Rock 'n' Roll's first shot lasted from 1955 to 1958. By then, Elvis was in the army, Little Richard had given up music to become a minister and Chuck Berry found himself in trouble with the law-and not for the last time. Then there was Jerry Lee Lewis. His career was in shambles because this 21-year-old Rock 'n' Roller had married his 13-year-old cousin. He didn't think anything of it. His first marriage had been when he was fifteen.

In '59 Fidel Castro came to power in Cuba and promptly declared it a communist state. A communist state 90 miles away from the U.S. was even more threatening than Rock 'n' Roll. In 1960 John F. Kennedy was elected president. Less than four months in office he approved a plan to invade Cuba using Cuban exiles and others. The plan failed horribly - largely because Kennedy, fearing Soviet reprisal, refused to provide the invading army air support.

One year later the Soviets put missiles with nuclear warheads in Cuba. The Cuban Missile Crisis brought the world to the brink of war. The U.S. launched a naval embargo of the island. A confrontation looked inevitable but a last minute deal/compromise led to the removal of the missiles and nuclear war was averted.

Amid the sea of troubles and turmoil there was a place where things were good, where the sun always shined and life was ruled by burgers, cars and girls - California. Thanks to the Beach Boys, Jan & Dean and a slew of others, California represented a hedonistic capitol. Trouble was kept out of sight - out of mind - by seemingly endless good vibes. No war. No poverty. No drug cripples. Not yet.

It was fun while it lasted.

The Beach Boys particularly felt the rise and fall of the California wave. The group featured the songwriting, arranging and singing of Brian Wilson. His genius took the band to creative heights but his personal problems, including drugs, hurt both him and the group.

On November 22nd, 1963 President Kennedy and his wife, Jackie, made a routine campaign stop in Dallas, Texas in preparation for the '64 elections. The president was shot and killed. The nation and the world mourned. There was disbelief. "How could such a thing happen?" "What was wrong with our society?" It seemed that the youthful vibrancy and optimism that JFK represented departed with him. As a country the U.S. was in a deep depression.

Over in England four musicians who'd been deeply influenced by American pop, Rock and Blues were enjoying remarkable success. Would they be successful in the United States? Quite frankly, the odds were against it. Several British pop stars had been unable to crack the U.S. market. Why should the Beatles be any different? Well, they had a couple of things going for them. First, they possessed incredible talent and creativity. Second, American television host Ed Sullivan, seeing the Beatles' popularity in Britain, gave them a shot on his show. But more importantly their cheerful yet cheeky exuberance was just what the world needed.

An early Beatles single "She Loves You" captured the group's energy and magic. And unlike most performers the Beatles continually changed and evolved to become one of the truly timeless Rock acts.

Following the Beatles success, the world beat a path to London and there was a massive search for musical talent. Interestingly, the British music scene had split into two camps - the pop side and the more "serious" Blues groups. American Blues performers heavily influenced the Rolling Stones, Animals and Yardbirds. All the people who had helped lay the foundation for Rock n' Roll and whose music had been nearly forgotten in the U.S., were re-discovered by these British musicians. The Brits reworked classic Blues songs adding a Rock feel. Eventually, they began writing their own 'Blues" oriented songs.

By the mid-'60s The Beatles had logged four long years of non-stop recording and touring, plus starring in two feature length movies. During an early '66 interview John Lennon, the group's leader to that point, said the Beatles fame had gotten totally out of control and that they were probably more popular with young people than Christ. Rather than being a casual observation, the quote was interpreted as a reckless boast. Stripped of its irony, it appeared Lennon was stating flatly that the Beatles were more popular that Christ. This, as you might expect, created an uproar - especially in the South. Religious groups got Beatle music banned from some radio stations. There were public burnings of Beatles' records and merchandise. Lennon first apologized for the misunderstanding then for the comment. But the controversy continued to haunt the group. Also, the '66 world tour was difficult. They were running out of gas. Their popularity and influence was so great even world leaders were demanding their time. The group was being encroached upon from all sides. Finally, they decided to stop the madness. No more touring. They would devote all their energies to recording. They were the first Rock group to do this. What would happen? The first project was based on Paul McCartney's idea. He wanted to get away from the Beatles and their image and create something totally different. What he came up with was "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band."

The Rolling Stones, among others, followed the Beatles down the concept album road. However, seeing it as a dead-end for them, the Stones they quickly re-trenched and returned to a hard-edged R&B/Rock sound. The transformation left them ideally positioned to assume the "World's Greatest Rock 'n' Roll Band" mantle when the Beatles disintegrated a few years later.

The U.S. had sent military advisors to South Vietnam since 1958. Vietnam had been divided, like Korea, following the Second World War. North Vietnam was communist. South Vietnam was a developing democracy and capitalist. However, the North Vietnamese were driven to re-unify the country, which they eventually did in 1975. But in 1965 the increasing number of U.S. military advisors going to Vietnam began to attract domestic and international attention. By the end of the year more than 500-thousand U.S. troops were in country.

Should the U.S. have soldiers in South Vietnam?
Why are they there?

These questions divided Americans. Older Americans generally endorsed the war effort as a way to contain communism. Younger people were often opposed, seeing the situation as a civil war, where the U.S. had no business. There was the feeling it was easy for "old men" to send young people off to war. Of course it wasn't. Also, a disproportionate number of African-Americans were sent overseas; unable to work the system to escape the draft.

In a world of war, racism, violence, uncertainty, Rock music, that strange synthesis of Blues and Country, provided an escape and entertainment; but it also offered a voice.
San Francisco was the city and Height-Ashbury the district that represented the rebellion against the establishment. Tune in, turn on and drop out. Many groups like the Doors, Jefferson Airplane and Steppenwolf created songs with political or anti-establishment messages. Some radio stations banned the Doors anti-war song "The Unknown Soldier". With student protests rising, people questioning the value of American society and the brewing conflicts between classes and races, music could hardly stay good natured and friendly. It didn't.

It seemed as the times got more intense, so did the music. As the times got more confrontational, the music got louder and harder. Wah-wah pedals, fuzz boxes and other devices altered the guitar's sonic abilities creating a powerful wall of sound. Many groups found huge success mining this vein, including the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Iron Butterfly, Deep Purple and the masters of Hard Rock/proto-Metal, Led Zeppelin.