Rock ’n’ roll officially arrives with an explosion of sounds from Elvis Presley, Little Richard and Chuck Berry
Bill Haley and His Comets
1955
Bill Haley and His Comets' "(We're Gonna) Rock Around the Clock" is the first rock 'n' roll song to become a No. 1 hit.
1956
R&B musician Billy Tolles begins a Seattle TV show for teen-agers, "Rock 'n' Roll Party," airing live on Channel 13 from Parker's Ballroom.
Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley records his first million-seller, "Heartbreak Hotel," makes his first appearance on Ed Sullivan's TV show and stars in his first film.
1957
"Dark Moon," recorded by Northwest songwriter Bonnie Guitar, reaches No. 6 on national charts.
More than 15,000 attend Presley's first Seattle show at Sick's Stadium
Dick Clark's "American Bandstand" makes its TV debut.
1959
KJR DJ Pat O'Day hires Tacoma group The Wailers to play the first in a series of teen dances at the Spanish Castle in Federal Way. Jimi Hendrix later writes a song about the club, "Spanish Castle Magic."
Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper die in a plane crash in Iowa.
The Fleetwoods, a high school vocal trio from Olympia, records its first million-seller, "Come Softly to Me."
