Elvis led way in copying black music

Philadelphia Inquirer ^ | 8/16/02 | Kevin L. Carter

[2banana]

As we pause from our busy lives to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Elvis Presley's death, it must be noted that as creative and influential as this brilliant-but-tragic man was, he does not deserve to be called, as he is by so many, the King.

Sure, Elvis was a figure of transcendent influence in pop music. He was, at least in his earlier years, an electrifying performer. He is known for the ability he had to combine disparate elements of black and white Southern music (country, blues, rockabilly) into a driving, compelling and, most of all, popular style.

[Revolting cat!]

Charlie Patton

[Revolting cat!]

The real King of Rock'n'Roll!

[Revolting cat!]

Oops, sorry! I meant...

The Queen of Rock'nRoll!

[Centurion2000]

White Devils Bad.

Well then just call me satan .... at least that's what liberals would think of me.

[Chemnitz]

I think they should have released one rap song and stopped. They all sound alike, giving monotony a bad name.

[stands2reason]

Les Paul was Hawaiian?

[headsonpikes]

Thanks for the great pics!

[Hemingway's Ghost]

My pleasure. I can't get enough of roots blues m'self...

[headsonpikes]

'Yodelin' Brakie' bump. ;^)

[Belial]

Well, you can understand how it might be annoying for black artists...developing a genre of music for years, then some white guy comes in, picks up the songs and gets filthy rich, people calling him the "king".

[Revolting cat!]

It's amazing when you think about it how American rock'n'roll in its best years roughly from the mid 50s to the mid 60s, was the creation of Jewish kids from New York or Baltimore (Leiber/Stoller) and Jewish record company owners (and a couple of Turks at Atlantic Records) writing and producing records by black and white Americans some more others less talented.

Note that the Southern current of rock'n'roll pretty much faded out after the initial years, or got absorbed into the New York-Philly-Chicago-LA main current, due to what I see as parochialism of its promoters such as Sam Philips or the Nashville studios and producers of the time. The best example of that was the Burnette brothers who preceeded Elvis in Memphis, and were in 1955 as good if not better than the EP & the Blue Moon Boys, ended up at the close of the 1950s in Hollywood writing tunes for none otrher than Ricky Nelson. And good ones too, but they should have made it on their own.

[uncbob]

John Lennon said it best: "Before Elvis, there was nothing."

There was Hank Williams SR

[JessicaDragonet]

I heard, on one of those "History of Rock and Roll" things, that Chuck Berry grew up listening to Country. It influenced his music, and as a result, he didn't have very much standing in the black music community.

[Revolting cat!]

Wynonie Harris

[Revolting cat!]

"Nobody Rocked like Mr Blues - 10 years before Elvis walked into Sun Studios in Memphis, Wynonie Harris was rocking and rolling and living the ultimate rock lifestyle. His influence on 50's rock n' roll cannot be measured. Everything from his music to his dancing to his clothes were copied by the bobby sox generation. But Harris along with many of the other R&B originators were never to recieve the cross over success of their younger, whiter, counterparts. Harris died in 1969 relatively unkown. This is the real rock n' roll swindle. The man who gave the world 'Good Rocking Tonight' and a string of R&B classics - the man Presley went to see as a youngster - has only recently started to recieve the plaudits he so richly deserved."

(Source: http://freespace.virgin.net/j.hobday/)

[BenLurkin]

Yes, it is wrong to divide by race. Elvis was, however IMO a plagiarizing creep. He was the Clinton of rock (or was Clinton the Elvis of politics?)
For all interested in the black and white roots of rock I recommend a short film called "Mystery Train". It can be viewed at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum in Cleveland, Ohio.

[newgeezer]

Blind Melon Chitlin

 

[Revolting cat!]

[gargoyle]

...I read the entire article. Why was it edited???

...Great pictures, ghost!!!

[First_Salute]

See: Former Democratic Party Communications Director named Managing Editor at Philly Inquirer, Philadelphia Inquirer, August 13, 2002 (posted August 16th by churchillbuff).