Origins of rock and roll
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The origins of rock and roll are complex. Rock and roll emerged as a defined musical style in the United States in the early to mid-1950s. It was derived most directly from the rhythm and blues music
Louis Jordan in 1946
Jimmie Rodgers
Roy Brown, writer and singer of "Good Rocking Tonight" in 1947
Alan Freed
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Albert James "Alan" Freed was an American disc jockey. He also produced and promoted large traveling concerts with various acts, helping to spread the importance of rock and roll music throughout Nort
Origins of rock and roll
…on “The Fred Allen- Town Hall Tonight- Show” the song “Rock and Roll” appeared as a barber shop quartet lead-in. In 1951, Cleveland-based disc jockey Alan Freed began playing this music style while popularizing the term "rock and roll" on mainstream radio. As a 2018 BBC article explained, "by the time DJ Alan…
Freed, c. 1958
Concert poster for the Coronation Ball
Alan Freed's gravestone at the Lake View Cemetery in Cleveland, Ohio