Glen Altschuler’s, “All Shook Up: How Rock N’ Roll Changed America” seeks to situate the rock n’ roll movement in America within a greater discourse on the turbulence of 1950s American history. Altschuler follows rock n’ roll through the civil rights movement, the beginnings of the sexual revolution and a turbulent relationship between two clashing generations. Altschuler points to rock n’ roll as the catalyst for the great social unrest of this period, and the overall changes that occurred.
The 1950s proved to be one of the most important and tumultuous eras for race relations in the United States. Blacks began to stand up against the immorality of Jim Crow laws and the deep seeded racism still prevalent throughout the country. On one side, rock n’ roll and R&B became the anthem of a marginalized black community and the integration of white and black youth. Herbert Reed of the rock group, the Platters exemplifies this feeling: “In Austin, Texas, ‘a rope was put up to separate Negroes and whites in the audience. When we started singing, the kids broke the rope and started dancing together. That rock n’ roll beat gets them all.” On the other hand however, rock n’ roll followed the trend of white co-opting of black culture into the dominant culture for profit that would continue with many other forms of music and culture. Rock n’ roll played both sides of this interaction, and Altschuler points out the subtleties of the situation quite nicely.
The 1950s were not only a time to question the norm in terms of race, but also the beginning of a sexual revolution. Rock n’ roll broke free of the uptight, nuclear model for love and sex, and offered a more open, freethinking set of sexual values. Through its lyrics and sexualized dance movements, rock n’ roll liberated young people to explore sex in a different way than ever before. The sexual tension that comes with teenage years was being eased in many ways. There was even opportunity for homosexual representation, in the case of Little Richard, and extremely flamboyant performer who belted out explicit homoerotic lyrics in songs such as, “Tutti Frutti” (eventually this tune would be changed to cater to a more PG crowd, but the original, played live featured explicit lyrics discussing anal sex).
Both rock n’ roll’s relationship with the status of race relations, as well as it’s sexual “perversity”, caused a clash between the pre-war generation and the post WWII generation. The conservative values instilled in the older generations were being destroyed and disobeyed before their very eyes, so much so that entire governmental and grassroots parental organizations were created to keep juvenile delinquency at bay.
Altschuler does an excellent job illustrating the complicated nature of the relationship between rock n’ roll and American history, rather than over simplify its effects on said history. He truly captures the intricacy of the movement, and discusses every side the history in a very truthful and objective manner.