(1955-1960). A. Comparison between American history and the development of rock and roll 1. Specific dates and events are historians’ means of organizing.

(1955-1960)

A. Comparison between American history and the development of rock and roll

1. Specific dates and events are historians’ means of organizing history

2. Rock and roll is associated with the year 1955 as an important point of emergence.

a) An indistinct period surrounds this yearb) Many preceding and subsequent events contributed

to rock and roll around this time

B. Three styles were clearly established by the early 1950s and directed at specific audiences

1. Country and Western2. Rhythm and Blues3. Mainstream Pop

C. The style that dominated the mainstream was Tin Pan Alley popular music

1. Tin Pan Alley style songs were dominated by three industries

a) Publishingb) Major record labelsc) Radio and television

2. Rhythm and blues became popular with the post-WWII youth culture

a) Lyrics were cleaned up for radio so as to be more accessible to white audiences

b) Cleaner lyrics on radio accounted for unimagined sales success for record labels

D. The introduction of rhythm and blues into the mainstream in 1955 was the start of rock and roll

1. The “first wave” of rock and roll performers included black performers and white performers:

a) Fats Dominob) Little Richardc) Chuck Berryd) Elvis Presleye) Jerry Lee Lewisf) Bill Haleyg) Buddy Holly

E. The golden age of rock and roll: 1955-1960

1. Different from Tin Pan Alley, country and western or rhythm and blues

2. Older generations viewed rock and roll as a threat

a) Believed to encourage unacceptable moral practices

b) These practices were associated with black culture

3. Middle-class teenagers listening to the music in large numbers

a) Lucrative market for record companiesb) White teenagers embraced this as their own

style

A. Previous generations assimilated into their parents’ culture after high school

1. Post-WWII white middle-class teens were given fewer standards to comply with

a) Allowed to remain teenagersb) Given less responsibilityc) This was historically uniqued) More leisure timee) More spending money

2. Middle-class made efforts to return to “normalcy” after wartime domestic disruption

a) Focus on familyb) Focus on children’s health, education, and

overall happiness

3. White middle-class teenagers embraced rhythm and blues

a) Knowing parents wouldn’t approve of suggestive lyrics

b) This could be children’s form of social rebellionc) Allowed an alternative to assimilating into their

parents’ adult world culture

B. Movies appeared with rebellious themes

1. Rebellious young people who rebelled for the sake of rebellion

a) The Wild One (1953) starring Marlon Brando

b) Rebel Without a Cause (1955) starring James Dean

2. Blackboard Jungle (1955) about teenage delinquency in an urban high school

a) Featured “(We’re Gonna) Rock Around the Clock”

b) Song was played over the opening credits

c) Caused rock and roll to be associated with delinquency

d) One of the top pop records of that year

3. By 1955 rhythm and blues was being called rock and roll

A. Alan Freed and the rise of the disk-jockey in regional radio

1. Freed was an announcer on a Cleveland clear radio station WJW

2. Sponsored by Rendezvous Records who suggested Freed start a rhythm and blues show

3. July 11, 1951, Freed started the Moondog show (his “on-air” name)

4. Promoted rhythm and blues concerts5. Moved to station WINS in New York in 19546. Stopped using the name “Moondog”

because a street person was known by that name (and he sued Alan Freed)

7. Changed the name of his show to Rock and Roll Party

a) Soon nationally syndicatedb) Also broadcast in Europe

8. Freed brought out movies about teens and rock and roll featuring popular artists

a) Bill Haleyb) Chuck Berryc) Frankie Lymond) Moonglowse) Plot was meant to showcase the artists’

performances

B. Other radio stations were playing rhythm and blues as well

1. Rhythm and blues radio shows were initially targeted at a black audience

2. White teens were listening as well3. During the late 1940s black disk-jockeys

began to become populara) Vernon Winslow (“Doctor Daddy-O”) in New

Orleansb) Lavada Durst (“Doctor Hepcat”) in Austin, Texasc) William Perryman (“Piano Red” and “Doctor

