Rock and Roll and It’s Contribution to American Culture
Rock ‘n’ Roll music is one of the greatest examples of American ingenuity. It combines elements of country, rhythm and blues, and pop to make an entirely new genre of music. Rock ’n’ roll music was heavily popularized by Elvis Presley in the 1950s. Elvis made his splash in 1954 with his hit cover of “That’s All Right (Mama)” by Arthur Crudup. If you listen to Elvis’ cover compared to the original version, you can really hear the energy behind Elvis’ voice and it carries the song! The different ranges he hits along with the country twang he puts at the end of some of his verses really make the song pop and it’s an easy song to sing a long to. This cover earned him a spot on the Louisiana Hayride, where his exciting and energetic performances made him even more popular to the point where big labels who had previously overlooked Rock ’n’ Roll tried to sign him.
Elvis eventually was signed from Sun Records to RCA in 1955 and dropped hit after hit, along with starring in several movies and television specials. Elvis’ contract with RCA and popularity showed that music in America was changing and Rock ’n’ Roll would be involved in it’s future. Youths in the 1950s, Elvis’ main audience, were characterized as rebellious and wanted to have their own culture separate from their parents, watching films about delinquency and rebellion as well as listening to R&B music, which their parents hated. Elvis was able to capture this audience not only with his blend of R&B, pop, and country styles, but also with his own personal style, being flamboyant and wearing clothes popular with African Americans. Elvis became an icon and inspired American culture of the latter 50s. After briefly serving in the army Elvis rebranded as a pop singer going into the 60s, but his legacy in Rock ’n’ Roll was not forgotten and would inspire future artists. His personal style, “rockabilly” would be followed by artists under Sun Records, who he had originally been signed with.
The same year Elvis was signed by RCA, Sun Records were able to recreate his success and style with Carl Perkin’s hit “Blue Suede Shoes,” which competed with Elvis’ first hit with RCA, “Heartbreak Hotel.” You can really hear the similarities between Perkin’s and Elvis’ voices on Elvis’ cover of “Blue Suede Shoes” though in my opinion Elvis has better timing and singing ability. Despite his early success Perkin was unable to replicate the success of Elvis. Other artists like Jerry Lee Lewis and Buddy Holly gained similar success as Perkins but were unable to become as successful as Elvis due to controversy in Lewis’ case and a fatal accident in Holly’s. These events along with Elvis shipping out for service and rocker Little Richard quitting music was known as “The Day the Music Died” and was greatly lamented by Rock ’n’ Roll fans across the country, showing how Rock ’n’ Roll had become engrained in American culture, and the success of these artists in a genre that was originally thought to be just a fad really shows the impact that Elvis and Rock ’n’ Roll had on Americans as they were hungry for more of the Rock ’n’ Roll sound. Elvis’ success with American youths would create a new market in the music industry and records would start trying to cater to both youths and their parents, solidifying the creation of a distinct youth culture in America as companies began to view them as a profitable market. The contributions and impact on American culture by Rock ’n’ Roll is unmistakable and rock would go on to survive after The Day the Music Died as well as inspiring different genres of music.
References
Covach, John Rudolph, and Andrew Flory. What’s That Sound?: An Introduction to Rock and Its History. W.W. Norton & Company, 2023.
