How are you?
Following the last week, I am going to
start my 62nd lecture.
From this week, I will start a new topic
“The History of Rock Music”
which will last for 12 weeks, following the previous topic of “History of Pop Music.”
The first topic of Rock Music for this week is “Before the Beatles.” This
lecture is a summary of the contents of “62. History of Rock Music: 1. Before
The Beatles, ACJ Music Academy” introduced on September 24, 2016.
The origin of
Rock music is rock and roll, which was originated from late 1940s to early
1950s in the United States, and rock and roll was born from the fusion of
rhythm and blues, gospel and country music.
In 1951, Alan Freed, a disc jockey
in Cleveland, Ohio began playing rhythm and blues music to multi-ethnic
listeners, and he used the term “rock and roll” for the first time to describe
this music.
Alan Freed
Although controversial so far, the songs which might be considered
as the first rock and roll song are: Fats Domino’s "The Fat Man (1949)”,
Sister Rosetta Tharpe’s "Strange Things Happening Everyday (1944)”, Goree
Carter’s "Rock Awhile (1949)”, Jimmy Preston’s "Rock the Joint
(1949)” and Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats’ "Rocket 88 (1951).” Elvis
Presley's first single, "That's All Right (Mama)", recorded by Sun
Records in Memphis in 1954, is also claimed to be the first rock and roll song.
Fats Domino
Sister Rosetta Tharpe
Bill Haley’s
"Rock Around the Clock", used in the opening scene of the film
“Blackboard Jungle” in 1955, was recorded as the first rock and roll song
topped on the Billboard charts. This song sparked a rock and roll boom and
became a breakthrough for the rock and roll music. This song has become one of
the biggest hits in music history and agitated teenagers flocked to watch their
performances, and riots broke out in some cities.
Bill Haley
Rock n roll
has diminished the popularity of iconic pop singers of previous generations
such as Eddie Fisher, Perry Como and Patti Page, and created a various
subgenres of rock and roll such as rockabilly combined with “hillbilly” country
music and rock and roll.
Rockabilly was
played and recorded by mostly white singers in the mid-1950s, and
representative musicians include Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash and
Jerry Lee Lewis.
Elvis Presley
Carl Perkins
Rockabilly got
certain popularity with successes such as Johnny Cash’s "Folsom Prison
Blues", Carl Perkins’ "Blue Suede Shoes" and Elvis Presley’s
"Heartbreak Hotel", and over the years this genre has become the most
commercially successful genre of rock and roll.
Johnny Cash
Since then, among rockabilly
singers, especially Buddy Holly, a songwriter and performer, had a great
influence on British Invasion singers, especially on the songs of The Beatles.
Buddy Holly
Electric
guitars grew in popularity during this period, especially Chuck Berry, Link
Wray and Scotty Moore, played a pioneering role in the development of playing
styles of rock and roll.
Chuck Berry
Link Wray
Scotty Moore
Looking at the
definition of the word “rock and roll,” the American Heritage Dictionary and
Merriam-Webster Dictionary define rock and roll as synonymous with rock music,
and Encyclopedia Britannica defines it as music that has created in the
mid-1950s and developed as music encompassing a more global style known as rock
music.
In general,
critics see rock n roll's decline period as from the late 1950s to early 1960s.
The reasons for the decline of the rock and roll era include the death of Buddy
Holly, The Big Bopper and Richie Valens due to a plane accident in February
1959, the military enlistment of Elvis Presley in March 1958, Little Richard's
retirement to became a missionary in October 1957, a scandal surrounding Jerry
Lee Lewis over marriage to his 13-year-old cousin in May 1958, Chuck Berry's
arrest for criminal offenses in December 1959 and the press releases for the
bribery scandal of key figures including Alan Freed who received bribes for the
promotion of certain singers or songs.
The Big Bopper
Richie Valens
Little Richard
Jerry Lee Lewis
You can also review this lecture from
following media.
Next week, I will lecture 2nd topic “The
Beatles Age.”
Thank you.
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