Feelgood”)d) Tommy Smalls (“Doctor Jive”) in New York

C. Independent record labels were a major influence in promoting rock and roll

1. They had similar budgets and few distribution contacts beyond their local region

2. Set up cooperative deals with each other to distribute to other regions

3. Developed relationships with local disk-jockeys to encourage airplay of their records

a) Disk-jockeys received “gifts” in exchange for playing records

b) Gifts included cash, gifts (such as cars and vacations), and entertainment

4. Indie (independent) labels worked at getting records into jukeboxes

a) Jukeboxes were popular in bars and restaurantsb) Teens would hear new records on jukeboxes and

go out and buy them

5. Major labels controlled the pop market, so indie labels concentrated on the remaining styles

a) Rhythm and bluesb) Country and western

6. The reason indie labels and regional radio stations flourished:

a) Major labels were too conservative to be concerned with rhythm and blues

b) Indie labels had to be creative and entrepreneurial to stay in the game

c) The same held true for network radio, leaving a hole for regional stations to fill

7. Major labels weren’t prepared for rhythm and blues to enter the pop charts in the early 1950s

A. During the first half of the 20th century, the music business became very large and organized

1. Magazines pointed out marketing trends in the music trade

a) Billboard—what was popular on the radio and in album sales

b) Cashbox—what was popular in jukeboxes

2. These trade magazines categorized music into three kinds called “charts”

a) Popb) Rhythm and Bluesc) Country and Western

3. The categories were based on buying patterns among consumers of music

a) Pop was based on white middle-class consumersb) Rhythm and blues on black consumersc) Country and western on rural and low-income white

consumers

4. In the mid 1950s when white middle-class teens discovered rhythm and blues the distinction between styles blurred

B. Crossovers are records that appear on more than one chart at the same time

1. Two ways that a song can cross over to another chart:

a) The record sales can generate a chart position on another chart

b) For instance, a pop song becomes popular among country and western listeners, who buy enough copies of the record to generate a chart position on the country and western chart

c) A different artist can record a new version of the song specifically for a particular listening audience

d) When a different artist records a new version of a song it is called a “cover”

2. It is possible (and not uncommon) for a song to be both a cover and a crossover

a) This phenomenon was less common in the years from 1950-1953

b) Only about 10% of songs crossed over from one chart to another chart

c) Beginning in 1954 25% of the rhythm and blues records began to cross over

d) By 1958 that figure was 94%

3. The cover and crossover trend followed a pattern based on economics

a) A black rhythm and blues artist would release a song recorded on a small indie label

b) A major label (or larger indie label) would release a cover of that song

c) The cover would usually be a white artistd) The cover would come out quickly after the

original—sometimes during the same monthe) Major labels had the distribution system and

financial wherewithal to produce their recording quickly and get it out to a national audience

f) Therefore, the major label cover would be more successful than the original indie product

A. Fats Domino (Antoine Domino) from New Orleans

1. Recorded on Imperial records based in Los Angeles

2. Several early 1950s rhythm and blues hits3. In 1955 “Ain’t It a Shame” hits rhythm an

blues #1 and pop #104. 1955-1963 thirty-seven top 40 singles

“Blueberry Hill” (1956)

5. Fats Domino persona and musical style

a) Overweight and gentle non-threatening demeanor

b) Warm, friendly personality

c) Repeated triplet chords on the piano

“Blueberry Hill” by Fats Domino

Genre: R & B

B. Chuck Berry: blending rhythm and blues with country and western aimed at white youth

1. Met Leonard Chess at Chess Records through Muddy Waters

2. 1955: first hit for Chess was a country fiddle tune to which Berry wrote the words—”Maybelline”—Rhythm and blues #1 hit and crossed over to pop chart and went to #5

