David Jones will discuss the connections between U.S. social history and the emergence of rock and roll as a form of cultural expression. Rock and roll music is closely connected to U.S. social history and to many of our own individual identities. Working from a small number of songs as examples, this presentation will explore the private act of making meaning from rock music: its instrumentation, its stories, its production context, and its pathways to an artist's vision. Using these explorations, we will consider how rock and roll functions as a musical style, a historical period, and a spiritual practice.