Chapter 13: Rock and Roll Pt. 1
The emergence of early rock and roll in the 1950s was inseparable from the innovations of Black rhythm and blues artists whose music laid the foundation for the genre. Yet, as the term “rock and roll,” popularized by disc jockey Alan Freed, gained currency, it often served to rebrand Black musical traditions in a way that made them more accessible to white audiences. The rise of white performers covering R&B hits revealed both the commercial power of this music and the racial inequities embedded in the American music industry. While artists like Pat Boone offered polished, less provocative renditions of Black songs that appealed to mainstream sensibilities, others, most notably Elvis Presley, channeled the raw energy and emotional immediacy of R&B more directly, helping to launch rock and roll into the cultural mainstream.
Presley’s success, driven by a synthesis of country, gospel, and blues traditions and amplified through television, symbolized a seismic generational shift. His performances simultaneously thrilled youth audiences and unsettled cultural gatekeepers, capturing the tensions and contradictions at the heart of rock and roll’s early years. Meanwhile, the industry dynamics surrounding cover versions, television censorship, and audience reception underscored the complex intersections of race, commerce, and popular taste that defined the period.
As Presley transitioned to RCA Victor at the end of 1955, Sun Records founder Sam Phillips turned his attention to cultivating other emerging talents. Artists such as Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, and Jerry Lee Lewis would carry forward the momentum of early rock and roll by fusing country and R&B styles into a hybrid form known as rockabilly. In the next chapter, we will explore the development of rockabilly and examine how these performers expanded the sonic and cultural possibilities of rock and roll during its formative years.