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Dinah Washington - I Only Know

The style of music that came to be known as rock ’n roll grew out of many other American musical styles, most notably blues, played mostly, but not only, by African Americans, and country, played primarily, but not only, but whites. Perhaps the clearest musical predecessor of rock ’n roll is the jump blues and swing style of the 1940s, typified by the music of Louis Jordan and Louis Prima. Once electric guitars gained wider use, they replaced the saxophone as the small band’s lead instrument, this change was one of the most important developments in rock ’n roll.

After a brief period of popular success, things went wrong for most of rock ’n roll’s early stars... And important dance/radio disc jockey Alan Freed, the man many credit for naming rock ’n roll, faded from the scene in disgrace after a payola, accepting bribes to play specific songs on the radio, scandal.

Meanwhile, big business had discovered that there was a market for this thing called rock ’n roll, so in the absence of many of rock’s original heroes, they manufactured new ones to take their place. This teen idol era featured many disposable, often musically and visually interchangeable, artists, but behind the scenes, true creativity was at work. The so called Brill Building style of pop songwriting launched the careers of many important songwriters who would go onto fame in their later years.


Dinah Washington - I Only Know
  • Released in: 1950
  • Genre: Jazz, Blues
  • Written by: Dinah Washington and Richard Johnson

"Although best known as singer, Dinah Washington also wrote two of her Top 10 R&B hits. No matter what style of music she was singing, she displayed a tough, totally unsentimental grasp of the heartbreaking theme of lost love."

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Location: United States

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