1950s Rock n' Roll Styles

 What was the impact of rock and roll in the 1950's?

In the 1950's a specific style of music known as Rock 'n' Roll affected american society by influencing family lives, teenage behavior, and the civil rights movement. This decade helped to influence everything that we listen to on the radio today. Rock 'n' Roll, influenced the culture and reflected its changes.

 Rock and roll was everything the suburban 1950s were not. While parents of the decade were listening to Frank Sinatra, Perry Como, and big bands, their children were moving to a new beat. 

Who Invented Rock and Roll?

No one person started rock 'n' roll. It was a black and white alloy of Fats Domino, Lloyd Price, Ike Turner, Hank Williams, Joe Turner, Louis Jordan, Ray Charles, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Buddy Holly - and Elvis Presley. Presley himself never claimed to have invented rock 'n' roll.

How did Rock N Roll became popular in the 1950s?

The upcoming of rock and roll provoked strong and mixed reactions in the United States because it combined the styles of both white and black music. The new music style was sense of equality for the African Americans. In fact, black artists started to become more popular in the mid 1950s.

ROCKABILLY

The rockabilly style evolved out of post-war country-boogie, hillbilly, and rhythm & blues. Between 1945 and 1954 these disparate musical styles crossed paths and developed the hybrid known as rockabilly. The Delmore Brothers were early exponents of the country-boogie style, which had grown out of jazz boogie-woogie rhythms. They recorded several influential discs on the King label in the mid-forties, including "Hillbilly Boogie" and "Pan American Boogie" in 1945. These set the course for other country artists who assimilated the Delmores' rhythms into their own work. Hank Thompson, Webb Pierce, Red Foley and Moon Mullican among others built careers around the boogie beat. Equally important in the evolution of rockabilly was the hillbilly style of Hank Williams. His honky-tonk hillbilly sound, utilizing steel guitar, acoustic bass and profound influence on Bill Haley and Carl Perkins.

As early as 1952, Haley and his group the Saddlemen employed the slapped bass sound, which was to become the hallmark of the rockabilly style. Perkins, a country boy like Williams, sang in a pure hillbilly manner. In fact, his very first release, "Turn Around" (1955), on the Flip label, was classic hillbilly, owing much to his affinity for the Hank Williams style. From the very same session came "Gone Gone Gone" (1955), which combined Perkins' hillbilly style with a primitive rockabilly rhythm.

The final ingredient in the rockabilly mix, rhythm & blues, owes much to Sam Phillips. Forming the Memphis Recording Service in 1950, Phillips initially recorded what was to become a virtual 'who's who of bluesmen,' namely: Junior Parker, Bobby Bland, Little Milton, Howlin' Wolf, Walter Horton, James Cotton and many more. Phillips' use of flutter echo and over-amplification created a stark, primitive sound that he later adapted to his efforts with country artists.

Interestingly, it was a guitar riff from Junior Parker a "Love My Baby" (1953) in Elvis Presley's 1955 version of "Mystery Train" (also a Parker original) that positively forms a link between the country and rhythm & blues styles. Indeed, it was Presley's historic Sun recordings that crystallized the emerging rockabilly style and laid the groundwork for Phillips pioneering efforts at his tiny studio in Memphis. Over the next four years Phillips recorded countless rockailly artists, but none had greater importance than Carl Perkins.

While Elvis indisputably stands as the progenitor of the new idiom, it was, in fact, Carl Perkins' original self-penned recording of "Blue Suede Shoes" (1956) which resulted in international recognition for rockabilly. Perkins' Sun recordings were quintessential rockabilly, combining all the elements of the style. Further, he opened the floodgates for the exploitation of rockabilly by other labels. At first issued only on small independent Memphis and Texas labels (Shimmy, Fernwood, Erwin, Lin, Jan), rockabilly quickly found its way to the majors. Columbia, Capitol, Decca/Coral and Mercury recorded rockabilly artists feverishly during 1956-57.

Their recordings constitute one of the most fruitful and exciting periods in the history of rock 'n roll. And the key to their continuing popularity is their basic honesty. Rockabilly musicians recorded in the most uninhibited fashion with the sparest instrumentation, often on primitive equipment. Most of today's music, cold and calculated, pales in comparison with the simplicity and beauty of these early pioneering efforts.

