TV. Bands like 
Van Halen, Motley Crue and Poison sported heavy make-up, flashy clothes and 
huge hair while singing songs of sex, partying, drinking and drugs.

The other side of American mainstream rock attempted to tackle the social and 
political issues of the time. John Mellencamp, Tom Petty and Bruce Springsteen 
all produced a stadium rock that appealed to the nation's blue-collar workers. 
Their music filled arenas, but was anybody really listening to the message? 

As the decade moved on, MTV exposure directly translated to commercial profit 
and soon the hugely popular pop-metal - dubbed Hair Metal by its critics - was 
saturating the market. Power ballads, big choruses and even bigger hair were 
the order of the day, with the highly marketable Bon Jovi leading the pack. 
Guns N' Roses saw themselves as the antithesis to what they considered fake 
rebellion, soft-rock drivel. But, as we discover, even they became neutralised 
by the commercialisation of the rock industry. 

The documentary ends in the early 90s with the emergence of Nirvana and grunge, 
which wiped away the narcissistic, sexist and pompous music form American rock 
had grown into. However, it was ultimately another genre of pop music that 
really replaced the golden age of rock, producing the big personalities the 
rock scene could no longer provide.