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1958: Rock meets American Bandstand (Early Rock Part IV)

© Robert Whillans

The year 1958 was both a good and bad one for rock. On the one hand, rock was gaining in popularity, and new artists seemed to be coming out of nowhere. The barriers of musical segregation had been shattered and black music was as common in white audiences as white artists. Of course, white artists were producing a lot of the music of this year. On the other hand, the energy and excitement of early rock was dissapating, and two of its biggest early stars were lost (for now). This was the beginning of the end of early rock, which is of course, as we all know, very sad because it left us with nothing but teen idols and bubblegum rock. Some of that was good though, good enough to tide us over until the British Invasion. Anyway, back on the subject.

First of all, let's talk about the de-throning of the King. Elvis was drafted into the US army for two years. The colonel made sure Elvis didn't receive any special treatment, and thus saved him the brunt of his critic's scorn. Elvis had a couple of hits in that year, and although he did eventually come back in 1960, he never regained the "bad boy" persona that vaulted him to fame, so he entered the era that most Vegas impersonators like to do. (Elvis had, in my opinion, three stages: the early Elvis, the trying-to-get-back-in-it Elvis, and the fat-bloated-eating-fried-peanut-butter-sandwiches Elvis.) We also lost the Killer, Jerry Lee Lewis. In the same year of his most recognised hit, "Great Balls of Fire", he made his biggest mistake ever and married his 13-year-old cousin. Record companies, radio and television stations all cut him off thier rosters, he was eliminated from the music buisness altogether. Jerry Lee was one of the Million-Dollar-Quartet of Sun Records, and part of the early Early Rock "shock" artists, with his fast paced piano and exciting lyrics. With both him and Elvis gone, who was left of the early artists to save Early Rock?

"If Rock had another name, they'd call it Chuck Berry" (John Lennon). Berry had one of hist best songs ever in 1958, "Johnny B. Goode". It symbolised all that was Early Rock, and certainly all that Chuck Berry was. Berry had pioneered Early Rock and was now pushing it through the transition from upstart to acceptance. The loss of the early artists was terrible for rock's shock appeal, but helped smooth rock's edges and make it something the whole family could enjoy.

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