The Influence of Rhythm and Blues on Rock and Roll 3

Other historians point to a White singer named Johnnie Ray, who broke through the divide between rhythm and blues and "pop" music, reaching the top of both charts with a song called "Cry"♫ , which Columbia Records released on its Black-oriented subsidiary, Okeh. Ray's voice was desperately passionate, and he quickly became famous for his over-the-top stage antics, which presaged the performance style of Elvis Presley, among many others.

Ray's success opened the way for more White singers to adopt what had been considered Black styles and material, and by 1955 it was standard for the top rhythm and blues hits to be covered by White pop singers, such as "Sh-Boom", which opened the floodgates in 1954. The biggest hits of 1955 included the Moonglows' "Sincerely"♫ , covered by the McGuire Sisters, Fats Domino's "Ain't It a Shame"♫ , covered by Pat Boone, and LaVern Baker's "Tweedle-Dee,"♫ covered by Georgia Gibbs. Since the dawn of the recording industry, audiences expected multiple artists to record a given hit. However, many of these new covers were not just alternate performances but specifically copies by White artists of hit R & B records, featuring the same song and virtually identical arrangements. (In the case of "Tweedle-Dee," Gibbs's producers even used the same backup singers who had appeared on Baker's original.)