The Genealogy of Pop/Rock Music (1977)

Full title: The Genealogy of Pop/Rock Music 1955-1978
Author: Reebee Garofalo
Year: 1977

Reebee Garofalo created this chart back in the 70s during the research for his book Rock ‘N’ Roll is Here to Pay: The History and Politics of the Music Industry (the chart - then named Marketing Trends and Stylistic Patterns in Pop/Rock Music - was later updated and included as an three-page fold-out in the first edition of the book). The chart covers:

[..] the time period from 1955 to 1978, more than 700 artists and 30 styles of music are mapped in currents flowing from left-to-right. For each performer, the length of time that he/she remained a major hit maker is provided. The overlapping streams allow you to compare the longevity and influence of multiple artists for the same time period. The birth and genealogy of each stylistic category is presented, along with an estimation of its share of total record sales. (via historyshots.com)

From its beginning the chart has been used and reused countless times for various projects, most notoriously by an artist Dave Muller, whose gigantic wall-painting installation (fully based on the chart) has already toured the world and all this without ever asking for Garofalo's permission. Garofalo explains:

This has outraged many of my friends, who feel I should sue him, especially after he installed it again in 2008 in my backyard at the Institute for Contemporary Art in Boston. [..] I thought about suing, even talked to a lawyer, who assured me we could make big bucks. Ultimately, however, I decided that public access to information was more important than lining my pockets. I wonder if Muller knows how narrowly he dodged a bullet. (via reebee.net)

The original has been updated in 1978 and this version has been transformed (this time to the author's satisfaction) to a high-quality colour poster by HistoryShots - who also sell it. The original chart has been praised by the infographics guru Edward Tufte who included it in his 1997 book Visual Explanations.

Reebee Garofalo explains the motivation behind his work:

For me, creating this chart was a labor of love that drew equally from my love of popular music (for content) and my attraction to the contours of 'pinstriping' on customized 1950s cars (for graphic design). Along the way, I enjoyed the company and able assistance of many friends and acquaintances. I still remember the night that Dianne Dion (then Carasik) spilled Scotch on the original while surveying my placement of artists. (via reebee.net)

See the original chart in detail:

(click on image)

See the colour poster in detail:

(click on image, then again to zoom)