and roll music, if you like it, if you feel it, you can’t help but move to it. That’s what happens to me. I can’t help it.’

I Love rock and roll music and when the music moves me—I mean it really grooves me—I was raised on Rock and Roll.

Well it wasn’t may folks fault, just a quirk of time:   “Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll or rock ‘n’ roll) is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of predominantly African-American genres such as blues, boogie woogie, jump blues, jazz, and gospel music….”   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_and_roll   Well as you can see I was just born (a baby boomer) at the right time to experience most of the major developments.

I wasn’t paying much attention to Rock and roll in the 50’s—-mostly I was having fun with other things:   But 45’s (If that doesn’t ring a bell don’t ask I don’t have time to explain decades of obsolete phrases right now–sorry) were selling and stars were being made.

Obviously only a couple of those are really rock and roll—-my vote would be for

Bill Haley:  “Billy Haley and his Comets fused elements of country music, Western swing, and black R&B to produce some of rock and roll’s earliest hits. His “Crazy, Man Crazy” from 1953 was the  first rock and roll record to make the pop charts.”  http://www.history-of-rock.com/haley.htm

Elvis Presley:  Of course, there may be a few of you that haven’t heard of him but then you’re probably too young to vote so…..”Born on January 8, 1935, in Tupelo, Mississippi, Elvis Presley came from very humble beginnings and grew up to become one of the biggest names in rock ‘n’ roll. By the mid-1950s, he appeared on the radio, television and the silver screen. ”    http://www.biography.com/people/elvis-presley-9446466

Bobby Darrin:  I mostly remember him for the Mack the Knife song and that he married Sandra Dee (don’t ask).  “Born in 1936, Bobby Darin moved from performing in New York City coffeehouses into recording in the late 1950s. In 1958, “Splish Splash,” a novelty song he wrote relatively quickly, became an international hit. He then recorded adult-oriented tracks, hitting it big with “Mack the Knife” and earning two Grammys.”     http://www.biography.com/people/bobby-darin-9266149

THEN DAWNED THE 60’S I came of age in the 60’s I love those songs and most of their performers as much as one can love someone they’ve never met and those top 10 :

1. Respect – Aretha Franklin
  2. Louie Louie – Kingsmen
  3. I Heard It Through The Grapevine – Marvin Gaye
  4. (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction – Rolling Stones
  5. Like A Rolling Stone – Bob Dylan
  6. Hey Jude – Beatles
  7. Good Vibrations – Beach Boys
  8. You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’ – Righteous Brothers
  9. My Girl – Temptations
10. Light My Fire – Doors

Marvin Gaye:  “Born in 1939, in Washington, D.C., Marvin Gaye sang in his father’s church and in the Moonglows before signing with Motown. He recorded songs by Smokey Robinson before becoming his own producer on the protest album What’s Going On (1971). Gaye’s later records developed his production style and yielded several hits, including “Let’s Get It On,” “Sexual Healing” and “I Heard it Through the Grapevine.”   http://www.biography.com/people/marvin-gaye-9307988

Temptations:  “The Temptations were the quintessential Motown vocal group. The quintet offered a rich blend of voices accompanied by stylish, coordinated dance moves. With songs and production from some of Motown’s brightest lights – most notably Smokey Robinson (“My Girl”) and Norman Whitfield (“Ain’t Too Proud to Beg”) – the Temptations lived up to their billing as emperors of soul. During the gilded age of soul music in general and Motown in particular, the Temptations delivered the intricate harmonies of streetcorner serenaders and the polished choreography of a Sixties soul revue. Moreover, their story is a long, episodic one of perseverance and dedication that extends from their origins in 1961 to the present day. “

THEN THERE WAS the  British Invasion Groups, where I swore off American and have been leaning British ever since.  “Rock swept Britain. By 1964 Greater London could claim the Rolling Stones, the Yardbirds, the Who, the Kinks, the Pretty Things, Dusty Springfield, the Dave Clark Five, Peter and Gordon, Chad and Jeremy, and Manfred Mann. Manchester had the Hollies, Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders, Freddie and the Dreamers, and Herman’s Hermits. Newcastle had the Animals. And Birmingham had the Spencer Davis Group (featuring Steve Winwood) and the Moody Blues. Bands sprang up from Belfast (Them, with Van Morrison) to St. Albans (the Zombies), with more inventive artists arriving to keep the syles moving forward, including the Small Faces, the Move, the Creation, the Troggs, Donovan, the Walker Brothers, and John’s Children. While the beat boom provided Britons relief from the postimperial humiliation of hand-me-down rock, the Beatles and their ilk brought the United States more than credible simulations.”   http://www.britannica.com/event/British-Invasion