Gospel Choirs, Pentecostal Church

Young people embraced rock and roll, but older Americans hesitated to accept the music; they saw it as a threat to the white bread culture of the early 1950s. There was an all too familiar dissention among the generations about things that affect culture-appearance, sex, language, music, and other contributors to the overall makeup of values and morals. But these 1950s teenagers, like most teens, rebelled and broke the rules. The music, the message, and eventually the lifestyle of rock and roll began to transcend racial, ethnic, and cultural lines, moving from the minority culture toward a mass market. The primary conduit for this transition would be none other than Elvis Presley.

American Culture B .E . and A.E .

Elvis was born in 1936 in Tupelo, Mississippi, where he grew up in a modest, predominantly black neighborhood. He was raised in a religious home and loved attending church from the time he was a young boy. Though he belonged to a Pentecostal church in Tupelo, he reportedly sneaked out frequently to the African American church around the corner, where he absorbed the sounds of gospel choirs and singers.

Gospel music became his first love as he sang with his black friends and their families, learning the rhythms and sounds of their music.

Elvis went on to cut his first record in 1952, motivated primarily by his desire to make a recording for his mother. But the executives at Sun Records knew they were hearing-and watching-something special. The way he sang his particular style of rock and roll was unique; the way he moved was edgy; his looks were movie star quality; and his connection with people who watched was intense.