Music

Bill Haley & His Comets

	Birth of the Boogie		Burn That Candle
	Dim, Dim The Lights		Mambo Rock
	Razzle Dazzle		Rock-A-Beatin` Boogie
	Rock Around The Clock		The Saints Rock 'N' Roll
	See You Later, Alligator		Shake, Rattle and Roll
	Two Hound Dogs

The Comets recorded several successful singles in the next two years, including "Rock the Joint", a single that sold more than 70,000 copies, and "Crazy, Crazy Man," a single that soared into the Top 20 and made Haley a national rock 'n' roll hero.

It was in 1954 that the Comets most successful tune, "(We're Gonna) Rock Around the Clock," hit the airwaves. Recorded in a ballroom in New York City, the success of the single and a second recorded at this time, "Thirteen Women," landed Bill Haley and the Comets a recording contract with Decca Records. "(We're Gonna) Rock Around the Clock" eventually sold more than 25 million copies.

In the next year, Haley and the Comets would record five new singles. The first, a song originally done by Joe Turner as a blues tune, "Shake, Rattle and Roll," featured a true rock 'n' roll vibe, becoming the first record to sell more than 1 million copies. "Dim, Dim the Lights," the next single, broke into the R&B charts. Just as Haley was making his dream come true, Joey d'Ambrosio, Dick Richards and Marshall Lytle left to form their own band, the Jodimars. They would release several successful singles in the years to come, all of which mimicked Haley's true rock 'n' roll style.

Late in 1955, Haley had to rebuild his band. Bassist Al Rex agreed to rejoin, and Frank Beecher, a session guitarist who had played on some previous recordings, joined full-time. Rudy Pompilli was added on tenor saxophone. The musicians' chemistry was unsurpassed, an element that made Comets' performances some of the best on the rock 'n' roll stage. They released their first album, Rock and Roll Stage Show, in 1955.

The Comets continued to record for Decca until 1964, producing some of early rock 'n' roll's staple tunes including "Move it on Over," "Skinnie Minnie" and "Lean Jean." Throughout the course of his career, Haley landed nine albums in the Top 40. A true pioneer until his death in 1981, Haley will be remembered as the first artist to bring rock 'n' roll to the mainstream.