3. Chuck Berry vocal style was influenced by country and western

4. Flamboyant performer—his “duck walk” during his solos became his trademark

5. His music was all in good fun. Not threatening to white listening audience

6. Lyrics were directed specifically at teenage listeners

a) “Roll Over Beethoven” used classical music as a metaphor for conservative values

b) Suggested that rock and roll would make Beethoven roll over in his grave

c) “School Day”—school is the oppressive culture to rebel against

d) Berry was careful to stay humorous and unthreatening

e) “Maybelline” veils sexual innuendo through clever wordplay

f) “Memphis” tricks the listener into thinking the woman he’s calling is an adult—it isn’t

7. Berry had enormous musical influence on rock and roll

a) Guitar style was one of the most imitated in all rock music

b) Song structure based on 12-bar blues

“Maybelline” by Chuck Berry

Genre: R & B

C. Little Richard (Richard Wayne Penniman): the most flamboyant 1950s performer

1. Recording on Hollywood’s Specialty records2. “Tutti Frutti” topped the rhythm and blues

charts in late 19553. Hit #17 on the pop charts4. Nine top forty hits included5. Wild performance style

a) Sometimes—manic singing (and even screaming)b) Aggressive piano poundingc) Strong driving beat in the rhythm sectiond) Played with one leg propped up over the keyboard

of the pianoe) Strong contrast to Fats Domino

6. The first rock performer to wear makeup

7. Highly suggestive lyrics left nothing to guesswork

a) “Good golly, Miss Molly/you sure like to ball” (“Good Golly Miss Molly”)

b) “I got a girl named Sue, she knows just what to do” (“Tutti Frutti”)

8. White artists covered his songs with cleaned up lyrics

9. They outsold Little Richard’s original recordings

D. Rhythm and blues hits were covered by white artists with cleaned up lyrics

1. Rhythm and blues focused on sexual innuendo

a) Joe Turner’s hit “Shake, Rattle, and Roll”b) “(We’re Gonna) Rock Around the Clock”c) Dominoes’ “Sixty Minute Man”d) Ruth Brown’s “5-10-15 Hours”e) Ravens’ “Rock Me All Night Long”f) Midnighters with Hank Ballard “Work with Me,

Annie”g) Midnighters with Hank Ballard “Annie Had a Baby”h) Georgia Gibbs’ “Dance with Me Henry” was a #2

pop hit

2. Often lyric references to sex were replaced with references to dancing

3. White artists covered these and many others with less offensive lyrics

E. Bill Haley and the Comets1. Originally a disk jockey playing in a

country-swing band named the Saddlemen

a) Early in the 1950s Bill Haley and his Comets recorded “Rocket 88”—it flopped

b) In 1954 Bill Haley and his Comets signed with major label Decca

c) Released “Shake, Rattle, and Roll” that yeard) “(We’re Gonna) Rock Around the Clock” also

1954e) These two weren’t big hits then—only charted

on rhythm and blues chartsf) “(We’re Gonna) Rock Around the Clock” used

in the 1955 film Blackboard Jungleg) Became #1 pop hit for 8 weeks

2. Nine more top 40 hits

“Rock Around the Clock” by Bill Haley and the Comets

Genre: Rhythm and blues

F. Charles Eugene “Pat” Boone (actual descendent of Daniel Boone)

1. Recorded on Nashville indie label Dot Records2. During the 1954-1959 period Boone scored

thirty-two Top 40 hits includinga) Fats Domino’s “Ain’t It a Shame” (renamed “Ain’t

That a Shame”)b) Little Richard’s “Tutti Frutti” (1956) and “Long Tall

Sally” (1956)

3. Boone’s covers usually outsold the original rhythm and blues artists’ records

4. Many other original hits during the same period

a) Polite, clean-cut personal imageb) Continued the pop style established by Frank

