American pop culture & the shaping of my music taste

Popular culture in America is ever-present almost everywhere. They can be found in the movies, music, wrestling and sports. Mohd Ali, Bart Simpson, WWF, Ric Flair, JFK, Superman, Norman Bates, Andy Warhol, Citizen Kane, Bob Dylan, Marilyn Monroe, David Letterman, Watergate, Batman, Ben & Jerry's, Pac-Man, Walt Disney, Calvin Klein, Jimmi Hendrix, Barbie dolls, Elvis Presley, Seinfeld, Madonna, Traci Lords, Andre Agassi, Mike Tyson, Michael Jackson, King Kong, Aerosmith, Jim Beam, Budweiser, American Top Forty, Michael Jordan, KISS, Oprah, Indiana Jones, Dirty Harry, Bushism, Alfred Hitchcock, Frank Sinatra, Sesame Street, Dennis Rodman, Chicago Bulls, New York Yankees, Saturday Nite Fever, Billboard charts, Hulk Hogan, Ralph Lauren, The Terminator, Tom Hanks, Star Wars, MTV, X-Men, Alice Cooper, 9/11, Hard Rock Cafe, Bruce Springsteen, Purple Rain, Google, Jim Morrison, Grateful Dead, all these household names and genres have joined other American products in spanning across the globe.

On a music standpoint, i love rock music, heavy metal, punk rock and, sometimes rap and hip hop. I began to appreciate music since the seventies, the period i saw the wave of singer cum songwriters who touch on emotional and personal lyrics of folk. There are the likes of my fav James Taylor, amongst others. They gave smoothing performances as well as exhibiting great lyrical ability. This very period saw the rose of soft rock. It was a mellow form of pop-rock, exemplified by bands like Chicago, Bread, Toto, Journey, Foreigner and America.

Near end 70's, disco, a form of electronic dance music, was in the forefront. The lifespan of disco was short. Donna Summer, Earth Wind & Fire and Hot Chocolate were cool, i guess. The early 80s saw the rise of Bruce "The Boss" Springsteen, the working class hero with the dense and anthemic songs that resonated with the lower classes in America. I also wouldn't mind John Cougar, Fleetwood Mac, Jackson Browne, Steve Perry, Blondie, J. Geils Band, England Dan & John Ford Coley, Tom Petty or The Doobie Brothers.

The eighties was my favourite era, contemporary R&B turned popular with sexy & sultry funk singers like Prince, alongside pop stars like Michael Jackson and female icons like Madonna, Tina Turner, Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey.

I like heavy metal. It is real loud, thumping music characterized by aggressive, driving rhythms and heavily amplified distorted guitars, coupled with complex lyrics and virtuosic instrumentation. Some outstanding 80's metal bands i love include bands like Anthrax, Metallica, Faith No More, Aerosmith, Quiet Riot, Motley Crue, Ratt, Cinderalla, Skid Row, Poison, Guns N' Roses, Bon Jovi, Slaughter and Van Halen. They were great.