I haven't thought about any late '50s songs by Danny & The Juniors for many years--until today. Nothing I heard on the radio this morning had any similarity to the group's oldie, "Rock And Roll Is Here To Stay," but somehow, that song looms large in my mind right now.
And now, my mind is starting to shift from "Rock And Roll..." to "At The Hop." That was inevitable, I think; the rhythms of those two hits are similar enough that it's difficult to think of one song without the other.
By today's standards, it's amusing to think that either of these songs were ever seen as dangerous or rebellious in the late '50s. I remember hearing them on KXOK's "Super Oldies Show" around 1979 through 1981. Back then, I thought they were both catchy and that it would be a blast to play piano underneath the vocals.
Actually, I still think so. Although I don't think about it every day or even every year, kudos to the staying power of early rock and roll.
