DNA of rock and roll

Originality is highly overrated. But lately I have been developing a unified-theory of rock and roll that boils down to this: Every single (rock) musical act in the last 50 or so years derives its sound from only 7 or 8 original sources. Every branch in the rock and roll tree - every leaf, nut and acorn - can be directly attributed to one or more of the following:

• Elvis Presley
• The Beatles
• Little Richard
• Hank Williams
• Bob Dylan
• Yardbirds
• The Stooges
• The Who

I tend to peg the Stooges as a low-rent version of the Doors, and for some reason I don't think of the the Doors as all that influential, so I'm a bit conflicted. But I have to trace the punk bands of the 1970's back to someone.

I'm sort of on the fence about the Who but I'll put them up there for now. Let me think about it.

My take on the Yardbirds will probably bug a lot of people but I think that a lot of the garage bands of the mid-sixties that are always cited as punk influences tended to skew more towards Yardbirds style stuff than Beatles. And on the flip side, I always thought they were pretty much responsible for metal. The Yardbirds were the first band that was pretty much for guys only. Chicks thought they were noisy and ugly but the dudes dug it. Total early onset sausage party.

As far as the Rolling Stones being excluded, I think I have a pretty good case. Not even remotely original and intentionally so. Lots of swagger and attitude but musically? At least originally they were going for a real retro thing.

Just a theory, mind you.

But I'm right.