Rock n' Roll, The Early Days Documentary (running time - approx. 1 hour):

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gD2Om1g3B3o 

POP MUSIC

Traditional Pop music of the 1950's refers to the music that was popular before rock music came into the mainstream in the middle of the fifties, it also refers to music that was popular at the same time as the beginning of rock music during the rest of the decade but remained largely free of rock influences. 

What was pop music like in the 1950s?

Various genre in the First World, rock and roll, doo-wop, pop, swing, rhythm and blues, blues, Country music, rockabilly, and jazz music dominated and defined the decade's music.

What is the history of pop music?

Pop music is a combination of musical genres or types. It originated with the ragtime of the 1890s and early 1900s, the jazz era of the 1920s and 1930s, and the big band era of the 1940s.

 How did they dress in the 1950s?

• Tea length swing dresses with petticoats for fullness.
• Slim sheath dresses and tailored suits.
• Pencil or circle skirts, poodle skirts for teens.
• Capri pants, high waisted jeans.
• Peter pan collar blouses.
• Twin set cardigan sweaters.
• Swing coats in winter.
• Kitten heels, saddle shoes, stiletto heels.

 What were the trends in the 1950s?

• Soda Fountains. If you wanted a cold, refreshing drink or ice cream back in the 50s, soda fountains were the new answer. ...
• Poodle Skirts
• Sock Hops
• The Conical Bra
• Sideburns
• Drive-In Theaters
• Coonskin Caps
• Hula Hoop

 What toys were popular in the 1950s?

• Play-Doh
• Silly Putty
• Magic 8-ball
• Frisbee
• Slinky
• Pogo Stick
• Hula Hoop
• BAS-KET Miniature Basketball

Effects of Music and Pop Culture 1950s (amateur video):  

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_J5oaBPvHw 

Fifties Pop Culture:  

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YSzX5PgQc80 

1950s Pop Culture: 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5J3n8RYlxU 

BLUES

Urban blues flourished in the early 1950s as record companies like Chicago's Chess and Checker Records sold millions of records by artists like Muddy Waters, Willie Dixon, Howlin' Wolf and Elmore James. Featuring electric guitar, amplified harmonica and drums, this music had a raw, raucous sound that became a primary influence on rock and roll. Memphis guitarist B.B. King scored his first hit with "Three O'Clock Blues" in 1951, and his fluid, jazzy electric lead guitar style became a huge influence on blues guitarists all over the world. Although the genre's mainstream success declined in the U.S. by the end of the decade, the blues remained popular with African-American audiences in regions like Chicago, Memphis and Mississippi. 

Muddy Waters, Hoochie Coochie Man:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_l6A7krjrQ 

Willie Dixon Documentary 1977 (approx. 45 minutes):

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pE9LEDd5Tv0 

Howlin' Wolf, How Many More Years: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OpKB6OZ_B4c 

Elmore James, The Sky is Crying:

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S788gj9vdp0 

B.B. King, Sweet Little Angel (Live):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNr_eIgP0tI 

JAZZ

 Was jazz popular in the 1950s?

It emerged in New York City, as a result of the mixture of the styles of predominantly white swing jazz musicians and predominantly black bebop musicians, and it dominated jazz in the first half of the 1950s.; espsecially the form known as "Cool" jazz.  Modal jazz recordings, such as Miles Davis' Kind of Blue, became popular in the late 1950s.  For the first time, jazz was just as popular as Rock & Roll and became a huge influence in the social culture of young Americans.

By the early 1950s, "cool" was used to describe a kind of toned-down jazz. Later the term became associated with a number of white musicians who relocated to California where they could get day gigs at movie studios (unlike African Americans) while playing jazz at night. In this form it was called West Coast jazz.  

Miles Davis, So What (Official Video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqNTltOGh5c 

Dave Brubeck-Take Five (Original Video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHdU5sHigYQ

AMERICANA

 “America at this moment,” said the former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill in 1945, “stands at the summit of the world.” During the 1950s, it was easy to see what Churchill meant. The United States was the world’s strongest military power. Its economy was booming, and the fruits of this prosperity–new cars, suburban houses and other consumer goods–were available to more people than ever before. However, the 1950s were also an era of great conflict. For example, the nascent civil rights movement and the crusade against communism at home and abroad exposed the underlying divisions in American society. 

