American Reacts to The Birth Of British Rock (Before The Beatles)!

Let's take a deep dive into the birth of British rock music, exploring the influential artists and bands that paved the way before The Beatles revolutionized the scene!
Original Video: • Before The Beatles: Th...
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[@tonymarshall3978]

Cliff Richard is crazy because he is still going and since the 50’s has had a top 40 hit at least once a decade. Yes even in the 2020’s

[@martincoleman8922]

Only singer to have had a Number 1 single in the UK in five consecutive decades.

[@bobhale7302]

More than 150 UK singles from 1958 (Move It) to 2022 (The Most Wonderful Time of the Year). The man's a legend.

[@bwilson5401]

Never broke America, but is one of the biggest sellers of all time.

[@nolasyeila6261]

Legend

[@74kmullins]

And his calendar every year. Yuck.

[@alanjackson8838]

One of the reasons that Liverpool had a budding rock scene were the "Cunard Yanks", the sailors and cabin crew that sailed from Liverpool to the States - and brought back loads of records with them.

[@deja-view1017]

Wee Willie Harris is one of Ian Dury's 'Reasons to be Cheerful'

[@sarahradford9822]

Love that song!

[@QuiddDude]

I knew him from that song, sadly Wee Willie passed away last year aged 90.

[@PHDarren]

Tommy Steele still going strong at 87.

[@nolasyeila6261]

Sir Cliff Richard still kicking at 83.

[@gwaptiva]

I think my mum went to see him in a West End musical in the late 70s or early 80s. Never knew he was really a rock'n'roll pioneer

[@deja-view1017]

​@@gwaptivaYes, I remember seeing him in Hello Dolly, but he was probably most famous for the film Half a Sixpence.

[@AlBarzUK]

I remember him in Finian’s Rainbow with Fred Astaire and Pet Clarke.

[@Cleow33]

Yep Tommy Steele went on to be a huge musical theatre star. You can see him in the movie, Half a Sixpence. He lives in Richmond and is a total legend!

[@Paul_Bond.]

Marty Wilde has a legacy, his daughter Kim Wilde was a massive pop star in the UK in the 80's. She was great.

[@bobclarke1815]

Kim Wild, had a massive hit with Kids in America.

[@AlBarzUK]

Managed by her dad.

[@camoTiaras]

Also, she was stunning.

[@Paul_Bond.]

@@camoTiaras Just didn't want to say it unless I got cancelled. Yeah, she was a fox.

[@Aengus42]

Same with the sixties folk revivalist Ewan McColl & his daughter Kirsty who was taken from the world so tragically.

[@darkpitcher5242]

Hank Marvin is ludicrously underrated. He more than holds his own against Gilmour at the fender 50th anniversary gig

[@Joanna-il2ur]

And people mistakenly think Neil Young’s song From Hank to Hendrix is about Hank Williams but of course in was Hank Marvin. If you hear Neil and the Squires local hits in the early sixties they are mostly Shadows style instrumentals

[@arthurennimore-empties6709]

Truly brilliant guitar player. He now lives in Australia.

[@blackcountryme]

especially as his name is now rhyming slang for being hungry

[@krazycatz]

As a Cliff Richard fan for over 40 years from the USA I would like to share a perspective about British music that you were not able to pick up from this excellent documentary. I once owned a copy of a book that listed the top ten songs on the British music charts for every week from 1954 to 1977. What I am about to say is based on my interpretation from what I remember from this book as well as other things I have heard about Cliff Richard. 1954 was the year that the British music charts were based on the sales of 45 records. Before 1954 the British music charts had been based on the sales of sheet music. In the 1950s the British record companies had complete control over the artists who had a contract with them and would dictate to them what song they would record for the record label. The song that the record label would select for their artist to record was always a cover of an American song. The music chart would give the name of the song, the person or group who performed it, and the song’s composer. I forgot if it was 1954, 1955, or perhaps it was in 1956 but for one week the same song written by the same composer was in the top ten British music charts about six or seven times by different artists on different record labels. When Cliff Richard started his music career his record company treated him the same way and instructed him to do a cover version of the American song Schoolboy Crush. While Cliff Richard did as his record company instructed him to do he got their permission to record an original song for the flip side of the 45 record. It is said Ian Samwell wrote the song Move It on a bus. After making the 45 with Schoolboy Crush on the primary side and Move It on the flip side the record company sent the 45 record out to all of the radio stations in the UK. The people working at these radio stations listen to the song Schoolboy Crush but never considered playing it on the radio. Because of a promise Cliff Richard had made to his father this could have been the end of his music career. One man named Jack Goode listened to the song Schoolboy Crush and had the same opinion as everyone else who had heard the song. Jack Goode did something that no one else thought to do. He flipped the 45 record over and listened to the song on the other side. Jack Goode immediately started to play the song Move It on his show and highly praised it. Word of mouth quickly spread throughout the UK and other radio stations followed Jack Goode’s example and started broadcasting the song on the flip side on their stations. This in part might have revolutionized the British music industry allowing the record companies to see that did not have to dictate to their artists what song they were going to record, but could allow the artists to try their own hand at song writing or as in Cliff Richard’s case surround yourself with people who were excellent songwriters and musicians. Of course The Beatles should be given full credit for creating a completely new sounding type of music.

