Before Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin: Three 1950s songs that helped invent heavy metal

The article argues that heavy metal’s musical roots reach back to the 1950s, before the Beatles, Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath. It says those later artists helped shape the genre’s sound and image, but earlier recordings had already explored distorted guitar, forceful power chords and more menacing performances.

The examples include Pat Hare’s distorted solo on a mid-1950s recording with James Cotton, Link Wray’s 1958 instrumental “Rumble”, and Duane Eddy’s version of the “Peter Gunn” theme. “Rumble” sold four million copies and influenced guitarists including Pete Townshend and Jimmy Page. The article presents these songs as formative influences, rather than claiming any was definitively the first heavy metal song.