Sinatrac) Helped establish rock and roll as a valid part of the

mainstream in the last half of the 1950s

“Long Tall Sally” by Pat Boone Genre: Pop

A. Black artists resented white artists covering and outselling their records

1. Records were often reproduced in meticulous detail

a) Difference only that these covers were by white pop artists on another label

b) Intent seemed to be to replace the black artists’ recordings in charts, broadcast, and jukeboxes

2. Pop music business executives watched rhythm and blues charts get in on the next hit

3. Rhythm and blues and rock and roll artists provided material for the pop market

B. Black artists didn’t reap the financial benefits of their recordings like they should have

1. Rhythm and blues artists often were paid a flat fee

a) Didn’t get royalties that were usually paid to songwriters

b) Their record companies were small-scale operations

c) There was always the possibility that they would fold so money up front seemed better

d) Therefore the only long-term beneficiaries were the label executives—who were white

2. Music business revolved around the song itself rather than a recording of a song

a) Common practice was to capitalize on whatever song was currently popular

b) Record labels promoted their singers as stylists

c) Therefore, singers like Frank Sinatra sold because of his individual style

d) White artists covering rhythm and blues songs made the songs in their own style

e) These artists believed that their covers brought the songs to the white audience

f) Black artists strongly disagreed and resented the practice of covering their songs for big profits

A. The first artist to repeatedly have hits on all three charts

B. The first rock and roll artist to gain the attention and interest (and investment) of a major label (RCA)

C. When signed to RCA in 1955, the company started the actions the brought rock and roll into the pop mainstream

D. Elvis’s youth was spent in a simple humble way among simple common people

1. Elvis was born to a poor family in Tupelo, Mississippi

2. Family moved to Memphis at age 13—an impressionable time for a youngster

a) Knew and liked the usual country music popular in that region

b) Also exposed to thriving rhythm and blues community

c) Identified with blacks and particularly their style of clothing

d) Elvis learned to sing country songs and rhythm and blues songs as a child

E. Elvis Presley at Sun Records: the “Hillbilly Cat”

1. Owner Sam Phillips started Memphis Recording Service in 1950

2. Specialized in recording black blues musicians and singers

a) B. B. Kingb) Howlin’ Wolfc) Jackie Brenston and the Delta Cats 1951

rhythm and blues hit, “Rocket 88”

3. Phillips licensed his recordings to other rhythm and blues labels

4. Started Sun Records in 1952 as his own real record label recording more blues artists

5. Elvis came in to record a demo recording in 1953

a) In 1954 Phillips asked him to record a couple of songs that needed a vocal:

b) “It Wouldn’t Be the Same Without You” and “I’ll Never Stand In Your Way”

c) Nothing happened with those, but Phillips decided to see what Elvis could do

d) Asked guitarist Scotty Moore and bassist Bill Black to work with him and try things

6. Phillips was an easygoing person and let musicians loosen up while he rolled tape

7. By July 1954 they finally came up with something

a) Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup’s “That’s All Right (Mama)”

b) B side was Bill Monroe’s bluegrass song “Blue Moon of Kentucky”

8. Phillips took it to Memphis disk-jockey Dewey Phillips to play on his Red, Hot, and Blue radio show

a) Phillips liked it and played it a lotb) Elvis and the other two musicians went on tour to

promote the recordc) They played the Grand Ole Opry (not received

well)d) They were received well on the Louisiana Hayride

showe) At first, Elvis was billed as a country and western

performer

F. The biggest deal in the history of popular music up to that time

1. In 1955 Elvis took on a new manager, Colonel Tom Parker

2. Parker arranged a deal with RCA in Nashville to bring Elvis to a national level company

3. Sam Phillips needed money to keep Sun Records going

4. Parker set up a deal for RCA to buy Elvis’s contract from Sam Phillips for $35,000

5. Also included was a $5,000 bonus for Elvis in back royalties

G. Sam Phillips put the money into the label and a radio station he’d purchased

1. Put Sun Records into the process of cultivating rockabilly artists

a) Carl Perkinsb) Johnny Cashc) Jerry Lee Lewisd) Roy Orbison

A. “Heartbreak Hotel” in early 19561. Pop #12. Country and Western #13. Rhythm and Blues #54. Television appearances5. Motion picture deals set into motion

