There wasn't a specific date when rock 'n' roll started. As mentioned in earlier episodes, it had been a term used since the 1940s. DJ Alan Freed had used it as early as 1951 and rock 'n' roll recordings had occasionally charted since 1953. But there was an event that happened in 1955 that put rock 'n' roll in the headlines and firmly on the map. That event was the movie Blackboard Jungle. So listen out for that as the rock 'n' roll story kicks up a gear

This is a series about music. So I mostly introduce each episode with a musical bent. I'll sometimes tie those musical stories to events happening at the same time. But there is a commentary bigger than music and mere “stories” that I'm equipped to capture through an introductory sound-bite.

I'll say no more as bigger stories unfold. Welcome to 1955.