CSMU 135 - The Birth of Rock and Roll

Course Description

In the mid-1950s, musical styles including rockabilly, rhythm and blues, and dance blues were developing in several American cities, and were marketed to white audiences as “rock and roll.” Star performers emerged including Little Richard, Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly and Chuck Berry. Some factors that led to the rise of this music – including a growing youth culture and newly formed independent radio stations – will also be explored. The mainstream media deemed this musical craze a passing fad, and although the first wave of rock and roll was over by the late 1950s, its influence lives on to the present.

Notes

Instructor: Keith McCuaig