Louisiana Rocks!: The True Genesis of Rock and Roll-Wow! eBook

Louisiana Rocks!: The True Genesis of Rock and Roll book cover

Louisiana Rocks!: The True Genesis of Rock and Roll

Author(s): Tom Aswell

Publisher: Pelican Publishing
Publication Date: December 15, 2009
Edition: First Edition
Language: English
Print length: 504 pages
ISBN-10: 1589806778
ISBN-13: 9781589806771

Book Description

An in-depth history of rock and roll’s Louisiana roots. Taking the position that rock and roll started in New Orleans in 1947 when Roy Brown recorded Good Rockin’ Tonight, Aswell provides an expansive history of this beloved American music form. By looking at the Louisianan influences of swamp pop, Cajun, zydeco, R&B, rockabilly, country, and blues music, the author explores the way these musical forms gave birth to rock and roll as we know it today.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Any book about Louisiana and rhythm-heavy pop music has to be a black-history book, no matter how many white folks are in it. There are plenty of whites in Aswell’s cheery biographical compendium of popular music makers who have been associated with the Pelican State any length of time, from a week (Kris Kristofferson) to a long lifetime (Edward Duhon and Luderin Darbone of the Hackberry Ramblers; both cracked the 95-year mark, Darbone expiring only six months after his last gig). Instead of presenting his subjects alphabetically, Aswell presents them in chapters according to function (groundbreakers, the granddaddy likes of Lead Belly, Satchmo, and Jelly Roll; songwriters; recording-session players), location or venue (Baton Rouge; the Louisiana Hayride radio program, which launched Hank Williams and Elvis Presley), and style (R & B, cajun and zydeco, blues, swamp pop). Within each of those chapters, Aswell observes no common order, such as alphabetical or chronological, which may frustrate obsessives but makes this powerhouse of pop reference maximally amiable browsing for fans of all kinds of booty-shakin’ pop. –Ray Olson

From the Inside Flap

“It was a great read all the way to the end. Tom has definitely managed to put Louisiana’s music connection into perspective. This should be required reading for anyone studying music and the arts in Louisiana high schools and colleges.”
-Scott Hodges, retired disc jockey, news anchor and reporter, and public affairs director for KEEL and KBCL in Shreveport, WTIX in New Orleans

“Could not put it down once I started reading. His book puts the spotlight back on the great artists who have called Louisiana home. Thanks for a long overdue work.”
-Bob Robin, retired disc jockey, WTIX in New Orleans, and producer for record labels Stax, Tower, Bell, Warner Bros., Capitol, and ABC-Paramount

A showcase of Louisiana’s musical heritage, this history of rock and roll music and its Louisiana roots presents an in-depth study of the industry players and musicians who contributed to establishing the Pelican State as the birthplace of rock and roll.
Home to a polyphony of musical styles including swamp pop, Cajun, zydeco, R&B, country, blues, and rockabilly, Louisiana provided a unique environment for the evolution of popular music. These musical genres-influences that author Tom Aswell studies with precision and exuberance-would converge to create the new sound of rock and roll. The state’s independent recording studios tapped the wealth of local talent, and locally owned radio stations promoted once-obscure artists. Before long, rock and roll became part of Louisiana’s centuries-old musical legacy.
From Roy Brown’s recording of “Good Rockin’ Tonight” in New Orleans in 1947 through the musical revolutions of the 1960s and beyond, Louisiana played a major role in the rock and roll explosion that captivated the world. During these pivotal years of popular music history, some of rock and roll’s most notable founding fathers-Fats Domino, Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard, and Ray Charles, for example-were in Louisiana recording the records and performing the music that would forever change the American music landscape.
Tom Aswell is an award-winning journalist who worked as a newspaper reporter and editor for more than two decades. His work has appeared in nine Louisiana newspapers, including the Baton Rouge Advocate and the Monroe News-Star. Aswell has always had a passion for music, and his study of Southern music began while working as a radio disc jockey during college. A graduate of Louisiana Tech University, he is also the editor of Pelican’s With Edwards in the Governor’s Mansion: From Angola to Free Man. Aswell lives in Denham Springs, Louisiana, with his wife.

From the Back Cover

“Tom Aswell has gotten it right! Louisiana’s contributions to rock and roll have been ignored far too long, but now the secret is out. Louisiana has been the catalyst for twentieth-century music. Roy Brown’s 1947 recording of “Good Rockin’ Tonight” gave R&B the push it needed to cross the abyss into white living rooms. R&B in turn melded with country, giving the world a hybrid called rockabilly that got its first national exposure on the Louisiana Hayride. Louisiana Rocks! is a must read for any serious student of rock and roll.”
-Mike Shepherd, director, Louisiana Music Hall of Fame

“Tom Aswell has definitively and superbly supported and documented the substantial Louisiana connection in the historical rock and roll evolution/revolution.”
-Ted Green, retired disc jockey, WTIX in New Orleans and WQAM in Miami

“Get ready to be amazed by the Bayou State’s mighty contribution to rock and roll, told by a friend of the music with whom you’d love to sit with over a few drinks. Start turning a few pages now and let your fingers do the ‘walkin’ to New Orleans.'”
-John Hale, retired disc jockey; news, music, and program director; and operations manager for radio stations in San Antonio, Houston, and Austin

“Tom Aswell knows of what he writes. This book is thoroughly researched and includes some of the author’s actual memories, which span decades, as well as more recent interviews with surviving rockers from a bygone era.”
-“Dandy Don” Logan, retired disc jockey, Shreveport, and former national recording label vice president

About the Author

As a journalist, Tom Aswell reported the news of Louisiana for more than twenty-five years. His interest in the broadcasting field was piqued while working at his hometown newspaper. The experience served as a learning tool, one that propelled him into his career as a journalist. He has since worked as a reporter and editor for multiple Louisiana newspapers including the Baton Rouge Advocate, Ruston Daily Leader, and Monroe News-Star. He also owned his own news service for eight years. Aswell has always had a passion for music, particularly music native to the South. Working part time as a radio disc jockey during college ignited his zeal for music. Utilizing the vast music selection afforded a disc jockey at a radio station, Aswell educated himself on the origins, histories, and legends associated with the many genres of Southern music. Aswell graduated from Louisiana Tech University in 1970 with a B.A. in journalism. After his discharge from the United States Air Force, he owned and coached a semi-pro baseball team, worked for a telephone company, taught defensive driving classes, and has worked for the State of Louisiana, Office of Risk Management. As a hobby, he worked as a stand-up comedian for the Funny Bone Comedy Club in Baton Rouge and was named the funniest person in Louisiana in 1992. He lives with his wife, Betty, in Denham Springs, Louisiana. They have three daughters that reside within seven miles of their home and six grandchildren.

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