[@Home-lb7jr]

Great comments sir. It's such a shame that Cliff never really made it in America. He is hugely popular all over the world and he's been doing it for well over sixty years. He did have a hit in America with Devil Woman. I'm so glad that you are a fan and haven't missed out on some really great songs. His worldwide record sales speaks for itself.

[@ianz9916]

In spite of both Cliff and The Beatles being enormously successful, the most successful LP of the 1960s was The Sound Of Music which was the best selling record of 1965, 1966 and 1968 in the UK and spent more than 100 weeks in the top 10 in the United States.

[@RabidJohn]

The Shadows did not replace the Drifters as Cliff Richard's backing band: they WERE the Drifters. They changed name to avoid obvious complications with a certain Motown band.

[@dancingnature]

The American Drifters weren’t Motown though. They were on Atlantic Records and were around before Motown

[@corringhamdepot4434]

Screaming Lord Sutch founded the "Official Monster Raving Loony Party" and stood as a candidate in 40 elections.

[@74kmullins]

I used to vote for the monster raving loonies party I wish something like that still existed. We need a decent protest vote.

[@elainesgarden]

@corringhamdepot4434 Sounds like he would have fit right in with any political environment on this planet.

[@Tempest99a]

I voted for him too. My parents told me if you don't vote you have no right to complain about the government. I voted for him to take votes away for the big partys.

[@UKJesterVids]

@@74kmullins You'll be wanting to look up Count Binface

[@keithcornish5073]

my sister has got his hat

[@AlexByth]

Radio Luxembourg wasn't a pirate station, it was a perfectly legal continental station that you could pick up in the UK and so a lot of their programming was aimed at Britain (and presented in English).

[@araptorofnote5938]

The pirate stations weren't illegal until auntie had the law changed.

[@user-nl3wt2zm9b]

A lot of DJs on latter day radio started on Radio Luxembourg

[@Dave062YT]

Radio Caroline was the proper pirate station,being on a boat at sea ;Luxembourg was the forerunner of pirate radio but think it was legal

[@arwelp]

@@Dave062YTRadio Luxembourg was entirely legal, it had been broadcasting a service to Britain at night since the 1930s. There were two Radio Caroline’s - South, broadcasting off Felixstowe, and North from off the Isle of Man (North was my favourite radio station when I was a kid!). Lots of well-known DJs got started on Caroline. When I was at uni in the late 70s, one of the students I knew had been a part-time DJ on Caroline (under a pseudonym), and he lived in permanent fear of someone from the Home Office coming to arrest him!

[@wessexdruid7598]

@@user-nl3wt2zm9b I recall listening to a young whipper snapper on Luxembourg called Steve Wright. Whatever happened to him?

[@rialobran]

Billy Fury is a musical icon now pretty much forgotten, whilst Johnny Kid and the Pirates were the Adam and the Ants of their day. As for Cliff Richard...he goes on forever.

[@keithalanbaker535]

Between 1958 and 2009 Cliff Richard has had 124 top 40 hit singles in the UK charts including 14 at number one.

[@peterjackson4763]

He has had a top 5 album in the UK in 8 consecutive decades. He has sold 250 million records world wide and is the third best selling artist in the UK, behind Elvis and the Beatles. he has had 8 US top 40 singles, but never really broke through there. Devil Woman and We Don't Talk Anymore both sold a million in the US.

[@wolfie854]

The tv programme was not called the Six Point Five Special, just the Six- Five Special. The pre-Beatles rock and roll years were the first golden age of pop music for me. The Beatles when they emerged in 1963 were better at it than most of the others and succeeded in pulling together existing strands of music to create a composite sound. They opened the way for many bands from all over the UK though. Liverpool bands, Manchester bands, Birmingham bands etc. On a nostalgic note I saw the Pirates (without Johnny Kidd who had died) performing live in our local clubs in the 70s and 80s. They were a superb live band.

[@marieparker3822]

'Move it' and 'Shaking all over' are great songs. I remember at school the big sister of a friend of mine won a prize in a teenage magazine. It was to go to London - we lived in Scotland - to meet Marty Wilde!!! We were all terribly jealous.

