Music in the 50s
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When the decade of the 50s started we of the KHS class of 1957 were 11 years old and listening to the likes of “If I Knew You Were Comin’ Id’ve Baked a Cake” and “Goodnight, Irene, Goodnight”. When 1959 rolled around we were two years out in the world and the pop hits included “La Bamba” by Ritchie Valens, “Stagger Lee” by Lloyd Price, “Mack The Knife” by Bobby Darin and “Back In The U.S.A.” by Chuck Berry. What happened in between was a cultural revolution, and we were part and parcel of it and it was called Rock n’ Roll. I recently read a Washington Post article written by a ’57 classmate (several states removed) who said “we weren’t just in at the beginning of rock and roll, we were the beginning” How true…!!! The Baby Boomers like to take credit for a lot of things including Rock and Roll well, maybe they influenced Acid Rock or Folk Rock. The 60s ushered in a lot of great music but we, the class of 57, gave birth to real Rock n’ Roll. It began for me when I got a radio for Christmas in Dec 1950. I remember what a big deal it was for me. My very own radio, WOW..!! I don’t remember exactly when I made the transition from listening to Captain Marvel to pop music but I think I was still pretty young, maybe 12. (We all seemed to grow up a lot faster back then.) I liked pop music but most of it was pretty dippy in those days. Sometime around late ’52 or early ’53 I was riding around with some older guys after a sock hop and one of them said he heard of a really cool station and tuned the radio to 1510 and eureka..!!! I found my kind of music…!!! The station was (is) the 50,000 watt WLAC in Nashville, Tennessee and the program was “Randy’s Record Shop” with DJ Gene Nobles and hardly a night went by when I didn’t try to tune it in. They played what was called “Rhythm and Blues” which was very different from the music under the same genre name today. It featured performers including Muddy Waters, Lightning Hopkins, Little Junior Parker, Sonny Boy Williamson, Howling Wolf, T Bone Walker, Big Joe Turner, Little Walter, Big Walter Horton and my very favorite Bo Diddle.
The “Randy’s” show with Nobles started at 10:15 every weeknight and at 11 on Saturday and was the best known but the R and B line-up on WLAC started at 9 PM with DJ “John R” (John Richbourg) and “Ernie’s Record Parade” sponsored by Ernie’s Record Shop of Nashville. Then came Gene Nobles with Randy’s then after that program Herman Grizzard took over as DJ of the “After Hours” show sponsored by Buckley’s Record Shop from midnight til 1:00 AM. I actually thought John R the best DJ but his show was harder to pick up because a lot of little stations were still on the air during that time slot. The later it was, the better the reception as low power stations went off the air for the night. Many nights it was impossible to pick up WLAC at all no matter how late.
I listened to these programs every chance I got as did most of my friends. We listened to the pop stations too but, in the early 50s they just weren’t playing what we wanted to hear. Patti Page was ok but how much “I Went to Your Wedding” and “Doggie in the Window” can a kid take….??? The simple fact is, we revolted..!! Millions of white teens and preteens like me were listening to WLAC and stations like it every night and we didn’t give a rats rear if it was considered to be ethnic black music, we loved it. As I reflect back on it I am amazed that we even knew about R & B music and the WLAC programs. There we were in a Podunk little town in the middle of nowhere and we were participating in a revolution. How did the word filter down to us in Knightstown that there was a lot cooler music around than the dippy stuff the Pop stations were feeding us..??? There was the same pent-up demand by white teens all over the US for music with pulsating rhythms, wailing saxes and throaty guitars. What we wanted was later to be called “Rock n’ Roll” and by golly we were going to have it even if we had to get it full of static, on an ethnic program all the way from Nashville, Tennessee. There were some visionary white performers who recognized the demand and began to fill the need with songs that emulated the earthy beats and lyrics of R & B and gospel music but were a little less ethnocentric. Among them was a young man from Memphis named Elvis. There were also some black performers who were considered R & B artists that began writing and playing for primarily white