B. Elvis Presley’s success was due to RCA’s major label level of marketing capabilities

1. This signaled to other labels that they too should sign rock and roll artists

2. The significance is that rock and roll would now become a part of pop mainstream

“Heartbreak Hotel” by Elvis Presley

Genre: Rock and Roll

C. Elvis was a cover artist1. He was a master song-stylist who interpreted

songs in compelling or engaging ways2. He had near total control over the songs he

chose to record and release3. Elvis continued the pop singer tradition

started by earlier artistsa) Bing Crosbyb) Frank Sinatra

4. The Sun recordings are the template for the “rockabilly” style

a) Elvis recordings did not include drumsb) Elvis playing acoustic rhythm guitarc) Bill Black on acoustic string bassd) Scotty Moore’s electric lead guitar playing style

was influenced by Chet Atkinse) Warm reverberationf) “Slapback echo” was rapid return echo

E. The characteristics of Elvis’s vocal style are drawn from many sources

1. Rhythm and blues singers like the Drifters2. Crooning in the tradition of Frank Sinatra or even

Bing Crosby3. RCA intended to bring Elvis to a more adult

audiencea) This was aided by his move into making motion

picturesb) He was signed to their country and western division (a

style with more adult themes than youth themes)

4. Post-1960 Elvis recordings show European pop influence that would lend itself to an adult audience

a) “It’s Now or Never” in the style of Italian singer Mario Lanza

b) “Are You Lonesome Tonight” was an Al Jolson song he covered

F. Major shifts in Elvis’s image1. Drafted into the army in 1958

a) Much happened in popular music during his absence

b) Returned from army duty in Germany singing softer, more pop style songs

c) By mid 1960, he was a pop song-stylistd) He had established himself in rock and roll but

moved on

2. In 1968 he appeared in a “comeback” special signaling a return to stage performance with the intent to reestablish his rock roots

3. The most important part of Elvis’s career is his work in the 1950s

a) Acknowledged as the first “rockabilly” performer while at Sun

b) Early work on RCA established the rock and roll style in mainstream pop

G. The Elvis phenomenon1. First nationally televised performance: 6

episodes on Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey’s The Stage Show in 1956

a) Didn’t attract much attentionb) On first show he performed Big Joe Turner’s

“Shake, Rattle, and Roll”c) Week 2 he performed Little Richard’s “Tutti

Frutti”d) Third week he performed “Heartbreak Hotel”

and “Blue Suede Shoes”e) It took six shows for Elvis to get comfortable

on camera

2. April 30, 1956 he appeared on the Milton Berle Show—it went fine

3. June 5th return to Berle’s show was different

a) Performed “Hound Dog”b) Didn’t use his guitar for the first timec) Stage moves were noticeably sexuald) In the middle of the song he cut the tempo in

half and thrust his hips in a very sexual waye) This was a popular show, and a lard audience

saw this and was shockedf) National press was highly critical and unkind

4. On Sept. 9, 1956, he appeared on the season premier of the Ed Sullivan Show

a) He was at that point the biggest music star in America

b) Already working on his first movie (Love Me Tender)

c) Paid $50,000 for three appearancesd) TV cameras showed him only from the waist up

