Sharing the birthdate with Johnny Cash and Mitch Ryder is the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and pioneer, FATS DOMINO
FATS DOMINO was rock and roll before there was Rock and Roll.
Many have called his 1949 piece, ‘The Fat Man’. the first rock and roll record, even though rock and roll didn’t officially make the scene until 1955 when people like Elvis and Bill Haley incorporated
the black sound along with a little country /hillbilly, making it
‘palateable’ for the masses, as it were. Listen for yourself to the Fat Man and decide if Domino wasn’t rock and roll before it became popular.
Domino, with his unique keyword stylings of New Orleans-influenced music would go on to hvae 39 Top 40 records. Try to keep still
listening to the rythm upbeat sounds of ‘I’m Ready,’, ‘Hello Josephine,’ ‘Let the Four Winds Blow,’ ‘When the Saints To marchin In,’ or the ballads like ‘Blueberry Hill, ‘ Ain’t That A Shame’ and many others.
Though he doesn’t perform much anymore, Domino is a survivor (of Katrina ) and many of his fellow artists and still calls New Orleans home at the ripe age of 85. Domino is among a handful
of the true early rock and roll pioneers including Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Bill Haley and Elvis. Here’s Fats doing ‘BlueBerry HIll’ from Legends of Rock and Roll. Listen to the droning saxes and classic Domino sound
