Rock 'n' Roll

Rock and roll (also known as rock 'n' roll), is a genre of music that evolved in the United States in the late 1940s and became popular in the early 1950s, quickly spreading to the rest of the world. It later spawned the various sub-genres of what is now called simply 'rock'.

The musical basis of rock and roll is its beat, usually accompanied by lyrics. The beat is basically a boogie woogie blues rhythm with an accentuated backbeat, the latter almost always provided by a snare drum. Classic rock and roll is played with one electric guitar or two electric guitars (one lead, one rhythm), an electric bass guitar, and a drum kit. Keyboards are a common addition to the mix. In the rock and roll style of the early 1950s, the saxophone was often the lead instrument, replaced by guitar in the mid 1950s. In the earliest form of rock and roll, during the late 1940s, the piano was the lead instrument, and indeed, among the roots of rock and roll is the boogie woogie piano of the big band era that dominated American music in the 1940s.

The massive popularity and eventual worldwide scope of rock and roll gave it an unprecedented social impact. Far beyond simply a musical style, rock and roll influenced lifestyles, fashion, attitudes, and language. Many of its early stars, notably Elvis Presley, built movie and/or television careers around their music.

The term "rock and roll", which was black slang for sexual intercourse, appeared on record for the first time in 1922 on Trixie Smith's "My Baby Rocks Me With One Steady Roll".

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