1936 —The electric guitar debuts. 1946 —Muddy Waters cuts the first records of Chicago's electric blues and Carl Hogan plays a powerful guitar riff on Louis Jordan's Ain't That Just Like a Woman.
1948—Columbia Records introduces the long playing (LP) vinyl record.
1949—Fats Domino cuts a new kind of boogie, The Fat Man.
1951—Cleveland disc jockey Alan Freed coins the term rock and roll.
1955—Elvis Presley’s Heartbreak Hotel makes him the first rock star.
1958—Billboard magazine begins their Hot 100 chart listing popular songs.
1959—The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences presents the first Grammy Award.
1959—Berry Gordy Jr. founds Motown Records. In the 1960s Motown stars include the Supremes, Stevie Wonder, and Marvin Gaye.
1961—Country Singer Patsy Cline becomes a mainstream pop music hit.
1964—The Beatles song I Want to Hold Your Hand is a sensation igniting the British invasion.
1969—The Woodstock Music and Art Fair, featuring such artists as Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, the Who, and Joan Baez, is attended by hundreds of thousands of fans.
1975—CBGB (Country Bluegrass & Blues) club in New York showcases punk rock.
1977—The movie Saturday Night Fever popularizes disco music.
1978—Hip Hop, a blend of rock, jazz, and soul, is born in the South Bronx, characterized with African drumming.
1981—MTV music television debuts with nonstop music videos.
1983—Compact discs begin to replace vinyl records.
1984—Cyndi Lauper's Girls Just Wanna Have Fun moves up the charts. In his early teens, Ricky Martin begins his five-year stint with Menudo. Madonna releases her debut album; the single Holiday becomes a hit.
1985—Michael Jackson releases Thriller and the video becomes a classic.
1989—Britney Spears makes her musical television debut as an 8-year-old child on Star Search.
1990—Grunge rock rises in Seattle, featuring bands such as Nirvana and Pearl Jam.