audiences like Chuck Berry, Little Richard and Fats Domino. Thus, Rock and Roll was born and we of the class of ’57 made it happen..!!! I’ve compiled a list of songs from the 50s and will include it here. I won’t try to suggest these are the most significant early Rock and Roll songs or have any importance in the revolution. They’re just some I like in no particular order. You may notice that “Rock Around the Clock” isn’t included. I always thought it was pretty bad and not really representative of the transition from R & B to Rock as some people claim. “Lawdy Miss Clawdy.” By Lloyd Price which made the Pop charts in 1952, two years before “Rock Around the Clock”, is a lot better candidate for that distinction. Also not included is Pat Boone. Does anyone seriously think he was a rocker..??? Don’t Be Cruel Earth Angel Dance With Me Henry Yakety Yak Let the Good Times Roll Happy, Happy Birthday Baby Who Wrote The Book Of Love Donna |
Ed’s 50s Song ListI’ll put the recordings of some 1950s Songs I like on here. I’m using the Adobe Flash player to play the music. Here’s how it works: Click on the little triangle (arrow) to start the player. The green bar shows the loading of the music into your computer. The little red button thingie shows the playing progress. To stop the song click on the two little vertical bars at the end. If you start several songs and stop them before they finish the player might get hung-up - stuck.. If the player does gets stuck and won’t load the song, click the “refresh” page button at the top of your screen. Searchin’ Lawdy Miss Clawdy Love Is Strange The Great Pretender Heartbreak Hotel Party Doll Come Go With Me Memories Are Made Of This Eddie My Love Blueberry Hill Great Balls of Fire Splish Splash Whole Lotta Lovin Long Tall Sally Unchained Melody Hearts of Stone “Be-Bop-A-LuLa” Little Darlin’ Sweet Little Sixteen The Fool Sheila La Bamba Blue Suede Shoes The Green Door In The Still Of The Night Only You Ain’t That A Shame Peggy Sue Dedicated To The One I Love Money Honey Since I Met You Baby Silhouettes Why Do Fools Fall in Love You Ain’t Nothin But A Hound Dog Brown Eyed Handsome Man My Prayer The Treasure of Love Speedo Ain’t Got No Home Little Girl of Mine Keep A Knockin’ Shake, Rattle and Roll Love Me Tender Get a Job Devil or Angel Mr. Lee Bye, Bye Love Blue Monday For Your Precious Love |
NOW IT’S TIME FOR YOU TO DO YOUR PART AND RELATE YOUR ROCK N’ ROLL MEMORIES, MAKE A COMMENT AND LIST SOME OF YOUR 1950S FAVORITES IN THE COMMENT BLOCK BELOW.
cheers, Ed
Really cool Ed. You have out done yourself. But, the class of ‘56 was on the very edge of the beginning of rock n roll with Heartbreak Hotel, I remember dancing to it and I loved it. I felt I graduated too soon I was a real rock n roll girl.
Comment by Joan Sharp Stanley — April 28, 2008 @ 2:24 pm
I especially rember “Love Me Tender”. When it first came out I was crazy in love with a girl. I bought the 45, set my portable record player close to my bed, set it to play over and over, and many nights went to sleep thinking of her while the record played.
Comment by Ron — June 15, 2008 @ 2:38 pm
Well Ed, what can I say, you just keep on outdoing yourself, love this page. I can’t really pick a favorite, they were all good to dance to. The Platters were good to slow dance to and everyone loved the twist, and don’t forget the stroll oh my, what else, this sure brings back the memories, they don’t write songs like this anymore, kids today don’t know what real music they missed out on. Keep on keepin on.
Comment by Diana (Madison) Cooper — July 16, 2008 @ 3:23 pm
Ed, I hadn’t taken time to look at this part of your site. It brings back so many memories. It’s true the music changed dramatically when we were teenagers and you have done a good job of describing some of that change. I clearly remember walking into Miss Trotter’s geometry class and Wanda Frazier telling all of us that she had been listening to a Tennessee radio station and heard a new good singer. It was Elvis and I think the song was Heartbreak Hotel–my introduction to rock and roll. I had a very large and very old radio next to my bed, and I hunted and hunted and occasionally found that station. Score!! I also remember going to rock and roll concerts. We saw Little Richard, Fats Domino, and Chuck Berry. We all sat in our seats and listened–no dancing in the aisles. I had no idea of the history I was watching. I just loved the music!
Comment by Joan Jolly Aston — August 30, 2008 @ 10:27 am