 Historians use the word “boom” to describe a lot of things about the 1950s: the booming economy, the booming suburbs and most of all the so-called “baby boom.” This boom began in 1946, when a record number of babies–3.4 million–were born in the United States. About 4 million babies were born each year during the 1950s. In all, by the time the boom finally tapered off in 1964, there were almost 77 million “baby boomers.” 

 After World War II ended, many Americans were eager to have children because they were confident that the future held nothing but peace and prosperity. In many ways, they were right. Between 1945 and 1960, the gross national product more than doubled, growing from $200 billion to more than $500 billion. Much of this increase came from government spending: The construction of interstate highways and schools, the distribution of veterans’ benefits and most of all the increase in military spending–on goods like airplanes and new technologies like computers–all contributed to the decade’s economic growth. Rates of unemployment and inflation were low, and wages were high. Middle-class people had more money to spend than ever–and, because the variety and availability of consumer goods expanded along with the economy, they also had more things to buy. 

The baby boom and the suburban boom went hand in hand. Almost as soon as World War II ended, developers such as William Levitt (whose “Levittowns” in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvannia would become the most famous symbols of suburban life in the 1950s) began to buy land on the outskirts of cities and use mass production techniques to build modest, inexpensive tract houses there. The G.I. Bill subsidized low-cost mortgages for returning soldiers, which meant that it was often cheaper to buy one of these suburban houses than it was to rent an apartment in the city.

These houses were perfect for young families–they had informal “family rooms,” open floor plans and backyards–and so suburban developments earned nicknames like “Fertility Valley” and “The Rabbit Hutch.” However, they were often not so perfect for the women who lived in them. In fact, the booms of the 1950s had a particularly confining effect on many American women. Advice books and magazine articles (“Don’t Be Afraid to Marry Young,” “Cooking To Me Is Poetry,” “Femininity Begins At Home”) urged women to leave the workforce and embrace their roles as wives and mothers. The idea that a woman’s most important job was to bear and rear children was hardly a new one, but it began to generate a great deal of dissatisfaction among women who yearned for a more fulfilling life. (In her 1963 book “The Feminine Mystique,” women’s rights advocate Betty Friedan argued that the suburbs were “burying women alive.”) This dissatisfaction, in turn, contributed to the rebirth of the feminist movement in the 1960s.

A growing group of Americans spoke out against inequality and injustice during the 1950s. African Americans had been fighting against racial discrimination for centuries; during the 1950s, however, the struggle against racism and segregation entered the mainstream of American life. For example, in 1954, in the Brown vs. Board of Education case, the Supreme Court declared that “separate educational facilities” for black children were “inherently unequal.” This ruling was the first nail in Jim Crow’s coffin.

Many Southern whites resisted the Brown ruling. They withdrew their children from public schools and enrolled them in all-white “segregation academies,” and they used violence and intimidation to prevent blacks from asserting their rights. In 1956, more than 100 Southern congressmen even signed a “Southern Manifesto” declaring that they would do all they could to defend segregation.

Despite these efforts, a new movement was born. In December 1955, a Montgomery activist named Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give her seat on a city bus to a white person. Her arrest sparked a 13-month boycott of the city’s buses by its black citizens, which only ended when the bus companies stopped discriminating against African American passengers. Acts of “nonviolent resistance” like the boycott helped shape the civil rights movement of the next decade.

The tension between the United States and the Soviet Union, known as the Cold War, was another defining element of the 1950s. After World War II, Western leaders began to worry that the USSR had what one American diplomat called “expansive tendencies”; moreover, they believed that the spread of communism anywhere threatened democracy and capitalism everywhere. As a result, communism needed to be “contained”–by diplomacy, by threats or by force. This idea shaped American foreign policy for decades.

It shaped domestic policy as well. Many people in the United States worried that communists, or “subversives,” could destroy American society from the inside as well as from the outside. Between 1945 and 1952, Congress held 84 hearings designed to put an end to “un-American activities” in the federal government, in universities and public schools and even in Hollywood. These hearings did not uncover many treasonous activities–or even many communists–but it did not matter: Tens of thousands of Americans lost their jobs, as well as their families and friends, in the anti-communist “Red Scare” of the 1950s.

 The booming prosperity of the 1950s helped to create a widespread sense of stability, contentment and consensus in the United States. However, that consensus was a fragile one, and it splintered for good during the tumultuous 1960s