The R&B No. 1s of the '50s

Acrobat has built a formidable reputation based on its completist chart collections such as the British Hit Parade and America’s Greatest Hits series, as well as its British and US “No. 1s of the 50s” collections from the pop charts. This collection addresses the hugely significant R&B market, pulling together every record that topped the US R&B charts during a decade when the genre moved forward creatively, reflecting the revolution in the wider pop landscape. It comprises a whopping 159 tracks, making it a very substantial 6-CD that traces the development of the genre from the blues and honking R&B of the early years through the vocal groups and doowop stylists through to the latter years when rock ‘n’ roll saw a convergence between the pop and R&B markets, and the development of the soul styles that took hold in the ‘60s. It covers the genre from blues stars like Ivory Joe Hunter, B.B King and John Lee Hooker, through R&B songstresses like Ruth Brown and Lavern Baker, and vocal groups such The Dominoes, The Clovers, The Platters and The Drifters. Inevitably great names like Ray Charles, Sam Cooke and Clyde McPhatter feature, and many artists that both paved the way for rock ‘n’ roll and heralded its arrival – Johnny Otis, Fats Domino, Chuck Berry, Lloyd Price and many more etc. It’s a feast of quality blues, R&B, doowop, and rock ‘n’ roll entertainment that traces a very significant creative development in the history of popular music. The genre-friendly packaging echoes the styling of our existing popular chart-based series, and the booklet has comprehensive background notes.