This course will survey the stylistic development of rock music from its beginnings to the present. It will also study the music and musicians who have created rock's history and the social, political and cultural forces that have been at work in that history with regard to how these have influenced the sound of rock music. The course will include an introduction to the academic study of popular music, and will also emphasise critical listening and musical analysis in order to determine the sonic qualities that differentiate various sub-genres of rock music and their social meanings.