Between 1897 and 1943 Billy Murray recorded 3000 songs that traced the early ​20th century evolution of the motion picture, the automobile, the subway, the airplane, the Women's Suffrage Movement and World War 1. As the first pop singer in history he made the phonograph and records essential to home entertainment while diversifying the recording industry beyond classical and opera. Although largely unknown today he was the beginning of popular music which pioneered the path for everyone else who followed. Grandma's gift to my generation.

Elvis Presley nailed down rock and roll so that it would still be there a decade later when I was a teenager. His 23 year career left behind an amazing body of work with over 100 chm1singles and worldwide record sales topping 1 billion. His life was both an American rags to riches story and a tragic tale of early death at age 42 from a ten year addiction to drugs. No other deceased singer has been so widely rumored to still be alive with new sightings daily.

THE BEATLES restored our faith in ourselves just weeks after the assassination of President John Kennedy. They cemented the importance of singer/songwriters, albums, studio experimentation, long hair, matching outfits and flooded the record market in 1964 in a way that defied all laws of oversaturation. We just couldn't get enough of The Beatles. The English Invasion not only made Britain hip it also caused a major shakeout on the American charts. As the girls screamed louder at their concerts the guitar industry answered with more powerful amplifiers to get above the din. When touring halted The Beatles made small films of their songs like "Strawberry Fields Forever", a precursor to music videos. After their breakup in 1970 the most persistant rumor was their reunion which never happened. Like Elvis The Beatles left a void that nothing else could quite fill.

CHUCK BERRY was the midwest success story, having grown up in St. Louis and discovering fame at a Chicago record label where he became the most imitated guitar player in rock and roll with hits that included "Carol", "School Days", "Sweet Little Sixteen" and "Roll Over Beethoven". His 1958 hit "Johnny B. Goode" was as perfect a rock and roll guitar song as ever recorded while "Memphis" took its place alongside "Bo Diddley" and "Louie Louie" as one of rock's greatest rhythms. His 1988 book "Chuck Berry The Autobiography" put the perfect wrap on his career detailing the triumphs and tragedies of his life with the same sense of humor and unique voice as his music.

THE NITTY GRITTY DIRT BAND could do it all -blues, rockabilly, country, gospel, classical, Cab Calloway jazz, Jamaican and rock and roll and even worked in a brief appearance in the 1969 movie "Paint Your Wagon" where they sang "Hand Me Down That Can 0' Beans" with Lee Marvin. The Dirt Band were archivists keeping alive different gemes in music history like the Civil War era banjo piece "Soldier's Joy", the 1920s dance craze "Collegiana" and setting new lyrics to Elvis' "Mystery Train" for the tribute to Sun Records "Sixteen Tracks". Sadly, the general public remembers them mostly for one song "Mr. BoJangles" (1970) which they did not perform until late in their 1976 concert at Worlds Of Fun after many in the audience left to ride the rollar coasters. Those people missed not only a great show but a musical education. It can still be heard on their three record set "Dirt Silver & Gold".

THE BEACH BOYS are the All-American band championing surfing ("Surfin' U.S.A."), cars ("Little Deuce Coupe"), beautiful women ("California Girls"), maturing ("When I Grow Up To Be A Man"), quiet introspection ("In My Room") while introducing the electronic synthesizer to the top forty ("Good Vibrations") and deeper album material ("California Saga", "Sumahama"). They were the beginning of the California sound which led to The Byrds, The Doors and the psychedelic music of Haight Asbury. Twenty years after their last #1 in the 60s they returned to the top spot and MTV stardom with "Kokomo". Even after the death of several important members the band still achieves peerless harmonies well into their 70s.

THE SUPREMES were the last girl group standing at the end of the 1960s and the model for all girl groups that followed. Motown plucked them from the housing projects of Detroit and turned them into a contemporary Cinderella story with high fashion gowns and songs by the successful songwriting trio of Brian Holland-Lamont Dozier-Eddie Holland including "You Keep Me Hangin' On" and "Baby Love". Their 11 #1 hits during the 60s were second in the decade only to The Beatles' 20. Even after Diana Ross departed for a solo career The Supremes continued successfully into the mid-70s eventually finding a place in the video age with the collection of their TV performances "Reflections" released in 2006.

MADONNA was to music videos what Elvis was to music -a tremendous body of work, 46 of which spanning a 25 year period were released in the 2009 collection "Celebration". She always knew how to harness controversy without her career imploding in scandal.  She mixed religion and rape in "Like A Prayer", channeled the style and wardrobe of Marilyn Monroe for "Material Girl" and the 1926 German sci-fi film "Metropolis" for "Express Yourself ', and explored extreme violence in "What It Feels Like For A Girl" even demonstrating impressive dance moves just months after suffering a broken leg. Although her career is cooling with age her place at the center of music video history is assured.

RICK NELSON was the first rock star born from a role on a regular weekly television series ("The Adventures Of Ozzie & Harriet") but his greatest contribution came after his successful string of chart hits from 1957-64.  For the next seventeen years Rick continued touring as an oldies act singing the songs from his days of TV stardom which reminded fans of their own memories - going steady, marriage, having a family. Meanwhile he also recorded a body of innovative work which was mostly ignored by the general public. To continue to record with very little commercial success was a testament to Rick's dedication to music who rocked on until his death in a plane wreck at age 45. Witnessing his performance at the 1980 car show at Bartle Hall was one of the highlights of my life.

THE KINKS were one of only two 1964 English Invasion acts to achieve video stardom at MTV during the 1980s, the other being The Rolling Stones. They were also the most theatrical rock band in history staging public performances of their string of 1970s concept albums where the hero Mr. Flash fights a losing battle against an uncaring, inhumane technocracy conspiring to replace everything of value with something superficial. For these stage performances The Kinks recruited several female band members (something The Beatles and Stones never did) to portray the roles for women. Ray Davies view of social change as a conspiracy to usurp a quality life continued all the way to their last major hit "Come Dancing" in 1983 which brought them MTV stardom. Ray Davies deserves an equal place with the other giants of music but The Kinks were always underappreciated.