Rock & Roll: 50th Anniversary Collection
(Madacy/Universal/EMI)
First Appeared in The Music Box, April 2005, Volume 12, #4
Written by John Metzger
Rock & Roll: 50th Anniversary Collection is hardly a
definitive package of the genre that was named by Cleveland disc jockey Alan
Freed in 1952. After all, Buddy Holly and Chuck Berry are represented by a mere
two tracks a piece, though each penned many more songs that correctly are
considered essential. Add to that the puzzling inclusion of novelty hits like
Sheb Wooley’s The Purple People Eater, The Royal Teens’ Short Shorts,
and Bill Haley’s See You Later Alligator — big sellers or not — at the
expense of Haley’s more vital single Shake, Rattle, & Roll or anything by
Elvis Presley, and one is left wondering just what the package’s producers were
thinking. Even so, it’s hard to quibble with the fact that 27 of its 34 tracks
were Top 10 hits or that over half of its 30 artists have been inducted into the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Indeed, the collection includes such notable songs
as Little Richard’s manic Tutti Frutti, Carl Perkins’ rockabilly gem Blue Suede Shoes, Eddie Cochran’s masterpiece Summertime Blues, and
Jerry Lee Lewis’ incendiary Great Balls of Fire while also featuring
influential tunes from Roy Orbison, The Everly Brothers, Dion & the Belmonts,
Gene Vincent, The Big Bopper, Bo Diddley, Fats Domino, and Sonny James. In other
words, for those on a limited budget, Rock & Roll: 50th
Anniversary Collection is a bargain. 
Rock & Roll: 50th Anniversary Collection is available
from Barnes & Noble. To order, Click Here!
Ratings
1 Star: Pitiful
2 Stars: Listenable
3 Stars: Respectable
4 Stars: Excellent
5 Stars: Can't Live Without It!!
Copyright © 2005 The Music Box