The History of Rock 'n' Roll

Episode 1

Rock 'n' Roll Explodes

Mon, Mar 6, 199560 mins

It seemed like a sound from nowhere, boogie beats and bluesy voices lighting up the late-night radio dial with songs like "Shake, Rattle and Roll." They called it "race" music or "rhythm and blues." Around the world, kids tuned in - and began to imitate what they heard. It was the seedtime of a new kind of music: what we today call "rock 'n' roll." "Rock 'n' Roll Explodes" is a kaleidoscope of musical memories. In interviews with many of rock's brightest stars, from Little Richard and Mick Jagger to Bruce Springsteen and Bono of U2, key players recall songs and sounds that changed their lives. And in vintage clips capturing the first rock starts in their prim, savor the magic of the music, watching great Muddy Waters sing "Got My Mojo Working; guitar hero Chuck Berry perform "Maybellene" and Little Richard, eyes painted and pompadour piled high, stomp though "Tutti Frutti." Tina Turner remembers days of hard labor in the cotton fields - and nights dreaming of a music career. Boogie-woogie bandleader Louis Jordan appears in rare footage, as does Michael Jackson, in a riveting performance of "Billie Jean." And then there is Elvis Presley, the once and future King of Rock 'n' Roll, singing "Heartbreak Hotel" in 1956 - an image of timeless youth, the emblem of a cultural revolution.