1. Ike Turner & the Kings of Rhythm
   Bill Haley & His Comets
2. The Everly Brothers

It was written about an Oldsmobile 88 as the band drove to Memphis, Tennessee, for a recording session

1. Roy Rogers and "Frosty the Snowman"
   Gene Autry and "Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer"
2. Tex Ritter and "All I Want for Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth"

"Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer" ushered in the holiday season and the decade.

1. Pat Boone
   Elvis Presley
2. Paul Anka

They don't call him the King for nothing. Ten of his songs hit No. 1 on the Billboard chart during the decade.

1. The Big Bopper
   Patsy Cline
2. Buddy Holly

Future superstar Willie Nelson wrote "Crazy," one of the songs that made Cline a star before her tragic death.

1. Connie Francis
   Rosemary Clooney
2. Doris Day

"Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Que Sera, Sera)" came in at No. 4 on Radio Gold's top hits for the 1950s.

1. Patsy Cline
   Kitty Wells
2. Loretta Lynn

Kitty Wells' song was recorded in response to Hank Thompson's "The Wild Side of Life" in 1952 and banned by the Grand Ole Opry. It became a huge hit, selling more than 1 million copies.

1. "Wake Up Little Susie"
   "Rock Around the Clock"
2. "That'll Be the Day"

The TV show rocketed "Rock Around the Clock" to the Billboard charts in 1974, 20 years after its original release.

1. "Peggy Sue"
   "Johnny B. Goode"
2. "Great Balls of Fire"

While he rocks on Chuck Berry's "Johnny B. Goode," promgoers aren't thrilled. "I guess you guys aren't ready for that yet," Marty tells the crowd, "but your kids are gonna love it."

1. "Hound Dog"
   "Heartbreak Hotel"
2. "Love Me Tender"

1956 was a big year for the King — "Heartbreak Hotel" went to No. 1, and he made his first appearance on "The Ed Sullivan Show."

1. "Folsom Prison Blues"
   "Ring of Fire"
2. "I Walk the Line"

"I Walk the Line" was written by Cash's first wife Vivian Liberto and recorded at the legendary Sun Studios in Memphis, Tennessee.

1. Hank Williams
   Johnny Cash
2. Tennessee Ernie Ford

Williams died in the back of a car on his way to a New Year's gig in Ohio on Jan. 1, 1953.

1. Hank Williams and Patsy Cline
   Ritchie Valens, The Big Bopper and Buddy Holly
2. Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra

The three were killed in a plane crash on Feb. 3, 1959.

1. Perry Como
   Tony Stark
2. Tony Bennett

Bennett has also appeared on "The Simpsons" and recorded with Queen Latifah and Amy Winehouse.

1. Sammy Davis Jr.
   Nat King Cole
2. Louis Armstrong

Nat King Cole died in 1965, but his daughter, Natalie Cole, continued the family business. In 1991 she brought her father's voice to a new generation with a duet called "Unforgettable."

1. "Blue Suede Shoes"
   "Good Rockin' Tonight"
2. "Blue Moon of Kentucky"

"Blue Moon of Kentucky" was one of the first rockabilly — a country-blues combo with a rockin' beat — hits by a young Elvis. Elvis would continue to show the world he could break ground in every musical genre out there — and some that he'd invent himself.

1. "Raspberry Beret"
   "Strawberry Fields"
2. "Blueberry Hill"

Domino, a New Orleans native, lost his home and nearly all of his possessions in Hurricane Katrina. The Coast Guard rescued him and his family. In 2006 he recorded the album "Alive and Kickin'" and donated some of the proceeds to help other musicians in need.

1. Frank Sinatra
   Dean Martin
2. Bobby Darin

The song resurfaced in 1986 as "Mac Tonight" in an ad for McDonald's. Darin's family sued the company and the ads were taken off the air.

1. Buddy Holly
   The Big Bopper
2. Ritchie Valens

While his songs live on, his influence on the basics of rock music was even more long-lasting. His band, The Crickets, pioneered the now ubiquitous lineup of two guitars, a bass and drums.

1. Chubby Checker
   Sammy Davis Jr.
2. Elvis Presley

Hip-shaking Elvis led censors to insist he be shown only from the waist up, even during his performance of the gospel song "Peace in the Valley."

1. "Funny Face"
   "The Philadelphia Story"
2. "High Society"

Oh, the problems of the wealthy. Kelly must decide whether to marry Sinatra or Crosby in the song-filled froth called "High Society."

1. "Blue Rondo a la Turk"
   "Take Five"
2. "In Your Own Sweet Way"

Written by the quartet's sax player Paul Desmond, "Take Five" is still one of the best-selling jazz singles ever.

1. Little Richard
   Elvis Presley
2. Jerry Lee Lewis

Little Richard is credited with helping establish rock 'n' roll as a true music form and with inspiring the Beatles, who covered "Long Tall Sally" in 1964.

1. Doris Day
   Connie Francis
2. Peggy Lee

While this song was a hit, her lasting influence came after she was attacked in her hotel room in 1974. Her lawsuit cited poor security and resulted in changes across the hotel industry, such as better lighting, deadbolt locks and peepholes in doors.

1. The Coasters
   The Drifters
2. The Shirelles

The Drifters had No. 1 hits with three different lead singers and was called the greatest Atlantic group by Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun.

1. "Love Me Tender"
   "Charro!"
2. "The Rainmaker"

Elvis went on to make 31 feature films and two documentaries.

1. Johnny Mathis
   Paul Anka
2. Dean Martin

Johnny Mathis' album was the first greatest hits album Columbia ever released, starting a tradition that nearly every band, even those without so many great hits, follow to this day.

1. Otis Redding
   Little Richard
2. Ray Charles

Inducted into the first class of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Charles earned the nickname "The Genius" for his piano playing, singing and songwriting abilities.

1. Elvis
   Jerry Lee Lewis
2. Carl Perkins

"The Killer," as Lewis came to be known, overcame the boycott and went on to become one of the most influential rockabilly stars of the 1950s, alongside Carl Perkins and Elvis.

1. "Goodnight Sweetheart"
   "Happy Trails"
2. "Goodnight Irene"

"Happy Trails" was played at the end of both "The Roy Rogers Show" and the show the two shared, "The Roy Rogers and Dale Evans Show."

1. a raft race down the river
   a trip on the riverboat Delta Queen
2. the Battle of New Orleans

"The Battle of New Orleans" was the No. 1 song of 1959, according to Billboard.