1950s British rock'n'roll

1950s British Music Scene
…..radio show

In this Rock’n’Roll Unravelled Show, we’re taking a look at the 1950s British rock’n’roll era.

First broadcast 7 September 2020
…on Access North West – all times UK

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1950s British Rock’n’Roll Era

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1950s British Rock’n’Roll Era

1950s British Rock’n’Roll

In the 1950s American rock’n’roll exploded onto an unsuspecting world. In the UK, as well as discovering the joys of Elvis, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis and the like, we had our own scene going. This is the story of how it all started in the UK

Trad jazz was very popular in the UK in the late 1940s. These trad jazz bands developed their own integral skiffle groups. These skiffle groups were known as “interval bands” because some of the members of the band performed as a skiffle group during the interval, when the other members of the band had retired to the bar.

By the mid-1950s skiffle groups were forming up and down the country. Some of the skiffle groups remained faithful to the original skiffle music, which had its roots in American folk blues.

However, others were more influenced by American rock’n’roll and morphed into British rock’n’roll groups. Britain’s own rock’n’roll heroes emerged. Tommy Steele was the first British rock’n’roll star. Billy Fury, Marty Wilde and others soon made their mark on the music.

By the late 1950s many of these groups morphed into beat groups. With beat groups the focus was on the band as a unit, rather than just a spotlight on the singer. The Beatles were the first beat group to score a UK hit, when Love Me Do entered the charts on 11 October 1962.

This is really when the 1950s became the 1960s…

PLAYLIST

1 Marty Wilde – Endless Sleep
2 Humphrey Lyttelton Band – Bad Penny Blues
3 Tommy Steele and the Steelmen – Singing the Blues
4 Chas McDevitt Skiffle Group (featuring Nancy Whiskey) – Freight Train
5 Vince Taylor and His Playboys – Brand New Cadillac
6 Johnny Kidd and the Pirates – Shakin’ All Over
7 The Drifters – Sweets for My Sweet

ROCK’N’ROLL UNRAVELLED SHOW

How rock’n’roll came about, it’s transition into rock music in the mid-1960s and the array of rock genres which followed in the late 1960s and ‘70s.

Blues, R&B, rock’n’roll, rock, prog, folk rock, country rock, psychedelia, glam, early metal, punk, new wave +++… will all find their way into the shows. Plus artists and bands, some well known and others who are more on the cult side. Stories behind classic singles and albums, record labels, venues, gigs… Not forgetting the people behind the scenes: producers, managers, promoters, writers, Svengalis – the people who made it all happen.

If it’s relevant to the music of the 1950s, ‘60s and ‘70s, I’ll be talking about it.
All this and great music, although, some you’ll recognise and some you might well be hearing for the first time.

COMPETITION
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Rock’n’Roll Unravelled

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Rock’n’Roll Unravelled

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Rock’n’Roll Unravelled – THE BOOK

Derek Shelmerdine, author of Rock’n’Roll Unravelled.

In its unique three-part format
Timeline + What Happened Today? + Pocket Histories
Rock’n’Roll Unravelled tells the story of rock’n’roll from its roots to mid-1970s punk.

Not just the story of the music but also the social events which shaped it. The Vietnam War, Civil Rights struggle and so many other factors because they had such an influence on the music of the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s.

Record Collector magazine review
Shelmerdine has made a painstaking effort to document pretty much every event that would prove significant in shaping popular music … a comprehensive guide… invaluable.”

TO BUY Rock’n’Roll Unravelled

RADIO APPEARANCES

1950s British Rock’n’Roll was first broadcast
on Access North West 7 September 2020

For all Derek Shelmerdine‘s Rock’n’Roll Unravelled Shows.
…..and appearances on all radio stations.