[@catbevis1644]

Several points: - It's VERY unfair to say British people didn't know much music during the 1800s. Every pub had a piano! The British music halls were also insanely popular and had a sound that was distinct from the US. Unfortunately the American influence diluted a lot of our unique sound, but some Beatles songs like "Penny Lane" and "When I'm 64" capture the essence perfectly, as well as some of the Sherman Brothers' songs (one of them was stationed in the UK while in the army and loved our unique sound- "Me Ol' Bamboo" is a good example). The TV movie "Miss Marie Lloyd: Queen of the Music Hall" is a good place to start with understanding the music halls, it's on KZbin. - Lonnie Donegan was so huge, The Beatles supported HIM on tour. I met him, he was the loveliest, most down-to-Earth man you could meet. I could have just been talking to someone's nice old granddad. - It mentioned British artists covering American music before it was officially released in the UK by the original artist. That's exactly why Liverpool became such a centre for rock n' roll- it's a port and the records were fresh off the boats! - Tommy Steele is still going, aged 88. There is something so sparkling in his eyes and smile even now, but back in the day he was a proper teen heartthrob. I urge everyone to watch the movie "Half a Sixpence"... it's not on a par with some of the big budget American musicals, but Steele's presence is completely infectious (the song "Flash, Bang, Wallop"- available on KZbin- also harks back to the music hall sound).

[@highpath4776]

Anthony Newley and Lionel Bart responsibly for a lot of 1960s british stage shows.

[@carolfuller-tt7vo]

Tommy Steele was and is still loved by us oldies. He saw the way the music industry was going and went into musicals, while most of his contemporaries stayed in the pop genre, some of whom are still doing the circuit with the same old style of music as when they were at their peak, nothing wrong with that. Tommy on the other hand was up there a lot longer than most and is still very, very popular. If you look up 'The Bermondsey Boy' you will be able to chart his success and popularity

[@catbevis1644]

@@carolfuller-tt7vo Thank you that's interesting. I was only born in 1984 but my grandmother raised me on old music and movies, from "Long Way To Tipperary" to well... anything Doris Day (Nan was a completely fangirl lol). She taught me how to waltz and how to do the Lambeth Walk. Sometimes I despair at what my generation have to pass on to our future grandchildren.

[@franohmsford7548]

"The British music halls were also insanely popular" from the 1850s onwards - Weerth made that statement in the 1840s! "and had a sound that was distinct from the US" Not sure why we're talking about the US in the context of the 1840s/1850s? or even 1918 when Music Halls rebranded to Variety Shows!

[@catbevis1644]

@@franohmsford7548 I never mentioned the 1850s. The USA existed before 1900. No idea what you are getting at with the 1918 reference.

[@neilmurray7330]

Billy Fury and Ringo Starr were classmates at primary school for a short while when they were five years old.

[@auldfouter8661]

I'm pretty sure it wasn't the Six point Five special but the Six Five special and that was meant to be a hyphen on screen ! UK audiences would be familiar with the Wee Willie name from the nursery rhyme Wee Willie Winkie.

[@johnd8892]

Lots of corrections pinned on the original vid.

[@margaretknight8690]

That was really interesting. As a Brit, I sort of knew the story, but seeing the progression spelt out and precisely how things developed was great.

[@MattMcQueen1]

Marty Wilde is mentioned a few times - his daughter, Kim Wilde, was also a singer. Marty and his son wrote a lot of her songs.

[@richardcrawley9614]

Gerry and the Pacemakers didn't "fizzle out". They were the first act to have UK number one singles with their first three releases (the second was Frankie Goes to Hollywood - also from Liverpool). Their hit "You'll Never Walk Alone" became the anthem of Liverpool FC.

[@Noseypoke-mr7th]

And if you travel across the RIVER MERSEY on the FERRY take your earplugs cos they play "FERRY CROSS THE MERSEY" constantly

[@ianz9916]

@@Noseypoke-mr7th I Like It. 😆

[@user-ld7tu7mi7q]

i lived through that, i forgot how it all started, thank you

[@estherdavidson7959]

In my late 70s and the late 50s and 60s were a fantastic time for music and thankyou for this content. Happy memories.

[@coldwhite4240]

This is very well put together to show the British context and legacy within the history of rock and roll. It's rarely made known, and most people outside the UK (and even sadly most British people themselves, if they're under a certain age) seem to think that popular music in this country only began with The Beatles. Although I'm only in my 50s, so too young to have experienced this, my parents educated me in this history, exposing me to this music as a kid (although I didn't appreciate much of it at the time) - and my mother in particular was a huge fan of Lonnie Donegan, Billy Fury, Adam Faith and a number of other British stars of the 1950s and early 60s (when she was one of that new breed of creatures called a "teenager"!) Although there were of course problems and pressures then too, as there are always are, it does seem that that was a great time to be growing up, as this optimistic new musical movement was beginning to burst through, with so many chances for experimentation and exploration. And as we know now, the 1960s were just around the corner with an explosion of creativity - film, music, fashion and all of what became the "Swinging" Sixties! But of course, as this video hints at with Vince Taylor, there were also many casualties along the way too. Most of those young early stars were naive to the commercial exploitation they would face, and there were not the protections there are today for recording artists and their original material, and noone to coach in you in how to cope with fame, fortune and success if it came along.

