Unbelievably, a California city initiated the ban. In 1956, Santa Cruz officials banned rock ’n’ roll music at public gatherings, fearing it might corrupt young people. The music was just getting started when officials argued it was “detrimental to both the health and morals of our youth and community.”
That would be followed in the 1980s by criticism over obscene lyrics in rock ’n’ roll music that were also believed to have a negative impact on the young. The Parents Music Resource Center—a group co-founded by Tipper Gore, the wife of then-Democratic Senator Al Gore —initiated action to require warning labels on albums containing such lyrics. Performers such as Frank Zappa protested her efforts and testified before Congress to oppose the proposed measures.
