Rock Around the Clock with Bill Haley’s original Comets

The Comets, formed in 1952 together with front man Bill Haley, were arguably the first rock ’n’ roll band. Among the pioneers who fused country and western with rhythm and blues to create rock ’n’ roll, they were leading musicians of the day and changed the face of music in the 1950s with hits like “Rock Around The Clock” and “Shake, Rattle and Roll.”

The five surviving original band members reunited in 1987 and have been performing ever since. They’ll light up the Lincoln Theater stage this Friday at 8 p.m. along with a special appearance by Chance Tinder and his “Tribute to Elvis,” which has been hailed as “One of the 10 Best in America” by Us Magazine.

On April 12, 1954, Bill Haley and the Comets recorded “Rock Around The Clock.” The song was recorded in just 20 minutes — the final 20 minutes of a three-hour New York City recording session.

History records that the song was initially relegated to the ‘B’ side of the group’s next single “Thirteen Women (And Only One Man In Town).” The record was a minor success in the United States on its first release in May 1954. It was only when “Rock Around The Clock” was heard on the soundtrack of the MGM film “Blackboard Jungle” (which premiered in March 1955) that the song really took off with teenagers. The record was reissued in April 1955 with “Rock Around The Clock” as the ‘A’ side, and by July 1955 it had become the first rock ’n’roll record to reach number one on the Billboard Charts, a position it sustained for eight consecutive weeks. According to the Guinness Book of Records, it eventually sold more than 25 million units worldwide and is still the highest-selling commercial pop single of all time.

The Comets provided the musical foundation for singer Bill Haley from 1949 (when they were known as the Saddlemen) through the key years of their musical journey together as rock ’n’ roll pioneers. The band was the foremost group in the musical revolution that gathered steam in the early 1950s and culminated in the Big Bang of rock ’n’ roll. The Comets evolved from country and western roots in 1949 when they were known as the Saddlemen, through their renaming as the Comets in 1952 amidst a time of great musical exploration, all the way through to their heyday in 1953-1956 when their rock ’n’ roll hits pre-dated successes by Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, Bo Diddley, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Gene Vincent, Eddie Cochran, Jerry Lee Lewis and Buddy Holly.

Although the band is understandably best-known for its many hits between 1954 and 1958, including the first-ever rock ’n’ roll number one “Rock Around The Clock” in 1955, some of the band’s most important contributions to music took place in the preceding years — when as arrangers and performers they were in the forefront of the development of rock ’n’ roll.

With success they performed stage shows, recordings, radio programs and live appearances on national TV shows such as the Milton Berle Show and the Ed Sullivan Show. On May 6, 1955, they became the first-ever rock ’n’ roll act to give a concert at Carnegie Hall.

For more information about A Tribute to the Birth of Rock and Roll featuring Bill Haley’s Original Comets visit www.thecomets.com. For tickets which are $30, $40, $50 and $60 contact the Lincoln Theater Box Office, 100 California Drive, Yountville, by calling 944-1300 or by going to www.lincolnthe ater.org.

Tribute to the birth of Rock ’n’ Roll

with the Comets

Lincoln Theater, Yountville

Friday, Feb 1 at 8 p.m.

Tickets, $30, $40, $50 and $60

Box office: 944-1300 or www.lincolntheater.org.

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