The Late Great Johnny Ace and the Transition from R&B to Rock `N' Roll

by Salem, James M.

• ISBN13: 9780252024443
• ISBN10: 0252024443
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1999-05-01
• Publisher: Univ of Illinois Pr

Summary

If Elvis Presley was a white man who sang in a predominantly black style, Johnny Ace was a black man who sang in a predominantly white one. His soft, crooning "heart ballads" took the black record-buying public by storm in the early 1950s, and he was the first postwar solo black male rhythm and blues star signed to an independent label to attract a white audience. His biggest hit, "Pledging My Love", arguably the first rock 'n' roll record, crossed over to pop after he died playing Russian roulette in his dressing room between sets at a packed "Negro Christmas dance" in Houston.

Author Biography

James M. Salem, professor and chair of American studies at the University of Alabama, is the author of Drury's Guide to Best Plays, the television documentary Beatlemania: A Catalyst for Change, and many articles on American popular music and other topics.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	ix
Introduction	1	(6)
Memphis: Chained in the Backyard	7	(16)
Beale Street: Five Dollars a Night and All the Chili You Can Eat	23	(12)
Signing Your Mama Away: A Name from the Devil's Game	35	(11)
Las Vegas in Houston: The Bronze Peacock	46	(21)
Heart Ballads	67	(19)
Potent Wax: Johnny Ace's Mid-Era Hits	86	(22)
Dirty Talk and One-Night Stands	108	(20)
Silent Night, Deadly Night	128	(13)
Life after Death	141	(13)
``Pledging My Love''	154	(20)
Imitations of Love	174	(16)
Ace of Hearts	190	(21)
Appendixes
A. Interviews	201	(1)
B. Selected Discography	202	(9)
Notes	211	(30)
Works Cited	241	(14)
Index	255