Did Sister Rosetta Tharpe cut rock & roll release number 4?
BluesMuse17
Check out the Sister’s original 1944 recording below
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| Sister Rosetta Tharpe |
Big Boy Crudup
drops to number five in my ‘Earliest Rock & Roll Releases’ list (below) because America’s
original soul sister has taken his spot.
drops to number five in my ‘Earliest Rock & Roll Releases’ list (below) because America’s
original soul sister has taken his spot.
Sister Rosetta Tharpe recorded
the rocking, ‘Strange Things Happen Every Day’, with Decca’s house band in New
York in 1944. The first gospel song to top the Harlem Hit Parade, this track
is also considered by some experts to be the world’s first rock & roll
song. However, Albert Ammons (1936) or Big Joe Turner and Pete Johnson (1938) might have a thing or two to say about that.
the rocking, ‘Strange Things Happen Every Day’, with Decca’s house band in New
York in 1944. The first gospel song to top the Harlem Hit Parade, this track
is also considered by some experts to be the world’s first rock & roll
song. However, Albert Ammons (1936) or Big Joe Turner and Pete Johnson (1938) might have a thing or two to say about that.
Born in Arkansas
between 1915 and 1921, (she was cagey about her age) Rosetta was the first to
turn a traditional African-American
spiritual into rock & roll. She
was also the first to do windmill chord-strikes on her electric Gibson long
before Chuck Berry, and way before Pete Townsend was even born (although Pete
says he pinched the windmill action off Keith Richards after watching the Stone
warm up) .
between 1915 and 1921, (she was cagey about her age) Rosetta was the first to
turn a traditional African-American
spiritual into rock & roll. She
was also the first to do windmill chord-strikes on her electric Gibson long
before Chuck Berry, and way before Pete Townsend was even born (although Pete
says he pinched the windmill action off Keith Richards after watching the Stone
warm up) .
Another bit of trivia
is that Rosetta hit number one on the Harlem* chart on the day Adolf Hitler
killed himself in his Berlin bunker in April 1945
is that Rosetta hit number one on the Harlem* chart on the day Adolf Hitler
killed himself in his Berlin bunker in April 1945
.
Sister Rosetta Tharpe
was a favourite of Elvis, Little Richard and a host of other rock icons. Said
Jerry Lee Lewis, “There’s a woman who can sing some rock and roll. I mean,
she’s singing religious music, but she is singing rock and roll. She’s …
shakin’ man … She jumps it. She’s hitting that guitar, playing that guitar,
and she is singing. I said, ‘Whoooo. Sister Rosetta Tharpe.”
She was also said to be Johnny Cash’s favourite singer.
was a favourite of Elvis, Little Richard and a host of other rock icons. Said
Jerry Lee Lewis, “There’s a woman who can sing some rock and roll. I mean,
she’s singing religious music, but she is singing rock and roll. She’s …
shakin’ man … She jumps it. She’s hitting that guitar, playing that guitar,
and she is singing. I said, ‘Whoooo. Sister Rosetta Tharpe.”
She was also said to be Johnny Cash’s favourite singer.
*Originally measuring
the number of juke box plays, Billboard’s Harlem chart became known as the Race
Records chart in 1945 and the Rhythm &
Blues chart in 1949.
1.
Boogie Woogie Stomp, Albert Ammons. 1936, Chicago.
the number of juke box plays, Billboard’s Harlem chart became known as the Race
Records chart in 1945 and the Rhythm &
Blues chart in 1949.
Are
these the world’s first true rock & roll releases?
1.
Boogie Woogie Stomp, Albert Ammons. 1936, Chicago.
2.
Roll ‘Em Pete, Big Joe Turner & Pete Johnson. 1938, New York.
Roll ‘Em Pete, Big Joe Turner & Pete Johnson. 1938, New York.
3.
Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, The Andrews Sisters. 1940, Hollywood, Los Angeles.
Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, The Andrews Sisters. 1940, Hollywood, Los Angeles.
4. Strange Things Happen Every Day, Sister Rosetta Tharpe. 1944, New York.
5.
That’s All Right (Mama), Arthur Big Boy’ Crudup. 1946, Chicago.
That’s All Right (Mama), Arthur Big Boy’ Crudup. 1946, Chicago.
