History Of Rock N Roll

Music as a whole blends together. One style leads to another, the music becomes more progressive. It evolves to fit the new generation, leaving the old generation behind. From the spritual songs of the late 1800s to the gospel of the early 1900s. Then it changed into rhythm and blues, and when the 1950s rolled around it became Rock’ n’ Roll. With the invention of new iconic instruments like the Fender Precision Bass and then the Fender Stratocaster, the sound of the music changed. The sound that was soft and low was now crunchy and loud. While it did not sit well with the adults, it was a hit among the new generation. Even the African American roots of the music didn’t deter the youth listening

Chuck Berry’s signature riffs are all reminiscent of the blues guitar style and are quintessential in rock and roll. This list of artists that have covered Chuck Berry songs is endless. Baraka wrote that “cats like Stones and Beatles saying: “Yeh, I got everything I know from Chuck Berry,” is a scream dropping the final... “But I got all the dough...”(205) Guitar players such as Keith Richards and Jimmy Paige have admitted to learning guitar solely from Berry’s playing. John Lennon said that "If you tried to give rock and roll another name, you might call it 'Chuck Berry'” (chuckberry.com) While Berry is currently recognized as a major name in rock and roll history, he never enjoyed the commercial success of his white counterparts. This story is the same for many black musicians of his time. The true exploitation of black music though, came in the form of the British Invasion.

The social and political context of the 1950’s is crucial to any understanding of the birth of rock n roll.

Secondly, both American rock and roll and one of rock and roll's pioneers, Chuck Berry made a huge impact on the Beatles early on in their careers. Considering much of the popular music at the time came from America this was not all uncommon. The Beatles covered several of his songs like “Roll over Beethoven” and “Rock and Roll music”. You can hear his influence even in later songs such as, “Everybody’s Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey”, and, “Come Together” (1969). Berry’s evidentially heavy influence in, “Come Together”, would later become an implication and John Lennon was sued for using parts of, “You Can’t Catch Me” which Berry released in 1956. In addition to covers, early as when they were known as the Quarrymen, the Beatles had been playing Berry’s songs in their shows and throughout their career as a band, they performed no less than 15 of his songs.

Both the radio and records have had significant impact on the development on rock n’ roll. Similarly, the radio and records gave musical artists an extended ability to stretch their audiences. Strongly intertwined, while they both gave listeners the ability to find artists they like, there are some clear differences between each the developments of the radio and that of records. In the years prior, the music industry was built on the “Tin Pan Alley” system that strictly controlled musicians and popular music (Schloss, Starr, and Waterman, p. 2-7). And much like the spirit of rock n’ roll itself, people within the industry eventually grew tired of conformity and no longer felt the need to follow the rules. Radio stations started forming separate licensing companies (BMI), which allowed them to play what they want (Schloss, Starr, and Waterman, p. 7). With an “open door” policy that allowed broadcasters to play music they wanted, radio stations had the important job of sharing a variety of music that could be heard all across the country. The radio began to function as a way of transporting records and genres of music all over the country from the traditional cultures they formed, which includes R&B, blues, and country. This reshaped the music industry by expanding its reach to new audiences. This, “allowed songwriters working outside of mainstream pop to claim royalties on the use of their songs on broadcasted

Teenage Rebellion is a major influence on the popularity of rock and roll in the 60’s. Society as a whole was well reserved and private about their personal and sexual lives. A struggling economy left most families spending the majority of income on basic living needs. Few households had disposable income.

In 1951, Alan Freed, a European American disc jockey for a Cleveland radio station, first coined the term rock’n roll. Fifty years later, if you were to poll the general public on which race would dominate that genre of music, the response would be overwhelmingly whites. But rock’n roll is not a white mans music. African American’s were and still are an essential cornerstone of the genre known as rock’n roll. But rock’n roll simply would not exist if it weren't for African Americans. Their presence is felt in almost every genre of music known to the United States. Early twentieth century black musicians helped shape, influence and create my favorite genre of music today.

This American guitarist, singer, and songwriter is one of the pioneers of rock and roll music and his songs are electrifying and his videos great to view. Chuck Berry whose full name is Charles Edward Anderson came out with such great hits in the 50s as “Maybellene”, “Roll Over Beethoven”, “Rock and Roll Music”, and “Johnny B. Goode”. He performed in such a way which left a lasting impression and greatly influenced rock music.

During the 1950s African Americans migrated into the urban cities for jobs, which caused for African Americans and whites to be in close proximity to each other. This closeness created overlap in various fields including music. With the arrival of rock and roll a revolution started brewing in the world of popular music. Rock and Roll, a combination of rhythm, blues and country music took the younger generation by storm. Bill Haley and His Comets became the first group to be labelled rock and rollers. Their “Rock Around the Clock” (1955) was a smash hit. Chuck Berry was another noted black performer who blended country with rhythm and blues in “Maybellene”. Other musicians were Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P Richardson and Fats

Famous rock n’ roll performers such as the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and Bob Dylan could have not existed without the influence of the Father of Rock n’ Roll, Chuck Berry. Just as Brian Wilson said, Chuck Berry wrote "all of the great songs and came up with all the rock & roll beats" (Berry). When Berry debuted with “Maybellene,” the grown-ups did not understand his revolutionary sounds (Lynch). However, his songs cannot be disregarded as teenage music since it holds same depth and resonance even after 50, 60 years later (Sreenivasan).

influential in the North as well. Blacks moved from the South to the North and

Born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1926 Chuck Berry was among the first rockers, who began singing in the 1950s. This very talented man became a rock legend and throughout his rock and roll life he wrote many different rock and roll classics which have been covered by various artists and have been discovered and listened to by many new generations. Chuck Berry’s very first single was “Maybelline” released in 1955. He had a sizzling stage presence and was never without his trademark double-string guitar. He had a style all his very own and wrote songs that went straight to a teens heart. Song such as “School Day (Ring! Ring! Goes the Bell)” and “Sweet Little Sixteen”.

Covers versions are credited to be “one of the most important precedents for the rise of rock ‘n’ roll.” This “commercial and musical phenomenon” is the use of a previously recorded song that is either remade or reinterpreted by another group or artist. There is an argument that cover versions are employed by bands and artists in order to “cash in” on the success that the original version provided the original artist. However, as in all debates, there is a side that argues that cover versions reinterpret or reimage the original song and change the experience and the meaning of the song based on how the artist or group reinterprets or reimages it. In the following singles, “California Dreamin’,” “I Will Always Love You,” and “She’s Like the Wind” there are examples of the latter argument of artists reinterpreting or reimaging the original singles in their covers.

In early 2016, the Stones launched their América Latina Olé tour, which consisted of thirteen electrifying dates in Central and South America. As a dramatic capstone to that trip, the Stones performed in Cuba for the first time, electrifying an audience of 1.2 million fans in Havana. In another historic live performance, the Stones participated in October of 2016 in Desert Trip, a three-day superstar festival in Indio, California that also featured Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney, The Who, Neil Young and Roger Waters.

Rhythm and Blues is consist of black musical genres such as gospel, big-band swing, as well as blues. The term originated in the 1940s as a synthesis for black music. With the popularization of R&B so has the electric bass. In the 1950s R&B would instead be called Rock & Roll. This purpose of this was to camouflage the black roots within R&B. Afterwards soul, funk, disco, rap, and other offspring would arise from these roots. R&B has been an integral part of the black community forged by common political, economic, and geographic conditions.