You have probably seen this or that opinion on the "first" rock and roll record. The problem with most of those opinions is that they are describing the acknowledged era of rock and roll, the era in which Alan Freed and others were calling it by that name.
In reality, music that sounded little different goes back to the 1920's. The first song that might possibly be described as rock and roll comes from an unlikely source: A proto-country musician who goes back so far that his music is called "old time" rather than country, one "Uncle" Dave Macon.
While West African rhythms form the basis of most rock and roll, there were fast fiddle reels (County Donegal, Ireland comes to mind) that had similarly scorching rhythms, and in one song, "Sail Away Ladies" (1927), Macon, originally from Tennessee, released a song that not only had a rockabilly feel and tempo, but included the lyrics, "Don't she rock, daddio?"
"Minnie the Moocher" (1931) by Cab Calloway set the tone for Calloway's career, which, while generally placed in the jazz genre, had sharper syncopation and far edgier lyrics than any jazz in the mainstream, at least in his era.
Bob Wills was the chief innovator of Western swing, from which one Bill Haley later emerged. He grew up in Texas, and unlike most people in a tragically segregated era, was allowed to befriend other children regardless of race, and as such, heard boogie-woogie and similar "fast blues", which African-American musicians in Texas played at a faster tempo than their counterparts in the southeast.
Wills's most proto-rockabilly (or, arguably, rockabilly) song might be "Steel Guitar Rag" (1936). Wills famously said of rock and roll, "Why, man, that's the same kind of music we've been playin' since 1928!"
It may have been of Wills's music that Don Raye (not from Texas) was thinking in the song "Beat Me Daddy, Eight to the Bar" (1940), with the lyrics, "In a little honky tonky village in Texas". It is often cited as the first rock and roll record, and a case could be made to that effect.
World War II interrupted musical innovation to some extent, that being the least of a generation's concerns, so the final piece of what was rock and roll in everything but name was provided by Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup.
Crudup's "That's All Right (Mama)", released in his, the original 1946 version, was not only later covered by Elvis Presley, but contains the first recorded guitar "breaks", adding another, jolting layer of syncopation to the increasingly fast blues of the era. By this time, rock and roll was alive and well, by any name, and so was rockabilly, as a listen to "Freight Train Boogie" (1946) by The Delmore Brothers, demonstrates.
That Spooky Rag (Vintage Halloween Hits from the 1910s and 1920s)
00:00 The High Hatters - Spell Of The Blues
03:15 Victor Military Band - Spooky Spook by Victor Military Band (1917)
06:01 Isham Jones - I'll See You in My Dreams (1924)
08:58 Collins & Harlan - The Ghost Of The Saxophone (1917)
12:07 Edna Brown & The American Quartet - Mysterious Moon (1912)
14:30 American Quartet - That Mysterious Rag (1911)
17:40 Walter J Van Brunt & Maurice Burkhardt - The Ghost Of The Violin (1912)
20:23 Peerless Quartet - The Ghost Of The Ukulele (1917)
23:27 Edward Claypoole - Spooky Spooks (1916)
27:10 Clarence Wiley - Carbarlick Acid Rag (1904)
29:51 Bessie Smith - Haunted House Blues
33:13 American Symphony Orchestra - Hallowe'en Dance (1909)
35:23 Earl Fuller's Rector Novelty Orchestra - Graveyard Blues (1918)
38:51 Dan Quinn - More Work for the Undertaker (1902)
41:05 The Peerless Quartet - The Ghost Of The Terrible Blues (1915)
43:57 The Premier Quartet - That Syncopated Boogie-Boo (1913)
47:50 Helen Gross & The Kansas City Five - Undertaker's Blues (1924)
52:03 Maurice Burkhart - At The Devil's Ball (1913)
55:20 American Quartet - The Skeleton Rag (1912)
My Master Works dulcimer.
All of the songs played by Paul, the love interest in my new Ocean City-based novel are beautiful melodies that I’ve learned to play—or, in one case, want to learn.
I’ve been studying the hammered dulcimer longer than I’ve been writing novels. About 12 years, believe it or not. My teacher is the great Ken Kolodner, a Baltimore-based musician who performs all over the…
Hey there! Just a quick update on my banjo club. This month's theme is animals! Each tune is from a different banjo book from 1855 to 1888. We have selections from Tom Briggs, Phil Rice, James Buckley, Frank Converse, and S.S. Stewart. It's quite an all-star lineup of early banjo stars! A great collection of critters too!
You should come join! Just click on the link below, enter a 0 in the price box, enter your email address on the next page, and you should be set. If you'd like to join for more than 0, I'd greatly appreciate it. In that case, you'll have access to mp3s of all of the tunes as well. Let me know if you have any questions. Everyone is welcome! 🪕❤️