[SamAdams76]

I just listened to the 1950 songs and ranked them. This is WAY before my time but I was familiar with some of the melodies, such as "Goodnight Irene" and "Chattanooga Shoe-Shine Boy".

I'll move on to 1951 tomorrow. What a totally different era for pop music. I felt like I should have poured a tumbler of scotch, lit up a pipe and been better dressed while listening like this guy here.

I'm thinking by the time we reach the rock and roll era (1956), I'll recognize a lot more tunes.

[the OlLine Rebel]

Indeed.

Much more adult.

Much as I like R&R, and its derivatives (let’s be honest, what’s still called “rock” isn’t at all like the inventors of the ‘50s), I feel it brought down the culture a peg.

Now it’s all about teenagers, and people wanting to be childish. Seems in the old days, adults ruled the charts, and teenagers wanted to be adult.

[Fiji Hill]

It amazes me that the Gordon Jenkins/Weavers’ version of “Goodnight, Irene” was such a big hit—the biggest hit of 1950. It was somewhat toned down from Huddie Ledbetter’s earlier version in which he sang “I’ll get you in my dreams.” The tune goes back to the nineteenth century.