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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Who, according to Marcus, gave Staggerlee the cruelest epitaph?
(a) Sly Stone.
(b) John Hurt.
(c) Eldridge Cleaver.
(d) Elvis Presley.

2. According to Marcus, what does Elvis symbolize?
(a) Faith.
(b) Selfishness.
(c) The American dream realized.
(d) The beginning of something new.

3. According to Marcus in "Randy Newman," whose song was Randy Newman answering in his version of "Suzanne"?
(a) Leonard Cohen.
(b) The Beatles.
(c) The Beach Boys.
(d) Robert Johnson.

4. What type of audience does Marcus believe Randy Newman attracts?
(a) Retro.
(b) Pop.
(c) Punk.
(d) Cult.

5. In the introduction to "Elvis," Marcus claims that Elvis epitomizes what?
(a) The anger of Robert Johnson.
(b) The best of our culture.
(c) The chaos of Harmonica Frank.
(d) The worst of our culture.

6. What is the mood in the Riot album?
(a) Hope.
(b) Oppression.
(c) Anger.
(d) Joy.

7. What group did Cleaver and Seale found?
(a) Pilgrims.
(b) Black Panthers.
(c) Chil-Lites.
(d) Temptations.

8. What is the name of Randy Newman's album that finally gained him a larger audience?
(a) The Godfather.
(b) Sail Away.
(c) Good Old Boys.
(d) Sunny Afternoon.

9. Who wrote "obviously, it is easier to kill than to create" (95)?
(a) Sly Stone.
(b) Greil Marcus.
(c) Nietszche.
(d) Josef von Sternberg.

10. Why did political activist, Eldridge Cleaver, not want to go to jail?
(a) He was afraid to be the next Billy Lyons.
(b) He was innocent.
(c) He loved freedom too much.
(d) He did not want to lose his friends.

11. From whom does Marcus quote in the beginning to introduce the myth of Staggerlee in "Sly Stone"?
(a) Billy Lyon.
(b) Bobby Seale.
(c) James Brown.
(d) Sly Stone.

12. According to the myth, who did Staggerlee shoot?
(a) A stranger.
(b) Himself.
(c) Billy the Lion.
(d) Leroy Brown.

13. What did some bullies call Elvis before he was a star and had grown side burns?
(a) Dog.
(b) Hippie.
(c) Squirrel.
(d) Loser.

14. Who wrote "We needed . . . to be violently stirred into life . . . intolerable social constraints grew daily upon us"?
(a) Frank Kermode.
(b) Sly Stone.
(c) Leslie Fiedler.
(d) Greil Marcus.

15. What church did Elvis attend as a boy?
(a) Assembly of God.
(b) Christ the King.
(c) Seven Day Adventist.
(d) He did not go to church.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who wrote "Hound Dog"?

2. Who claims that "every great artist must create for a great audience"?

3. What did Seale attempt to use as a political threat?

4. What is Sly Stone's given name?

5. What type of Staggerlee does Sly create in Riot?

(see the answer keys)

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