The Hippie Aesthetic Era was an important period in rock and roll during the late 1960s and early 1980s. It was a a time when rock had a purpose. They sang about the problems plaguing the country. It was also a time when technology played an important role in the sound of music, with advances in recording and synthesizer technology (Covach, “The Hippie Aesthetic”). The hippie aesthetic has not escaped the progress of music. This essay will review three songs that represent different aspects of this era. It will review a song with a predominantly hippie aesthetic, a song that is a bit of both, and finally a song that has no trace of a hippie aesthetic. “Missionary Man” by The Eurhythimics, http://www.youtube. com/watch?v=0-Q3cp3cp88, is a good example of hippie aesthetic. The Eurhythimics were a British synthesizer band who used a mixture of various instruments during the recording of "Missionary Man" ("Songfacts"). This song included the use of synthesizers, guitars, a harmonica and some backwards noises at the beginning ("Songfacts"). The video has a psychedelic feel with strange leather unzipping and Lennox being featured prominently throughout the video. “Billie Jean” by Michael Jackson is a great example of a song that falls in the middle. “Billie Jean” (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zi_XLOBDo_Y) is a song written by Michael Jackson that was a bit of both a hippie aesthetic and not. It's about a woman who stalked Jackson and claimed he was the father of her baby (Covach, "Introduction to Rock"). This is represented in the chorus: “Billie Jean is not my lover. It’s just a girl pretending it’s me but the kid isn’t my son” (“Lyricsmania”). Jac......middle of paper......k in Black” is a song that is pure old school rock and roll. All they use is a drum kit, an electric guitar and a singer who rules the stage. There are no high-tech synthesizers, extravagant outfits or colorful stage props when performed live. These are three examples of variations of the hippie aesthetic. This essay looked at different songs and how they fell into certain categories to determine if they were hippie aesthetic. They ranged from completely to none. It was a musical era where artists and bands were trying to find themselves and not be part of the mainstream. The hippie aesthetic involved individuals willing to take a chance and think outside the box. They took risks in their time. The hippie aesthetic has influenced some of the music you hear today and will continue to do so in the future..