“Hound Dog” by Elvis Presley

Genre: Rock and Roll

H. Why would Sam Phillips sell Elvis’s contract?

1. Independent labels had to pay everybody up front before a record was released for sale

a) Labels, sleeves, and the manufacture of the records themselves had to be paid for

b) Distributors paid for records shipped to them only after the records had been sold

c) Eventually ongoing sales helped balance things outd) A big hit record is a financial puzzle for small

independent labelse) They struggled to keep going until the money arrived

2. Elvis’s polarity had put a huge strain on Sun Records

3. Sam Phillips took advantage of Elvis’s impending contract expiration

4. By selling the contract he could invest back into the label

A. Carl Perkins: guitarist-vocalist from Tennessee

1. “Blue Suede Shoes” went to #2 on the pop charts in 1956

a) Covered by Elvis on RCAb) 1st million-selling record for Sun

2. Influence on the Beatles, particularly George Harrison

3. Career was set back when Perkins and his band were injured in an auto accident

4. Signed with major label Columbia in 1957

“Blue Suede Shoes” by Carl Perkins

Genre: Rockabilly

B. Johnny Cash1. Popular on the

Louisiana Hayride broadcast

2. “Folsom Prison Blues” was a hit on country and western charts

3. “I Walk the Line” crossed over in 1956 reaching #17 on the pop chart

4. Became a major figure in country and western scene during the 1960’s

C. Jerry Lee Lewis1. Piano player-singer2. Wild manic performance style similar to that of

Little Richard3. Sensational appearance on the Steve Allen show

a) Wild performance of “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On”b) Tossed the piano bench across the stagec) Record went to #1 on country and western and

rhythm and blues chartsd) Went to #2 on pop chart

4. Several hits crossed over to all three charts “Great Balls of Fire” (1957)

5. Scandal devastated his career in the late 1950sa) On a tour in England he told the press that his wife

was 14 (she was actually 13) and she was his cousinb) Journalists discovered that he had already been

married twicec) Created a negative stereotype of the southern rock

and roll musician

“Great Balls of Fire” by Jerry Lee Lewis

Genre: Rockabilly

A. Gene Vincent-injured in an auto accident in England in 1960

B. Eddie Cochran-Killed in the 1960 auto accident in England in which Gene Vincent was injured

C. Buddy Holly1. One of the 1st major rock and roll artists

influenced by rhythm and blues, country and western, and the first wave of rock and roll performers

a) Elvis Presleyb) Little Richardc) Chuck Berry

2. Actually spent time with Elvis and Little Richard—his parents did not want him spending time with either artist because they were a bad influence on him

3. Originally signed to Decca Records in Nashville

a) Recordings and releases didn’t go wellb) Holly was dropped from the label

4. Formed a band, the Crickets, and recorded with independent producer Norman Petty in Clovis, New Mexico

a) Crickets signed to Decca subsidiary Brunswick Records

b) Holly signed as a solo artist to Coral Records (also Decca subsidiary)

5. From 1957 to 1959 he had 7 top 40 hitsa) “That’ll Be the Day” (1957)b) “Peggy Sue” (1957)

6. Some hits became well known covers by other important artists

a) “Not Fade Away” (Rolling Stones)b) “It’s So Easy” (Linda Ronstadt)c) “Words of Love” (Beatles)

7. Killed in a plane crash on February 3, 19598. Last recordings employed string arrangements

indicating a shift toward mainstream pop sound

D. Comparing Buddy Holly to Chuck Berry1. Both are influential guitarists

a) Berry influenced more by rhythm and blues with loud distortion

b) Berry’s frequent use of only lower strings for rhythmc) Berry’s use of double notes and bending during solosd) Holly’s influence by country and western playing with

very clean electric guitar timbree) Holly’s use of full strum chords common to country

and western rhythm guitar playing

2. They were both influenced by country and western styles

3. They were both influenced by rhythm and blues styles

4. Both Chuck Berry and Buddy Holly are songwriters who wrote for a pop audience

a) Berry wrote country-style story songsb) Both had a country twang in their vocalsc) Holly had a vocal “hiccup” that became a

trademarkd) Changes the timbre of his voice in each of the

versese) Sometimes producing the sound back in his throat

and chestf) Sometimes through his nose

E. Holly as a songwriter1. Buddy Holly was most influential among later

rockers as a songwriter

2. Songs were happy and positive3. Important that he wrote the songs himself4. He was a model for many of the 1960s and

1970s rock singers5. Holly used more formal designs in his songs

a) 12-bar blues structureb) AABA formc) Simple verse-chorus formd) Contrasting verse-chorus form