[@wrorchestra1]

Until 1959, importing US made instruments into the UK was banned by the government. The only way was by private import, which is how Hank Marvin got his 1958 Fiesta Red Fender Stratocaster (with the gold hardware). Though technically Cliff Richard still owns it, as he bought it for Hank to use, Bruce Welch is the current custodian having borrowed it for the last 40 odd years. Hank is the reason I first picked up the guitar. Hank didn't just use 1 echo, he used a twin channel echo so he could have syncopated echoes, like he uses in Apache.

[@gavinsmith9016]

Shakin' All Over is a classic rock n roll song. The Shadows, Cliff Richards backing band, are my favourite, and Hank Marvin, their lead guitarist is so influential.

[@annieb105]

Apache by The Shadows was the first record I bought as a young teenager.

[@JacknVictor]

My mum was related to Cliff Richard. He's is a cousin of hers through the Webb side of her family (his real name is Harry Webb). She liked his music, she was the same age as him. Cant say i ever liked any of his music except the 'Comiic Relief' version of living doll with the Young Ones when i was a kid. We always knew we had a familial relation to "Cliff" but also due to someone undertaking a DNA family tree aswell as historic family research we have discovered a distant relation, to the actor/comedian Robert Webb. Plus American and Canadian family members we didnt jnow we had. Weve hit a bit of a roadblock on my great grandmas side who was indian, and we know she cane to England with her British husband, my scottish great grandad in around 1902-03 but we dont have any records of her to be able to begin tracing her background before then. With Cliff, we do know he was born whilst his parents were in India. But my great nan however, we have no idea wherein india to start, because we only know she wasnt bom in the area my great grandad met her. She was among the first group of indian Asians to settle in Birmingham in the early 20th century. Time will tell. I'm hoping the DNA work will give us an idea where to start.

[@matmanfatman3074]

Fun fact: Hank Marvin, lead guitarist for The Shadows is also the Cockney rhyming slang for “Starving” “I’m bleedin’ Hank Marvin geeza, I can’t wait for me Lilly & Skinner”

[@garymcatear822]

In Glasgow we call it Lee Marvin, not Hank Marvin.

[@fayesouthall6604]

Sometimes I say just I’m Hank and my husband knows 😂😂

[@jamesdignanmusic2765]

Part of the reason Liverpool became the centre of Britain's first rock boom was because it was a major port for trans-Atlantic ships. The Beatles and other Liverpool based bands had more access to any new influences coming into the country from America, so caught the rock music bug early. Amazingly, Cliff Richard is still going - and has had dozens of hits over the decades. Joe Meek is the perfect example of an insane genius - his life story is as bizarre as Phil Spector's - if you can find a video about his, it'd be worth a look.

[@ianharrison3662]

The Film "Telstar" is about Joe Meek, his private life and some of the acts he produced.

[@nicksykes4575]

Johnny Leyton was also an actor, he was in "The Great Escape" alongside many British and US icons, including Steve McQueen, last time I saw him on tv, he was talking to IoM TT legend Guy Martin, who was recreating Steve's barbed wire jump from the film. He was also in "Von Ryans Express" with Frank Sinatra. Marty Wilde has a daughter called Kim, who was very popular in the 80s/90s, and is one of a handful of British women to score a US No1.

[@ianz9916]

I saw Johnny Leyton a few years ago on the same bill as Marty Wilde and Mike Berry. His singing wasn't on the same level as the other two. He is also extremely short, although next to Marty Wilde everyone is short.

[@joegillam1497]

Lonnie Domegan and his skiffle band and Cliff Richard and the Shadows were the blueprint for British Rock.

[@Joanna-il2ur]

Skiffle was introduced by Alexis Korner playing guitar and singing in band intervals. Then he decided to go to Chicago electric blues and the band’s banjo player Terry Donegan asked could he still do it. Lonnie Donegan as he called himself was the king of skiffle. Korner went on to have Mick Jagger, Charlie Watts, Jack Bruce, Ginger Baker and Robert Plant in his bands among others .

[@Paul_Bond.]

Pirate rock band? Check out Adam and the Ants. Brilliant, and they had two drummers which actually worked!

[@klaxoncow]

Staaaaaand and Deliver. Your money or you life!

[@Cleow33]

Oh my God! Adam and the Ants were…and still are amazing. Years ahead of their time.

[@elainesgarden]

@Paul_Bond Adam and the Ants had hits in the US . I think the name of one was “ Goody Two Shoes” ? I love that song to pieces! They’re really good.

[@ebbhead20]

Adam covered Shakin all over by Johnny Kidd and the Pirates in the 90s. Can be found on live records of Adam and videos on KZbin.

[@elainesgarden]

@@ebbhead20 Thanks ☺What is the 90?

[@nolasyeila6261]

Check out Northern soul from north of England, in 60's and 70's.

[@lynnejamieson2063]

Great idea, though the music is pretty much all from the US but the style and dancing is very much Wigan.

[@ianharrison3662]

Lonnie Donegan was born Anthony Donegan and was in the Chris Barber Band, who played Jazz, but had a fifteen minute bit in their show called "Tony Donegan's Skiffle time", which proved very popular. One night the band was playing a Jazz and Blues festival and on the bill was the legendary American bluesman Lonnie Johnson, The printers got the names mixed up on the poster and showed Tony as Lonnie Donegan - he liked it and from then on he was Lonnie Donegan.

[@nolasyeila6261]

The cast of the Young Ones and Sir Cliff Richard did a remake of "Living Doll" in 1986. 😅

[@gabbymcclymont3563]

With the Young Ones totaly fantastic, i rememer it and its video so well, very very funny.

[@paulguise698]

FOR COMIC RELIEF

[@Hill7219]

Apparently Tommy Steele was going to play Bert in Mary Poppins but he wasn’t well known in America, so they cast Dick Van Dyke instead.

[@brentwoodbay]

At least Tommy would sound genuine. People are still making fun of Dick's attempt at a Cockney accent!

[@alanmoss3603]

Six point five special!🤣😂😀😆🤣😂😆😄Oh man!

[@AlBarzUK]

Six Five Special coming down the line… 🎵🎶

[@amandab4978]

​@@AlBarzUK more skiffle! 😂

[@davidv.8655]

How good was that. Excellent documentary!! Just small transitions, that influence whole new sounds and genres.

[@sylviawagner1559]

Love cliff Richard , I went to see him in concert 2023 . I have been a fan of his since I was about 5 or 6 years old when I went to my first concert. The shadows are brilliant, Hank makes the guitar sing. cliff bought the guitar from America and it was the first one I'm the uk

[@iolog513]

Enjoy most of your reactions - but this is prob my no.1 so far. Really interesting video and your comments added to that. Thanks.

[@user-ox9ec1id9x]

Tommy Steele is still performing, having done numerous west end musicals. Cliff Richard is also still around, while Marty Wilde & hie daughter Kim have also lasted the years.

[@hughwalker5628]

They missed out Joe Brown, a London lad who backed Eddie Cochrane and Gene Vincent. He was very successful and was voted Britain's top performer in 1960. His daughter, Sam, also had a very successful recording career as well as being much in demand as a backing singer. Joe was great friends with George Harrison and performed beautifully at the Concert for George. Both were huge ukulele fans.

[@sandrabutler8483]

Sir Cliff Richard and compare hadn't yet set eyes on Elvis, no one knew how he moved or looked, but many named here have had extremely long careers and sold hundreds of millions of records. Gerry And The Pacemakers never fizzled out, they had huge hits and one in particular still sung to this day You'll Never Walk Alone

[@ianz9916]

Although You'll Never Walk Alone is American and was originally in the 1945 stage show of Carousel. Don't Let The Sun Catch You Crying, I'm The One and Ferry Across The Mersey were all big hits and all written by Gerry.

[@sandrabutler8483]

@@ianz9916 that's why I used the former song as they may have heard of it as quite a few American reaction channels hear the tune and sounds familiar

[@ianz9916]

@@sandrabutler8483 I would have thought Americans would be more familiar with Don't Let The Sun Catch You Crying or Ferry Cross The Mersey as they were their two biggest hits in the States getting to number 4 and number 6 in the Billboard chart respectively. YNWA only just made the top 50.

[@sandrabutler8483]

@@ianz9916 I think it might be a generational thing, many of a certain age just don't recognise quite a lot, some do the reactions as they've seen others doing them and go by how many views that particular group or song has got. I have noticed quite a few doing Queen just to grow their channels, and loads say never heard of Queen or any songs until they listen and the look of surprise, it's as if they think we didn't have music more than half a century ago which is still known now and sells out stadiums

[@arthurennimore-empties6709]

​@@ianz9916Ferry Cross (not Across) the Mersey is kind of encouraging the ferry to cross the river "Cause this land's the place I love" and here I'll stay".

[@spiritusinfinitus]

What a blast from the past! Tommy Steele used to live near me and he used to come and dance around in the school playground when picking up his daughter from school

[@xlerb_again_to_music7908]

That was good + fun, JJ! Stuff I didn't know tho I lived through it in the UK. Got most of the EPs played from c. 1958 up in my loft, bought back in the day by my sister :)

[@alanreynolds4944]

Really interesting I do hope you get the chance to listen to one or two of the influential tracks in entirety particularly Shaking all Over and Apache. Excellent analysis thank you

[@boggled007]

That was interesting, and JJ made it more so.

[@bwilson5401]

Tommy Steele starred in a film with Fred Astaire.He was a great allrounder.Check out half a sixpence.Great film.

[@ianz9916]

Finian's Rainbow also had Petula Clark in it.

[@steveparkes]

I once drunkenly argued with the roadies for the guitarist of The Shadows (Hank Marvin) about the colour of his strat. Which he had claimed was called Flamingo Pink (it's like a candy red that hasn't been applied enough) in a magazine interview but Fender never had that colour and had to mix it specially for his signature edition. No idea why. I was drunk and we'd just left the venue next door after seeing another band :) I also argued with The Damned about Captain Sensibles hat in a kebab house so I've got form :)

[@garyrigby21]

More Music reactions would be great

[@klaxoncow]

I'm now going to have to write a song called "I'm going to teach you to jazz" but it's a reggae song.

[@bobclarke1815]

Lonnie, wrote I'll never fall in love again, for Tom Jones.

[@Bryt25]

Take a look at The Shadows' early hits. Some are quite beautiful with the huge reverb. Most bands cut their teeth on these while they were looking for a singer. We did whole gigs playing instrumentals at first.

[@kookymonsta6566]

Hank Marvin now lives in Perth, Australia!

[@paulhooper610]

My favourite reaction of yours is this one. I, too, learnt a lot. Love your reactions by the way. Your honesty shines through. Thank you😊

[@faithpearlgenied-a5517]

His reactions and own knowledge are very refreshing.

[@russetmantle1]

There's an interesting addendum here which is that one of the DJs in the burgeoning rap scene in New York in the 70s found a version of Apache and used it in his mixing sets. It had been covered a couple of times, by Danish guitarist Jorgen Ingman and also Seattle’s Ventures. Anyway, apparently the NY rap crowds loved it even though nobody knew what it was. Also, the Sugarhill Gang recorded Apache (Jump On It) in 1981.

[@MGrayl-ib5fo]

Shakin' All Over is one of the all-time classics - you should listen to it in its entirety!

[@iangudgin6536]

Please check out the movie "Telstar: The Joe Meek Story". It's brilliant and so revealing!!

[@arwelp]

Joe Meek had a sad end, shooting his landlady over the rent, and then himself 😢

[@portland-182]

The rise of early guitar records from the likes of the Shadows, makes you realize how 'pop' John Barry's production of the James Bond theme from 1962 actually was at the time.

[@planekrazy1795]

Tommy Steele was huge, he carried it on into musical theatre and films, he is still with us at 87 and performing until recently.

[@ianharrison3662]

He was also a decent sculptor. He made the Eleanor Rigby statue in Liverpool.

[@carolfuller-tt7vo]

@@ianharrison3662 He also sculpted one of the statues outside Twickenham (Rugby Ground)

[@edd4875]

Hank Marvin also entered the British vocabulary for being hungry. Hank Marvin - starving!

[@davidreynolds2088]

You could have a Ruby Murray

[@dolceanstar]

Don't usually get to the end of 'reaction' videos but this was so excellently presented and produced. In my very early teens I'd regularly slip into London pubs to experience The Pirates and I suggest Mick Green deserves a reaction video all to himself

[@julieswinburne1270]

Hank Marvin played live at my university graduation ball. Amazing!

[@beth3541]

I'm from the UK but never really took to British music. I was the youngest of 7 kids, with a big age gap. My parebts loved Elvis Presley. My elder brothers followed on & loved Elvis , so that's what was played in our house. The beatles snook in when Elvis was making films. It would be interesting to see if they'd been so big if Elvis was still singing and not away. As John Lennon said .. "Before Elvis Presley, there was nothing"

[@brentwoodbay]

What a great video! I always thought it strange that Rock around the clock was often described as the first rock tune, but when you drum to it, it has a swing beat and NOT a rock one. I still have all my old Shadows records and still bang away to them in the basement.

[@Riverman2012]

Music reaction vids are the best...and we learn too. That was fascinating 👍

[@jeremywilson2022]

Cliff is still recording today and his last Number 1 was 1999 and was still number 2 in 2000

[@magsmagenta4032]

This was my Mums era, she has a lot of singles from these times. She used to get her brother to buy them for her when he went into town on a Saturday. She wasn't allowed to go into town because she was a girl and had to stay home to help her Mother. She still has them and we used to play them on the record player when we were kids. So they are a part of my childhood. We recently found some when were were cleaning out and they immediately had to be safely stowed in her bedside cabinet.

[@jaccilowe3842]

"Rock Island Line" was my favourite song; my dad had the 78rpm and I would play it over and over. Lonnie was a breath of fresh air.

[@shaunw9270]

I still listen to some of these records that came out over a decade before I was born, I grew up with it having boomer siblings. It was nice to see guitarist Joe Morretti get a mention, also worth mentioning would be Big Jim Sullivan and Vic Flick who played on many British pop records and film soundtracks during the 50's and 60's.

[@sharp78htdc61]

What a fascinating video, loved it🤘

[@wendywilson858]

I love Tommy Steel and have seen him 3 times in different shows. I've seen sir Cliff Richard 7 times. He's in his early 80's and still doing concerts.

[@TheDidymusBrush]

Tommy Steele was fantastic. Huge influence on David Bowie. Right up to his last recorded songs he was referencing him.

[@TheDidymusBrush]

Ps. He went onto appear in musicals like Half A Sixpence on Broadway, and the Disney movie Finnian's Rainbow. Last toured the UK in his late 70s, too. What a legend. Check out his cover of Tallahassee Lassie... Banger.

[@chrismackett9044]

Radio Luxemburg wasn’t a pirate radio station but a properly licensed station broadcasting from Luxemburg: the pirate stations, like Radio Caroline and Radio London, broadcast from ships in the North Sea. It wasn’t ‘Six Point Five Special’ but ‘Six Five Special’, the title song going, if I remember correctly, The Six Five Special’s coming down the line, the Six Five Special’s right on time.’

[@papercup2517]

The only thing illicit about Radio Luxemburg was - because for reasons I don't recall it only started broadcasting in the evening - the thousands of British kids in their early teens secretly listening to it on their transistor radios hidden under the bedclothes, long into the night, while our parents fondly imagined us to be innocently sleeping, so as to be ready for school the next day...

[@arwelp]

@@papercup2517”208 the Station of the Stars”! It broadcast a night for the simple reason that medium wave radio signals travel further when the Sun isn’t in the sky.

[@chrismackett9044]

@@papercup2517I think that they used to broadcast in French earlier on - I recall that Emperor Rosko used to appear on both the English and French broadcasts.

[@magnolia7277]

At 4.38 there is a picture of Nancy Whiskey, when I went to Lloret de Mar, a small fishing village, on the Costa Brava in Spain in 1954 or 1955, she had an open air bar on the main promanade with fairy lights all round it, I was 8 or 9 and thought it was beautiful. I saw the Searchers at a local venue and went backstage to meet them, it was the first time I spoke to someone from Liverpool and had trouble understanding them if they spoke too fast! I was very disappointed that they were just normal sweaty, spotty boys! I also saw Jeff Beck playing in a local band at one of our town's weekly dances before fame whisked him away. I really enjoyed this video and your comments, it brought back many happy memories, thank you 😊

[@SpuzzyLargo]

Not only did you not need expensive instruments to play skiffle music, you only needed to learn three or four cowboy chords on a cheap guitar. John and Paul once traveled across Liverpool just to learn the B7 chord from some guy. 😮

[@lindayoung4590]

It's really funny to hear you say "Hmm The Shadows............I think I've heard of them?" When they were so big here 😀

[@nolasyeila6261]

Really enjoyed this..watched a few times. "Teach You To Rock" is essentially sped up Bill Haley... more like swing than jazz to me, but they were jazz musicians so no doubt some influence. I had siblings nearly a decade older than me so grew up listening to what they played. I remember when I was little the family gathering around the television and everyone being very excited - the Beatles were going to be on The Ed Sullivan Show. I feel like I was lucky to grow up in a great era of musical evolution and societal revolution.

[@nolasyeila6261]

Happy Organ (snicker) reminds me of Keyboard Cat (RIP) 😿

[@Tony-yp7ok]

I’ve still got my dad’s membership card for the 2i’s coffee bar in Soho, it was the birthplace of rock n roll in London. It’s a fish and chip shop now! In the 80’s I used to go to a little local jazz club, Tony Crombie was the regular drummer there - one of the most laid back drummers I’ve ever seen 😊

[@jillybrooke29]

Good old Radio Luxembourg ... in the 70s. My dad's cousin - Bert Weedon. One of my mum's favourites Telstar.

[@harveycolven6540]

Every day is a school day with jjla. Also screaming lord sutch went on to become the count binface of his time with the monster raving looney party

[@HSolar]

I never realised he had a singing career prior, learn something everyday!

