The History of Rock: For Big Fans and Little Punks
wop bop a loo bop a lop bam boom THE PIONEERS OF ROCK In the early 1950s a musical earthquake called Rock and Roll shook the United States of America The sounds and traditions coming from different places like the African rhythms and the melodies sung by European emigrants blended for the first time People from all races creeds and origins working side by side and listening to each other singing their songs influenced one another and fused their traditions in a rich cultural melting pot that would create the music that is simply known as Rock The energy-filled rhythms and the simple and saucy language struck a chord especially with adolescents A lot of musicians started Rock and Roll’s journey but in these pages you’ll find some of those that placed Rock in the history of music The band’s name Bill Haley His Comets was inspired by Halley’s Comet As Bill’s surname was pronounced the same way he decided to create a pun adding his Comets to Haley BILL HALEY and HIS COMETS At the start of his ca reer Bill Haley played and sang Country songs and then later R B One day he decided to mix these two styles in a single song called Crazy Man Crazy Young kids went wild with it That was when Haley decided to change both the style of his songs and of himself he swapped his cowboy outfit with a check ered jacket covered his hair with pomade which is similar to hair gel and started styling a big curl of it on his forehead Bill Haley His Comets were playing and singing Rock and Roll even before the name was invented To gether they recorded two of the most famous songs in the history of Rock Rock Around the Clock and Shake Rattle and Roll debut album 1953 origin Chester PA genre Rock and Roll Country Rockabilly famous songs Rock Around the Clock Shake Rattle and Roll See You Later Alligator LITTLE RICHARD Little Richard was one of the first Rock and Roll stars Even as a child growing up in a 12 child household he loved to sing He was 10 when he performed live for the first time and by 14 he had left his parents house to fol low travelling musical acts His songs were based on a magical formula fast and explosive piano playing coupled with lyrics filled with words that made no sense sung in a high pitched voice His first major hit was Tutti Frutti 6 He was really eccentric played like a madman had long hair and sang a lot of uuuhhhs a song that starts with the sentence Wop bop a loo bop a lop bam boom whatever that means debut album 1957 origin Macon GA genre Rock and Roll R B Gospel Soul famous songs Tutti Frutti Lucille Long Tall Sally Good Golly Miss Molly
CHUCK BERRY The intros to his songs with the unforgettable sound of the electric guitar and catchy melodies made him one of the Rock and Roll pioneers Fans loved Chuck’s concerts and the way he dressed and moved on stage He was always very clean cut three-piece black suit white shirt and bow tie with hair pulled all the way back with a lot of po made Before he became a musi cian he worked at an automobile assembly plant and as a hairdresser which might explain why he was so stylish One of his biggest fans was a boy named Keith Richards who would later become the guitar player in one of the biggest Rock bands in the world The Rolling Stones rock of pioneers the debut album 1957 origin St Louis MO genre Rock and Roll famous songs Roll Over Beethoven Rock and Roll Music Johnny B Goode You Never Can Tell Jerry played the piano with almost every part of his body and he even set a piano on fire during a concert He had this strange way of criss-crossing the stage in a duck-like fashion JERRY LEE LEWIS Jerry Lee Lewis started playing the piano when he was 8 He played so well in fact that upon hear ing it his parents decided to sell the house in order to buy him a piano pi anos are expensive instru ments He was 21 when he travelled to the city of Memphis where he would record his first songs for the best well-known label in town Sun Records To help pay for the trip they had to raise chickens and sell eggs lots of eggs It was there that he recorded all his initial hits Crazy Arms Whole Lotta Shakin Going On and Great Balls of Fire Lewis was one of the most influential Rock and Roll pianists in the history of music Elvis Presley once said that if he played the piano like Jerry he wouldn’t even have to sing debut album 1958 origin Ferriday LA genre Rock and Roll Rockabilly Country Gospel Blues famous songs Great Balls of Fire Crazy Arms Whole Lotta Shakin Goin On 7
BUDDY HOLLY Buddy learned how to play the piano and the violin but he was a bit clumsy so his older broth ers taught him guitar ba sics Upon finishing high school he formed a Coun try band Their songs were played on the local radio station and they became Lubbock’s supporting act to bands that came to town to play Buddy’s life changed when he saw Elvis Presley in concert for the first time and later played in a concert headlined by the King of Rock him self he became convert ed to Rock and Roll By 1956 Buddy and his newly named band The Crick ets started to record some songs including one of their biggest hits That’ll Be the Day Buddy wrote and played his own songs which was quite uncom mon because at that time music labels hired com posers and session musi cians His brilliant career was just getting started when a tragic airplane acci dent ended it prematurely It inspired Don McLean’s famous song American Pie debut album 1957 origin Lubbock TX genre Rock and Roll Rockabilly famous songs That’ll Be the Day Peggy Sue Everyday In 2001 she recorded a covers album with Jack White from The White Stripes His black rimmed glasses were his trademark The Beatles were fans of Holly and their name drew inspiration from him the pioneers of rock WANDA JACKSON Wanda got her first guitar when she was 6 Having a Country musician as a father helped her get into music from a tender age She attended live concerts and sang in her church choir By 1956 at the age of 19 she won a talent show and got her own radio show as a prize Music la bels started to get interest ed in Wanda and soon she was playing Country music live with her father wear ing the fancy clothes mom made for her She toured with Elvis and they even dated for a little while The King encouraged her to sing Rock and Roll and boy did Wanda love it Her looks were unique short dresses guitar in her hands and hip-shaking moves In the 50s this was a heresy Wanda was one of the first women to play and sing Rock and Roll and became known as the Rockabilly Queen debut album 1958 origin Maud OK genre Rock and Roll Gospel Country Rockabilly famous songs I Gotta Know Funnel of Love Hard-Headed Woman Let’s Have a Party 8
rock of pioneers the OTHER MUSICIANS be all ears SISTER ROSETTA THARPE Up Above My Head Didn’t It Rain FATS DOMINO Blueberry Hill Ain’t That a Shame BO DIDDLEY I'm a Man Bo Diddley CARL PERKINS Blue Suede Shoes Matchbox THE EVERLY BROTHERS Wake Up Little Susie All I Have to do is Dream RITCHIE VALENS Come On Let’s Go La Bamba Elvis favorite sandwich had peanut butter bacon banana and honey What a hodgepodge ELVIS PRESLEY Elvis Presley fell in love with music at an early age As soon as he finished high school he got a job as a truck driver and saved enough money to record his first songs as a gift to his mother The owner of the label liked his voice so much that he decided to hire him on the spot From that moment on Elvis’s songs became instant hits one after the other He was 23 when he became a film actor which increased his popularity even more His extravagant and bold dance moves at his con certs made the audi ence scream wildly especially girls A lot of musicians had started playing and singing in the same music genre before him but Elvis was the one who made Rock and Roll reach every corner of the US and the rest of the world Elvis Presley is known world wide as the King of Rock and to this day nobody has claimed his title He remains beloved by fans and to this day there are many who believe Elvis hasn’t died debut album 1956 origin Tupelo MS genre Rock and Roll Pop Rockabilly Country Blues Gospel r&b famous songs Jailhouse Rock Love Me Tender All Shook Up Don’t Be Cruel Hound Dog 9
