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Sweet Little Sixteen

Episode 1 of 3

In mid-1950s America, out of the Deep South came a rhythm-driven fusion of blues, boogie woogie and vocal harmony played by young black pioneers.

In Cold War mid-1950s America, as the new suburbia was spreading fast in a country driven by racial segregation, rock 'n' roll took the country by surprise. Out of the Deep South came a rhythm-driven fusion of blues, boogie woogie and vocal harmony played by young black pioneers like Fats Domino and Little Richard that seduced young white teens and, pre-civil rights, got black and white kids reeling and rocking together.

This fledgling sound was nurtured by small independent labels and travelled up from the Mississippi corridor spawning new artists. In Memphis, Elvis began his career as a local singer with a country twang who rocked up a blues song and sounded so black he confused his white listeners. And in St Louis, black blues guitarist Chuck Berry took a country song and turned it into his first rock 'n' roll hit, Maybellene.

Movies had a big role to play thanks to 'social problem' films exploring the teenager as misfit and delinquent - The Wild One showed teens a rebellious image and a look, and Blackboard Jungle gave them a soundtrack, with the film's theme tune Rock Around the Clock becoming the first rock 'n' roll Number 1 in 1955.

Featuring Jerry Lee Lewis, Don Everly, Little Richard, Tom Jones, Wanda Jackson, Pat Boone, The Spaniels, PF Sloan, Joe Boyd, Jerry Phillips, Marshall Chess, JM Van Eaton (Jerry Lee Lewis's drummer), Charles Connor (Little Richard's drummer) and Dick Richards (Bill Haley's drummer).

1 hour

Last on

Sat 30 May 2020 02:20
±«Óãtv Four

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Music Played

Timings (where shown) are from the start of the programme in hours and minutes

  • 00:02

    Bo Diddley

    Roadrunner

  • 00:02

    Bo Diddley

    Roadrunner

  • 00:05

    Elmer Bernstein

    Main Title (From The Man With The Golden Arm)

  • 00:10

    Fats Domino

    Ain't That A Shame

  • 00:16

    White Noise Research

    An Afternoon On Condale Lake

  • 00:18

    The Crew-Cuts

    Sh-Boom

  • 00:28

    Santo & Johnny

    Sleep Walk

  • 00:55

    Chuck Berry

    Johnny B. Goode

  • 00:56

    Chuck Berry

    Deep Feeling

Credits

Producer Matt O'Casey
Director Matt O'Casey
Executive Producer Mark Cooper

Broadcasts

Featured in...

  • Born in the USA

    Celebrating classic American rock.

  • My Generation

    Charting the history of pop music across the decades starting with the mid-50s to mid-60s

  • Music Stories

    Get the inside track on some of music's most influential songs, albums and personalities.

Chart the history of pop music across the decades

Visit the ±«Óãtv Music My Generation site.

Rock 'n' Roll America season

±«Óãtv Music celebrates the birth of rock ‘n’ roll on Radio 2, 6 Music and ±«Óãtv Four.