1. The Birth of Rock’n’Roll

2. Big Mama Thornton

3. WW 2 Ends
The Baby Boomer Phenomena

4. BIRTH Rate chart.
The baby boomers will shape much of our history, especially our musical one

5. The Baby Boomers
More children born than ever before or since on the planet
-the generation of the jazz era are now the parents of the baby boomers
The baby boomers will shape much of our history, especially our musical one
A baby born 1946 would be how old in 1957?

6. -as blues music gets more exposure it is adopted by many southern white musicians who begin to play and perform in styles long used by blues musicians

7. Like this kid, born in Tupelo Mississippi, 1935
Born poor, he lived in black neighborhoods
Was getting tossed our of jukejoints when he was your age.

8. Learned to play guitar and sing and dance in styles he saw in the jukejoints
Was a hit in high school and then began to play county fairs around Memphis Tennessee

9. Discovered playing on a Memphis street by Sam Phillips
Records him on the “Sun” record label
Eventually picked up by RCA
Becomes a superstar

10. Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley

11. Elvis Histeria
Elvis Presley becomes the first “poster boy” for the baby boomer generation
The girls just love him
He had help becoming so famous

12. The television
Televisions hit the market in the 1950s

13. The Ed Sullivan Show He had the biggest show on tv
It was on CBS on Sunday nights and was a variety show
He got Elvis Presley on Sept 9, 1956

14. Became the most watched show in American history at that time

15. But… There was a problem… Elvis’ dancing caused outrage
His hip movement was indecent, disgusting, lewd, provocative
What should Sullivan do? Most watched show ever, most complaints ever?

16. Have him back October 28th 1956
He breaks all the records he set the first time.
Let’s see how they filmed him.

17. So begins the Censorship Debate
“Rock’n’Roll” a term invented by Alan Freed, who was re-labelling R&B or “Race Music”
Rock’n’Roll is however a New Orleans euphemism…
For sex!

18. But the real problem is…
Race
Rock’n’Roll had existed for years, just not in white culture.
The kids of the Jazz era, as parents now, repeat the mistakes of their own parents when jazz was the issue in the 1920s
Record companies, just like Ed Sullivan, know it sells, and do their best to package it in white

19. Bill Haley and the Comets
Buddy Holly
And many more, too lame to mention

20. Some black musicians crossed over
Remember these two Chuck Berry and Bo Didley from Chess Records in Chicago
Remember these two Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley from Chess Records in Chicago

21. Little Richard

22. Then guess what they found out?
The Robert Johnson Myth
Rock’n’Roll now gains the term “The Devil’s Music”

24. JerrY Lee Lewis