3 Classic Rock Songs From 1959 That Felt Like the Last Night of the 50s

The music world changed drastically in the 1950s. Rock and roll took shape with artists like Chuck Berry, Bill Haley, and Buddy Holly introducing the new style to the world. The decade set the stage for the massive musical evolutions that happened throughout the 1960s and beyond. These legendary rock songs from 1959 helped turn the page from one iconic era to the next.

“Peggy Sue Got Married” by Buddy Holly

Rock and roll legend Buddy Holly died in February 1959, months before the song’s release as a single. Fortunately, Holly recorded “Peggy Sue Got Married” along with a few other songs in his New York apartment before his passing.

The plane crash that killed Holly, the Big Bopper, and Ritchie Valens sent shockwaves through the music world. Holly’s posthumous singles were a farewell to the era he helped usher in.

“Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On” by Little Richard

Several rock artists, including Jerry Lee Lewis, covered this song before Little Richard got to it in 1959. They called him the Architect of Rock and Roll, and his version of “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On” is a solid indication of how he earned the moniker.

Little Richard didn’t just cover a classic rock tune. He updated it and injected his massive personality. At the same time, the driving arrangement with its multiple guitar solos gave the world a taste of what was coming in the rock and roll world in the next few years.

“A Big Hunk o’ Love” by Elvis Presley

The King of Rock and Roll recorded this song while still in the Army and released it a year later, in June 1959. When this song hit the airwaves and record store shelves, Elvis Presley still had a few more years of consistent Hot 100 hits before the British Invasion hit the United States and acts like the Beatles and Rolling Stones started dominating the charts.

“Big Hunk o’ Love” feels like a long goodbye to the decade that was drawing to a close. It was rooted firmly in the sound that Presley had cultivated throughout the 1950s. He was one of very few artists who were able to ride the early rock and roll sound for decades to come.

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