6. Lyrics were less clever than Chuck Berry’s but conveyed youthful frustrations and hopeful longing

7. Like Berry, Holly was a model of the successful songwriter-performer

8. An important point is the influence on the Beatles who took this idea to unimagined levels in the 1960s

“That’ll Be the Day” by Buddy Holly

Genre: Rockabilly

A. At the end of the 1950s, the most important and influential artists were out of the picture

1. In 1958 Little Richard left to become a Seventh Day Adventist minister

2. Elvis received his draft notice and went to Germany in September 1958

3. May of 1958, the British press reported Jerry Lee Lewis’s marriage to his thirteen-year-old cousin

4. Buddy Holly’s plane crashed on February 3, 1959 5. In 1959 Chuck Berry was charged with violating the

Mann Acta) Transporting a minor across state lines for immoral purposesb) Overturned on appealc) Tried again and convicted in February 1961, serving two years

B. The payola scandal1. Historical background goes back into the

19th century2. Common practice for publishers to pay

those who could help advance the success of a song

a) Early 20th century singers received payola to perform particular songs in their act

b) Big band era bandleaders received it to play and record certain numbers

c) During the 1950s disk-jockeys were paid off to play records on their radio shows

3. Independent labels had the most rock and roll hits during the 1950s

4. They were seen as a severe threat to the major labels

5. Performance rights organizations that collected royalties for songwriters were also key players

a) ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers) [Major Labels]

b) ASCAP members were conservative, having come up through the Tin Pan Alley heyday

c) BMI (Broadcast Music Incorporated) [Independent labels]

d) BMI was a newer organization and aligned itself with rock musicians and songwriters (it would take anyone the ASCAP rejected)

6. Major labels and their conservative associates were upset that so much rock and roll got so much airplay

7. November 1959: House Special Subcommittee on Legislative Oversight began investigating payola

8. It wasn’t illegal to pay to have records playeda) Gift had to be acknowledged on the airb) Recipient had to declare it in their tax statements

9. Two central figures became Dick Clark and Alan Freed

a) Clark cooperated and came out well, appearing as a fine young entrepreneurial businessman (host of American Bandstand and New Year’s Rockin’ Eve)

b) Freed was defiant and claimed never to have accepted money for a song he didn’t like already

c) Freed is named as one of the writers on songs he didn’t write, but promoted to great success

d) Case in point: Chuck Berry’s “Maybelline”

10. Freed’s career was destroyeda) In December 1962 Freed pleaded guilty to taking

bribesb) He only received a six-month suspended sentence

and a $300 finec) The publicity caused all radio stations not to want to

hire him

A. Doo-wop is vocal music originating in urban areas

1. Based on singing styles developed by the Mills brothers

2. Also based on horn arrangements from big bands

3. Groups often sang a capella—without instrumental accompaniment

B. The Chords’ “Sh’Boom” was a hit for Atlantic Records in 1954

C. The Platters was one of the most successful vocal groups

1. “Only You (and You Alone)” (1955)

2. “The Great Pretender” (1955)

“Only You” by The Platters

Genre: Doo-wop

D. Because of their success, independent labels scrambled to find vocal groups

1. Often arrangements would be worked out in the studio

a) Groups were usually made up of only singersb) Drums, piano, bass, and guitar would be added

in the studio

2. Sometimes the groups’ own primitive arrangement would be used

3. Some groups had only one recorda) Their vocal arrangement on their first song

often had taken months to rehearseb) They weren’t able to follow up their success

quickly