Rock and Roll: The Beginning
What was the first rock and roll
record?
Qualifications:
-Heavy backbeat
-Even eight-beat style beat
The Candidates:
1. Jackie Breston - Rocket 88
2. Big Joe Turner - Shake, Rattle, and Roll
3. Wynonie Harris - Good Rockin’ Tonight
4. Elvis Presley - That’s All Right Mama
5. Bo Diddley - Bo Diddley
6. Chuck Berry - Maybelline
7. Little Richard - Tutti-Frutti
The Candidates:
1. Jackie Brenston - Rocket 88
– Boogie-woogie bass
– 8 beat shuffle
– Solidly in R&B tradition
2. Big Joe Turner - Shake, Rattle, and Roll
– Heavy backbeat stands out
– Eight-beat style beat, but shuffle feel
– Jump blues with strong boogie-woogie feel
The Candidates:
3. Wynonie Harris - Good Rockin’ Tonight
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–
–
–
4 beat shuffle style beat
Slow tempo
Jazz/jump blues ensemble
On edge…
4. Elvis Presley - That’s All Right Mama
– Two-beat country style - no subdivision of beats
– Cover of R&B hit by Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup
– Mix of R&B and country - proportions wrong
The Candidates
5. Bo Diddley - Bo Diddley
– “rock band” instrumentation
– steady eight-beat rock rhythm in maracas
– no strong backbeat
The Candidates
6. Chuck Berry - Maybelline
7. Little Richard - Tutti-Frutti
– Both have underlying eight-beat rock rhythm
– Strong accent on backbeat
• Boogie-woogie influence on Tutti-Frutti
evident
• Hard to say what Maybelline is….except
rock and roll
When does rock happen?
• 1951-1956 “Getting ready for rock and roll”
– Youth market with independent purchasing
power arises
– Cheaper, smaller radios
– First stations begin to carry black R&B
• WDIA in Memphis
• Then stations in NY
– R&B becomes popular with white listeners
Changes in record industry
• Format change
– 78 rpm records replaced with 45 rpm
• 45s cheaper to produce, buy
• can be played on any turntable, with standard needle
– 33 rpm long-playing records (LPs) used for
multiple tracks of popular music -- increase of
profitability
Changes in record industry
Influence of major labels abrogated by small,
independent labels
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–
–
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Chess
Imperial
Atlantic
Essex
When does rock and roll happen?
• Rock and roll happens when two
musical streams -- R&B and
country music (with dashes of jazz,
Latin, and pop music) come
together
First Rock and Rollers
• Chuck Berry
• Little Richard
Chuck Berry (Charles Edward
Anderson Berry, 1926- )
• Grew up in St. Louis
• Solid background in R&B, though familiar
with many styles
• Popular club act in St. Louis playing R&B
versions of Western swing hits
Chuck Berry (Charles Edward
Anderson Berry, 1926- )
• Auditions for Chess Records with folk song
“Ida Red”
– Alters rhythmic approach
– Eight beat style beat and accented backbeat
• Lyrics re-written = Maybelline
Johnny B. Goode
• From country music
• crisp, exact timekeeping
• vocal style
• From pop music
– storytelling lyrics
– verse and refrain form
Johnny B. Goode
• From R&B
• refrain: 12 bar blues
• verses: story over one chord
• vocal style
• backbeat
• call and response from gospel
Johnny B. Goode
• From R&B
– Refrain = 12-bar blues
– Walking bass (refrain)
– Guitar style
• 8 beat rhythm transferred to guitar
• out front; not accompaniment
• call and response with guitar
• double-note guitar style
Little Richard (Richard Penniman,
1932- )
• Born Macon, Georgia
• At age 14 traveled with medicine shows,
blues bands, and other traveling musical
acts
– Masters pop, blues, R&B, gospel styles
• 1952 becomes affiliated with Specialty
Records
– Producer Bumps Blackwell looking for gospel
singer who could sing the blues
Little Richard - Elements of Style
• Wild, uninhibited vocal style
– Blues shouter
– With elements of gospel shout
• Outrageous performing style
• High energy of gospel
Little Richard - Elements of Style
• Speeds up boogie-woogie until shuffle
rhythms break down
• Percussive piano style that combines
boogie-woogie and blues
• Ex. Tutti Frutti