There are many types of musical genres that result from combining two or more styles into a “fusion”. This is certainly true of Rock and Roll. There are fusions, including types of Rock and Roll like “Southern Rock” or “Rockabilly”.

But did you know that Rock and Roll itself is a fusion of musical styles, perhaps the greatest musical fusion of all?

Rock and Roll is actually an amazing mixture of earlier, “purer” musical styles: Jazz, Rhythm and Blues (R and B), and Country. Elements of all three are found in almost all Classic Rock and Roll songs.

Jazz and R&B have been around for over a century, and Country close to it. Much of the way that Rock and Roll flows musically owe itself to these influences. If you listen to very early Golden Age Rock and Roll songs, they are very R&B influenced.

In many ways Country Music is owed for the backbone of many famous Rock and Roll songs. Most have heard of the One-Four-Five (I,IV,V) chord progressions, which are the chord changes that occur in a structure of a song. One-Four-Five is classic, basic Country.
Someone learning the guitar will learn these chord patterns first and be able to play hundreds of songs that fit into it. If you were to learn the G chord, the C chord, and the D chord, you have One-Four-Five in the key of G and have the ability to play a huge percentage of both Country and Rock and Roll songs.

Lyric choices and patterns in Rock and Roll also have history and basis in these other pure forms. The Beatles early songs, like “She Loves You” were unique in many ways, but songs about getting or not getting the girl are a big part of classic country music.

When you think of Elvis shaking on TV, and the early reaction to Rock and Roll as being too “Sexy”, you would think sexuality in music was something new at that time. In fact, the kind of “sexual pulse” of early Rock and Roll is actually pure Rhythm and Blues.

So if you are into “Fusion” music, you certainly don’t have to combine different styles of Rock and Roll to get there. Rock and Roll is as “fused” as it gets.

You may have heard of Tin Pan Alley. Tin Pan Alley was two things. It was literally a place in New York City as well as an era of songwriting that can certainly be thought of as a Golden Age of music creation.

Early in the 20th Century few homes had record players or radios, but almost every home in America had a piano.  Local music stores would sell sheet music to customers with songs written by songwriters in New York City.  Songs would be showcased on Broadway and people nationwide would learn the songs on their home pianos. Music Publishing Houses were a thriving business, and the hub of the songwriting took place on a block of 18th Street in New York City.

A newspaper writer who was writing a story about the songwriting industry visited the block and wrote that the sound of all the pianos in the buildings playing at the same time as songwriters worked on their new songs sounded like the banging of tin pans together.  The block, and the era of songwriting, became known as Tin Pan Alley.

In fact the Tin Pan Alley era was responsible for many of our most famous enduring standard songs.  Many of the songs sung by famous crooners like Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby and Dean Martin were songs written by Tin Pan Alley songwriters. Songs like “Give my regards to Broadway”, “Shine on Harvest Moon”, “Down by the old mill stream”, and even “Take me out to the ballgame” are just a few examples of gems that have lasted a century, originally created by songwriters who lived in relative obscurity in the Tin Pan Alley Era.

Plaque in New York City Commemorating Tin Pan Alley

Next time you are riding an elevator and hear a song like “My blue heaven” or “Sweet Georgia Brown” playing from the speakers, you might notice some people humming or silently singing the songs to themself.  Think about how long those songs have been around and how enduring they are to our culture  Think about that and remember that those songs were not written by famous singers or movie stars or members of famous bands.  For the most part they were written by very low paid songwriters during a time when everyone learned how to play their songs on their home pianos, passing down the music from generation to generation.  This is why Tin Pan Alley’s music has lasted, and will continue to last, for a very long time.