The conk was a hairstyle popular among African-American men from the 1920s up to early-mid 1960s. This hairstyle called for a man with naturally "kinky" hair to have it chemically straightened using a relaxer called congolene, an initially homemade hair straightener gel made from the extremely corrosive chemical lye which was often mixed with eggs and potatoes. The applier had to wear gloves and the solution timed just right on the applicant's head and then thoroughly rinsed out with cold water to avoid chemical burns. The desired outcome was for the newly straightened hair to be easily styled in the popular "conk" style of that era. History Conks were often styled as large pompadours although other men chose to simply slick their straightened hair back, allowing it to lie flat on their heads. Regardless of the styling, conks required a considerable amount of effort to maintain: a man often had to wear a do-rag of some sort at home, to absorb sweat or other agents to keep them from causing his hair to revert prematurely to its natural state. Also, the style required repeated application of relaxers; as new hair grew in, it too had to be chemically straightened. Many of the popular musicians of the early to mid-20th century, including Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Bo Diddley, Fats Domino, Louis Jordan, James Brown, members of The Temptations and The Miracles and Sammy Davis, Jr. were well known for sporting the conk hairstyle. The gatefold of Muddy Waters' 1968 album Electric Mud shows the older blues legend still sporting conked hair. The conk trend and style fell out of popularity when the Black Power/Black Pride movement of the 1960s took hold. The Afro and the Natural quickly became a popular symbol of African pride. The Afro was worn as an outright symbol of protest for social justice and equal rights, a change in mores and a demand for independent thinking. Depending upon the length, the Afro was referred to as either "moderate" or "full". Examples of the full Afro can be seen in 1968 photos of Angela Davis and Jimi Hendrix, the moderate Afro can be seen in 1968 photos of Richard Pryor and Muhammad Ali. Examples of the Natural, short cropped 2 to 4 inches from the scalp or cut very close to the scalp, can be seen in pre-1969 photos of Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye. The Natural was