Episode 1: The Precursors
Welcome to Rock N Roll Archaeology! This is a reboot of Episode One: The Precursors, originally released October 15, 2015. We updated and improved it some, and re-released it on November 4, 2020.
We begin in Times Square, late summer of 1945. The war is over.
First up, the Baby Boom and a newly-discovered demographic, the white American teenager.
This new cohort is huge, with unprecedented economic clout. Young, restless and affluent, and they want to get beyond the timid, conformist popular culture of 1950s America.
“Race Records” (an outdated term for rhythm and blues records by African American musicians) become hugely popular with white teenagers. Drawn from the well of sorrow that is the Black American experience, this music has the edge and urgency--the authenticity--these kids are seeking.
We meet our first hero - the musical genius Ray Charles - and our first anti-hero, the frenetic, fatally flawed DJ Alan Freed.
We shine a light on two grassroots cultural movements that became important later: the Skiffle Craze in the United Kingdom and the Beat Poets of Urban America.
1954 is an inflection point. On the musical front, Bill Haley released the first million-selling Rock N Roll record: “Rock Around The Clock.”
That same year, big changes in the political landscape. The Brown v Board of Education decision; and Senator Joseph McCarthy was publically humiliated and discredited.
Freedom of Association and Freedom of Expression take a step forward. Paranoid politics and systemic racism are still very much with us in America, but in 1954 it got a little easier, became a little less risky, to be yourself and express yourself.
We head to the delivery room: Memphis Recording Service, where we meet the first Rock N Roll superstar, Elvis Presley, and tease Chapter Two.
Hosted and Produced by Christian Swain
Written By Richard Evans and Christian Swain
Sound Design by Jerry Danielsen
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SHOW NOTES & CREDITS:
Songs from Episode One
Pink Floyd: “Another Brick in the Wall, Pt 1” from The Wall, 1979 Harvest/EMI Records
The Who: “Sparks” from Tommy, 1969 Decca Records.
The Who: “My Generation” from The Who Sings My Generation, (American Release) 1966 Decca Records
Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters: “Ac-Cen-Tchu-Ate the Positive” single released 1944, Decca Records
Billie Holiday: “Strange Fruit” 78 rpm single released 1939 on Commodore Records
Buddy Guy: “Damn Right I Got the Blues” from Damn Right I Got the Blues, released 1991, Silvertone Records
Ray Charles: “The Mess Around” single released 1953, Atlantic Records
Mama Don’t Wanna Skiffle no more, Huw Wheldon show, Jimmy Page, 1957
The Chords: “Sh Boom” single released 1954, Cat Records
The Penguins: “Earth Angel” single released 1956, Mercury Records
Big Joe Turner: “Shake, Rattle and Roll” single released 1954, Atlantic Records
Bill Haley and his Comets: “Rock Around the Clock” single released 1954, Decca Records
Sweet Honey in the Rock: “Ain’ Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around” from Freedom Song, released 2000, Freedomsong Productions
Lou Lou Belle and Scotty, “I’m No Communist” single released 1952, Mercury Records
Elvis Presley: “That’s All Right” single released 1955, Sun Records
Books
Cohodas, Nadine (2005). Spinning Blues into Gold: The Chess Brothers and the Legendary Chess Records.
Cohn, Nik (1970). Wopbopaloobop Alopbamboom: Pop From the Beginning.
Galbraith, John Kenneth (1998). The Affluent Society, Fortieth Anniversary Edition.
Ginsberg, Alan (1955). Howl and Other Poems.
Greenfield, Robert (2012) The Last Sultan: The Life and Times of Ahmet Ertegun.
Guralnick, Peter (1995). Last Train to Memphis: The Rise of Elvis Presley.
Mills, C. Wright (1951). White Collar: The American Middle Classes.
Morgan, Ted (2003). Reds: McCarthyism in Twentieth-Century America.
Pleasants, Henry (1966). The Great Singers: From the Dawn of Opera to Our Own Time.
Whyte, William H. (1956). The Organization Man.
Zinn, Howard (2005). A People’s History of the United States.
Movies and Television Shows
Volkswagen television commercial
Almost Famous, Directed by Cameron Crowe, 2000 Dreamworks Pictures
Ray, Directed by Taylor Hackford, 2004 Universal Pictures
Good Night and Good Luck, Directed by George Clooney, 2005 Warner Independent Pictures
Online Sources, by Topic in Order of Appearance
Invention of the Transistor:
Invention of the 45-rpm record:
Affluent Society, Consumerism
Volkswagen ad, 1971,
Beat Poets:
http://www.poets.org/poetsorg/text/brief-guide-beat-poets
Alan Freed:
http://www.alanfreed.com/on-the-air-audio-2/
http://www.alanfreed.com/biography/
Brown v Board of Education Decision:
http://www.civilrights.org/education/brown/
McCarthyism:
http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/MRC/murrowmccarthy.html
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/3650203/When-television-took-a-stand.html