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Wild cards from the 1920s and 1930s that seemed then to have come from nowhere but now clearly foreshadow rock and roll:

• "My Daddy Rocks Me (with One Good Steady Roll)" by Trixie Smith ( 1922). Although it was played with a backbeat and was one of the first "around the clock" lyrics, this slow minor-key blues was by no means rock and roll in the modern sense. On the other hand, the title certainly underscores the original meaning attached to those two words (both of four letters) , rock and roll.
• "Tiger Rag" by the Washboard Rhythm Kings , ( 1931) virtually out of control performance with screeching vocals, a strange tiger roar, and rocking washboard . This recording is standing in for many performances by spasm band s, jug bands, and skiffle groups that have the same wild, informal feel that early rock and roll had.

Tunes from the 1930s and 1940s that were early indicators of an important change in the music world:

• "Roll 'Em Pete" by Pete Johnson and Joe Turner ( 1938) driving boogie woogieBoogie-woogie is a style of blues piano playing that became very popular in the 1940s and was extended from piano, to three pianos at once, guitar, big band, and country and western music. It is characterized by a regular bass figure in the left hand bass and a masterful collation of blues verses
• "Flying Home" by Lionel HamptonLionel Hampton ( April 20, 1908 August 31, 2002), was a bandleader, jazz percussionist and vibraphone virtuoso. Hampton was born in Louisville, Kentucky. Hamp ranks among the greatest names in jazz history and worked with a who's who of jazz musicians, fr and his orchestra ( 1939Events January-June January 2 End of term for Frank Finley Merriam, 28th Governor of California. He is succeeded by Culbert Levy Olson. January 24 Earthquake kills 30. 000 in Chile about 50. 000 sq mi razed January 26 Falangists take Barcelona January 26), tenor saxoctave lower than an Alto Sax. The saxophone or sax is a musical instrument of the woodwind family, usually made of brass and with a distinctive loop bringing the bell upwards. It was invented by Adolphe Sax in the mid- 1840s. The saxophone is most common solo by Illinois JacquetJean-Baptiste Illinois Jacquet ( October 31, 1922 July 22, 2004) was a jazz tenor saxophonist most famous for his solo on "Flying Home". He is better known simply as Illinois Jacquet . Although he was a pioneer of the honking tenor sax that became a regul, recreated and refined live by Arnett Cobb , the model for rock and roll solos ever since, emotional, honking, long, not just an instrumental break but the keystone of the song. (The Benny Goodman SextetBenny Goodman born Benjamin David Goodman ( May 30, 1909 June 13, 1986) was a famous Jazz musician, known as "King of Swing," "Patriarch of the Clarinet," and "Swing's Senior Statesman". Goodman was born in Chicago, the son of poor Jewish immigrants who l had a popular hit with a subdued "jazz chamber music" version of the same song featuring guitarist Charlie ChristianCharlie Christian ( July 29, 1916 March 2, 1942) was a famous jazz guitarist and is often considered the first electric guitar innovator. Chistian was born in Dallas, Texas and was raised in Oklahoma. In the late 1930s he came to the attention of record p.)
• "Rock Me" by the Lucky Millinder Orchestra with Sister Rosetta Tharpe vocals and guitar, a gospel song done like a city blues
• "I Wonder" by Cecil Gant ( 1944), an early black ballad performance that became widely popular, the first of the black tenors.
• "Straighten Up and Fly Right" by Nat King Cole (1946), very light on the rocking, but a popular hit with lyrics from African American folk tale, like Bo Diddley, but without the beat
• "Let the Good Times Roll" by Louis Jordan ( 1946)
• "Oakie Boogie"; by Jack Guthrie ( 1947)
• "Drinkin' Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee"; by Stick McGhee and his Buddies ( 1949)
• "Ragg Mopp" by Johnny Lee Wills and Deacon Anderson ( 1949), strange little novelty tune, the lyrics are simply the title spelled out or yelled out, re-released in 1954 by the Ames Brothers.

The hits from the 1950s typically are seen with an early performance much in the rhythm and blues style and a later cover performance more in the rock and roll vein. Often, the first performance was by a black artist and the second by a white artist. These white covers, while at the time sometimes disdained as exploitive and derivative, were a necessary part of the transition of the music. Nor were they all pale imitations, but sometimes earnest remakes by sympathetic performers, and more than a few were recognized as superior recordings to the originals.

• " Good Rocking Tonight " ( 1949) by Roy Brown and Wynonie Harris, both black artists; Brown's original version is jump blues while Harris's version is definitely more modern rock and roll. Later heeartily covered by Elvis Presley and less so by Pat Boone.
• "The Fat Man" by Fats Domino (1949), featuring Fats on wah-wah mouth trumpet, the first of his 35 Top 40 hits.
• "Rock Me to Sleep" written by Benny Carter and Paul Vandervoort II ( 1950), recorded by Helen Humes backed by the Marshall Royal Orchestra .
• " Rocket 88" by Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats (actually Ike Turner and the Kings of Rhythm) ( 1951), and Bill Haley and the Saddlemen ( 1951)
• " Crazy Man, Crazy ", ( 1953) Bill Haley and his Comets, first rock and roll record on Billboard magazine chart. Not a cover, but an original. Haley said he heard the phrase at high-school dances his band was playing.
• " Rock Around the Clock", ( 1954) by Bill Haley and his Comets, first number 1 rock and roll record
• " Shake, Rattle and Roll", ( 1954) by Big Joe Turner, Bill Haley and his Comets, and Elvis Presley. Haley's version was the first international hit rock and roll record, actually predating the success of "Rock Around the Clock" by several months, though it was recorded later.
• " That's All Right (Mama) ", ( 1954) by Elvis Presley; this cover of Arthur Crudup 's tune was Elvis' first single, and is possibly the song most often cited (albeit inaccurately) as the first rock and roll record.
• " Sh-boom " ( 1954) by the Chords and the Crewcuts , in this case, the latter was a pale imitation. The song's status as rock and roll is hotly debated, though it is considered a pioneer of the doo-wop variant.
• " Maybellene", ( 1955) by Chuck Berry

In 2004, debate was sparked between fans of Elvis who claimed "That's All Right Mama" was the first rock and roll song, with those who feel the proper claimant should be Bill Haley's "Rock Around the Clock"--both songs celebrating their 50th anniversaries that year. Rolling Stone Magazine took the controversial step of unilaterally declaring Elvis' song the first rock and roll recording, attracting criticism from many quarters.

See also: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll