Introduction: the 1950 - 1960 era
From its commercial inception in the late
1890s, phonograph technology remained virtually unchanged for
sixty years. There had been improvements in studio recording
technology (what might be termed the 'software'), but records
from the beginning of that era could still be played on
practically identical 'hardware' at its end.
Experiments had been made in making
smaller-sized records with a finer groove; vinyl had come to be
used as a substitute for shellac; but for the record-buyer the
only real advancement was the bonus of having a track on both
sides of what had started out as a single-sided record.
The 45 rpm double-sided 'single' and the 33
1/3 speed LP (introduced in 1948), featured multiple tracks on
a larger disc. The 'micro-groove' on LPs was four times smaller
than that of a 78, allowing for much more music time. The
old-fashioned 78 rpm record would become obsolete at precisely
the same time as rock'n'roll surged around the
world, practically obliterating all other
forms of popular music.
The new records, carrying the new music,
were lighter, more flexible and less fragile. The protective
sleeve, which for the 78 rpm record had been little more than a
brown paper bag with a die-cut hole in the middle to reveal the
label, became for the LP a serious form of advertising
promotion. For the most part, the 45 retained the same
packaging treatment as the old 78, with single-color printing
promoting the record company.
Rock'n'roll did not suddenly flower from
barren ground, but was immediately preceded by 'doo-wop,' a
style which generally featured the close vocal harmony of a
male quartet, whose members were often from the same ethnic
background.
Rock drew inspiration from gospel, black
'soul' music, rhythm and blues, swing, ragtime, country and
western and all kinds
of folk music, but the most fertile source
was always Afro-American blues. In the opinion of many
knowledgeable musicologists, blues music reached maturity
during the 1920s and 1930s on rare 78 rpm recordings of a small
number of black artists like Blind Lemon Jefferson and Robert
Johnson.
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