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| John Boykin on a hot, hot day at the San Antonio Gun Club |
Conventional wisdom says rock and roll started in 1955 with either Bill Haley or Elvis Presley.
Well, this is my version of the history. It is based on my personal experience with rock and roll since before 1955. I was ten years old that year. One of my school friends asked me what I thought of Elvis and his music. I hadn't a clue but I had a crush on her so I figured it was time I found out what she was talking about. We lived a little over a hundred miles from Memphis so it wasn't hard to tune the radio to the early rock stations. I've been "into" rock and roll ever since.
As it turned out Elvis didn't do it for me. I liked other members of that Class of 55'. My first record was Match Box by Carl Perkins. I liked that song better than the hit side with Blue Suede Shoes on it. I loved Jerry Lee Lewis's on stage antics and Johnny Cash was a friend of a friend.
As life went on I kept bumping into the music. I learned to dance and found a deep kinship from my body on the dance floor to the bass and drum. After schooling in middle Tennessee and North Arkansas, I went to university in Memphis. High school taught me rock's kinship with rockabilly and the blues. Now college was teaching me about rhythm and blues, jug bands and hippie music.
I lived in Muscle Shoals for a while and had the opportunity to know some people in the recording industry. I knew them as neighbors and they shared a lot of inside shop stories. I found it fascinating. I also learned I had become something of a rock and roll trivia expert. That's a hoot when I think of all the things I can't remember.
This is the real first day of the Rock and Roll History series. I am going back to artists who were either unknown to me or weren't considered rock and roll. I am trying to trace some roots music I overlooked because I listened "conventional wisdom".
I am not a musician. I can barely play the radio. This is my personal opinion on my view of rock as I saw and heard it happen. I will leave out artists and groups many people found popular but I didn't enjoy. Please don't be offended if I don't include your favorites. This is MY history with rock and roll. I will include the artists I enjoyed most. There is no way I can cover all the great acts from the past 50 years. So I will cover the ones I like and let you do your own blog to cover the one you want to recognize. I hope you understand.
Here are a couple of theme songs from radio programs I listened to while first in a Middle Tennessee prep school. The radio station WLAC in Gallatin, Tennessee reached North Arkansas late at night so I was able to continue my blues lessons after returning home. The period was 1960-70.
I still consider them to be absolutely perfect listenin' music. If there is such a thing as sippin' whiskey then I know this music was made to go with it.
Put on the head phones, turn it up medium and lean back. These are worth enjoying.
After Hours by Avery Parish
Suwannee River Boogie by Albert Ammons
John Boykin
The Hard Hat Photographer
Photography web site
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