Chuck Berry: The Creator Of Rock And Roll

Chuck Berry, Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Little Richard, Bruce Springsteen, and Johnny Cash are just some of the names that come to mind when thinking about the great artists that contributed to rock and roll. These artists helped create and develop the genre of rock through the blending of other genres and by adding their own unique take to music. The genre rock and roll is a unique blend of rhythm & blues, county & western paired with blues, jazz, gospel, and folk and was created between the 1940’s and 1950’s. While many argue that Chuck Berry was the creator of rock and roll in 1955, there is no doubt that there was another rock star emerging around the same time. His name was Elvis Presley and he would later be known globally as The King of

In 1954 “That’s All Right” became Elvis’s first single, and in 1955 Presley signed with RCA Records and scored his first No. 1 single,“Heartbreak Hotel” and his first No. 1 album, Elvis Presley. His new sound and rebellious manner of swiveling hips appalled the older generations, but excited teens as it was new and liberating when compared to the conservative music that was normal for the era. Kids in the 50’s enjoyed the feeling of going against their parent’s wishes by listening to Presley’s popular songs and watching his gyrating pelvis, something that was unheard of at the time. Presley’s dancing was considered so obscene that television shows would only show Elvis from the waist up when he

He would go on to be a national star in 1956 and “according to Billboard, Elvis had 149 charting pop singles: 114 Top 40, 40 Top Ten, and 18 Number Ones (Elvis Presley Biography). Not even his draft into the army on March 28th, 1958, could hinder his career. In fact, “in 1958 alone, Presley earned over $2 million” and once he returned to civilian life he would create his first stereo record and would later film a TV special with Frank Sinatra (Elvis Presley Biography).

The rock and roll legend Elvis Presley came from very humble beginnings, but would grow into The King, one of the largest names in the history of rock and roll. On August 16, 1977, Elvis Presley died at the age of 42 of heart failure, which was caused by his troubling past of prescription medication addiction. Although the world lost Elvis in 1977, his legacy lives on as his music continues to inspire other artists. Elvis Presley will forever be one of the most iconic artists of rock and is remembered as the “hip-shaking symbol of liberation” of the 1950’s (Elvis Presley