All My Troubles Seem So Far Away “The Sixties”

All my troubles seem so far away- “The Sixties” -an exploration of events and music.

Five lectures with Steve Millward and Frank Vigon

There are some times in history when Society makes not an evolutionary change, but a seismic shift. The 60s is a journey back to a decade that changed Society, Politics and Culture irrevocably.

Using a range of multimedia we shall visit the collapse of Government brought about by a sexual scandal involving a Cabinet Minister, the ripples of which were to extend to the very destruction of political deference and the shifting of the powers that be. A devastating assassination of a youthful young President whose legend extinguished his potential failings. De Gaule said “non” and “events dear boy events!” took their toll as the Empire slipped away.

Youth was discovered to be marketable and the 60s really began to swing. Meanwhile across the world as empires fell, Civil Rights start as a dream, beginning a long and painful journey which has yet to end.

The explosion of creativity that engulfed the 1960s was exemplified by its music - innovatory adventurous, wild and frequently wonderful. Youth culture had been denigrated during the 1950s but now influenced not only the arts but society as a whole and even national politics. At its core was pop and rock, but jazz, folk and classical music was sucked into the maelstrom.

In the music section of this series, we will explore each year of the decade in turn, monitoring all the major trends as we go. At times it will be a rollercoaster ride, but we will try to evaluate the music on its own terms as well as looking for harbingers of the future.

4th January

11th January

18th January

25th January

1st February

The series will be illustrated by photographs records and video clips.

Week 1 

Events: “Rock Around the Clock”

Music: We have Lift off - 1960 and 1961

Week 2  

Events: “Please Please me” – Mop heads, Youth Culture and  Credit Cards

Music: Something in the Air - 1962 and 1963

Week 3  

Events: “The Isle is full of noises” Political upheaval and sudden death

Music: Changing times - 1964 and 1965

Week 4  

Events: “One of your guys did it” – Kennedy Assassination the great unsolved

Music: Love and Height  -  1966 and 1967

Week 5  

Events: “I have a dream”  - Civil Rights in an unequal society

Music: One great leap  - 1968 and 1969