[@margaretnicol3423]

If you look at Cliff and the Shadows at 12.30 the guitarist with the glasses is Hank Marvin. He has played with The Highwaymen. You know - Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson.

[@thedivinemrm5832]

Lonnie Donegan's version of the classic "Frankie and Johnny" is one of the most startling and absorbing recordings I've heard to this day.

[@AlBarzUK]

As a young teen shopping for school uniform in London with me mum, we stopped by the Paris Theatre where the BBC were about to record Gerry and the Pacemakers - fresh from Liverpool. We went in and saw their first gig in London. I was knock over by them, bought the record, it went to no.1 “How Do You Do It!” Had already been recorded by the Beatles but they rejected it in favour of “Love Me Do” which didn’t hit no.1. G&PMs didn’t quite “fizzle out”, @JJLA, they had several more big hits and were still going for years. Many Liverpool bands were going for decades. It’s just that the Beatles were phenomenal. (In fact the Beatles fizzled out while many contemporary bands kept going!)

[@GSD-hd1yh]

You have to look at it from the aftermath of WW2. Britain was practically bankrupt, every industry had been turned over to war production and the conversion back was drawn out. Rationing didn't end until 1954, so not only was not much being produced but no one had money to buy anything. This was the background to the birth of Brtish music. America had so much production capacity that it was quick to convert, it's own rationing ended in Aug 1945, a full 9 years before Britain. By the time the Mid 50's came around the youth of the country were desperate for their own music, different from that of their parents

[@jamesoneill5070]

Joe Meek was a big Buddy Holly fan. Due to debt, paranoia and depression he murdered his landlady and shot himself on the 8th anniversary of Buddy's death. Dickie Pride was an early member of the 27 club.

[@JollyGraham]

He was also gay at a time when it was illegal. The biggest tragedy was that all the royalties of his huge hit Telstar was held up because a French musician claimed that Joe Meek had stolen the tune from him. By the time that the court case was settled Joe Meek was dead. So sad.

[@GroinStrain_]

I love this channel, one of the best music commentary channels on KZbin

[@user-bo5ys7bi1d]

In the mid 50's, all over the UK, young teens would switch on the 'wireless' and search for Radio Luxembourg : the turning of the tuner required precision and must find the exact point of reception to miss the constant buzzing and static ; to be rewarded by the latest 'pop' records from the USA - and be transported to an exciting place away from the tedious music and depression of the 50's UK. Sheffield South Yorkshire.

[@brentwoodbay]

208 metres!

[@AllanWatts-jo1lc]

Lonnie Donegan is the bedrock upon which British Pop music stands. His influence was only matched by his generosity in aiding and assisting other groups. Sure other groups and singers were more popular and stayed in the limelight longer, but none were as influrntisl in budding British pop music scene. The Beatles should be recognized for their creativity and willingness to push boundries. That is what set them apart. Every album was a step up and a strp away from the previous one. They were not content to rest on their laurels nor live off their reputation. They had the courage to progress.

[@GayJayU26]

Billy Fury was my 14 year old crush.

[@gailmackinnon7328]

My favourite Lonnie Donegan songs were "Does your chewing gum lose it's flavour on the bedpost overnight" and "My old man's a Dustman". I was very young at the time...😁

[@corvus1374]

Lonnie Donegan's son Peter tried out for The Voice I love "Have I the Right"

[@Rich-pj9wv]

That was extremely interesting

[@browniewin4121]

Georg Philipp Friedrich von Hardenberg, pen name Novalis (1772 - 1801) "Making the strange familiar and the familiar strange." was something embraced by the surrealist art movement. I remember Tommy Steele being in the movie Finian's Rainbow (1968).

[@keithcornish5073]

that was really good, I enjoyed that.....well done mate

[@SH-yo3du]

That what so thoroughly researched and well documented. Great work

[@joehackney1376]

The 1958 tour of Buddy Holly and the Crickets, roaring around Britain in big American cars, was also something that enervated the R&R scene in England. And the Crickets were the reason that the Beatles took that name.

[@Ayns.L14A]

yet again i would recommend checking out the movie "The Boat That Rocked" the only way a lot of young people got to hear "modern" music even in the 60's

[@zoewoods9642]

Fantastic film and incredible cast! Love it!

[@McZorr0101]

Tony Crombie was a regular at Ronnie Scott’s jazz club. When Don Byas played there it was with the backing of the house band lead by Stan Tracey. In his introduction (recorded for the live album Autumn Leaves) Ronnie announced that the drummer would be Tony Crombie, replacing Jackie Dougan “… who has, unexpectedly, been taken, suddenly, drunk.”

[@janicekingham9043]

Loved Billy Fury and Adam Faith ❤