Every human invention is a reinterpretation of a prior human invention. We know that is a lot for a random Monday, and for that reason, we won’t get into the philosophical weeds of that notion. However, just think about it, and in simpler terms, the music of the present would not be what it is if not for the music of the past. Without Patsy Cline, there would be no Dolly Parton, and with no Parton, there would be no Lainey Wilson. See what we are trying to get at? Well, another trio of artists that wouldn’t exist without one another are John Lennon and The Beatles, Elvis Presley, and this iconic, yet fairly underrated, early rock ‘n’ roll artist.
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Like everyone with a musical dream in the 1950s, The Beatles were heavily inspired by Elvis Presley. Frankly, it was impossible to avoid his influence during the decade. Consequently, the question isn’t “Who did Presley influence?” Rather, it is “Who didn’t Presley influence?” Well, he certainly inspired John Lennon and The Beatles, but according to Lennon, Presley even had an unofficial influence. That unofficial influence was one of the many founding fathers of rock ‘n’ roll, Johnnie Ray.
John Lennon Believed “All Music Is Rehash”
Concerning Elvis Presley’s rock ‘n’ roll predecessor, Lennon stated, “Without Elvis there would be no Beatles. Without Johnnie Ray there would be no Elvis. Without whoever came before Johnnie Ray there would be no Johnnie Ray. It’s endless. It’s timeless,” via All We Are Saying: The Last Major Interview With John Lennon And Yoko Ono.
“All music is rehash,” said Lennon. “There are only a few notes. Just variations on a theme. Try to tell the kids in the ’70s who were screaming to the Bee Gees that their music is just The Beatles redone. There is nothing wrong with the Bee Gees. They do a damn good job.”
Lennon is certainly onto something with this idea. After all, how would The Beatles have created their version of rock ‘n’ roll music without Presley and Ray? Furthermore, how would Ray have been one of rock ‘n’ roll’s founding fathers without Robert Johnson or T-Bone Walker?
Lennon was right on the money when he said, “It’s timeless,” and it forever will be, as creation is an endless structure. So to us, Lennon was correct in his thought: without Ray, there would be no Presley, and without Presley, there would be no Beatles, and that notion applies to all musical figures. This might be quite an ambitious question, but is there anything that is truly original? Food for thought.
Photo by Richard Corkery/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images
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