1960’s Mod Movement: Overview and Origin

By: Tyler Sandman

The mod movement can be classified as the time where modern ideas and major culture aspects of the new age started to originate. Ideas started to form post civil war but the movement essentially originated in the latter part of the 1950’s. The culture originated in London, England and then later resurrected in the west. It was a transition from a period of jazz and blues music into a time of rebellious music that was a bit heavier sounding. The movement was really based upon a new set of values and thinking of the youth of the time. The movement is characterized by its clothing, music, ways of thinking, influence of drugs, and in whole a new redefined way of life. The backbone to this movement in culture is the impact of affluence and education. These provoke more thinking and ideas, with the ability to act on them, resulting in the production of a new era. The increasing population due to baby boomers, acted as a catalyst to the spread of ideas because with more people in the world, the more likely people are going to hear of things, and the greater the opportunity for talent. Mass media was also a factor in the extension of the movement with television and radio. The most important media in the movement however, was music. Popular music of the era included artists such as The Beatles, The Who, Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones, and The Jimi Hendrix Experience. These artists were able to revolutionize music of that time and their music is still played today. The popularity of these artists was due to their new ways of thinking and rebellious mindsets.

The mod movement started to die off at the end of the 1960’s because of changes in public interest. Then, a revival started in the late 1970s in the United Kingdom, with thousands of people meeting in places such as Scarborough and the Isle of Wight. This revival was followed by a revival in North America in the early 1980’s.

Overall the modern movement was a time for new, rebellious ways of thinking and a great time for music in general.




Here a few videos of the movement and popular music:

 

 

 

Works Cited:

 

Casburn, Melissa M. "A Concise History of the British Mod Movement." (n.d.): n. pag. Web.

 

Pollock, Bruce. When the Music Mattered: Rock in the 1960's. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1984. Print.