Bill Haley and his Comets facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Bill Haley & His Comets
Bill Haley and His Comets in 1956. Left to right: Rudy Pompilli, Billy Williamson, Al Rex, Bill Haley, Johnny Grande, Ralph Jones, Franny Beecher
Background information
Also known as	Bill Haley and the Saddlemen, the Kingsmen, the Lifeguards, B.H. Sees Combo
Origin	Chester, Pennsylvania, United States
Genres	Rock and roll, country, rockabilly
Years active	1949–1952 as Saddlemen; 1952–1981 as Bill Haley & His Comets; 1981–present as the Comets, Bill Haley's Comets
Labels	Decca, Brunswick (UK), Atlantic, Keystone, Cowboy, Holiday, Essex, Warner Bros., Orfeón, Dimsa, Newtown, Guest Star, Logo, APT, Gone, United Artists, Roulette, Sonet, Buddah, Antic, London (UK)
Associated acts	The Jodimars
Past members	Bill Haley Johnny Grande Billy Williamson Rudy Pompilli Al Rex Franny Beecher Marshall Lytle Danny Cedrone Ralph Jones Nick Nastos John "Bam-Bam" Lane Joey Welz Ivan Hoppes and more than 100 others

Bill Haley & His Comets were an American rock and roll band, founded in 1952 and continued until Haley's death in 1981. The band was also known as Bill Haley and the Comets and Bill Haley's Comets (and variations thereof). From late 1954 to late 1956, the group placed nine singles in the Top 20, one of those a number one and three more in the Top Ten.

Bandleader Bill Haley had previously been a country music performer; after recording a country and western-styled version of "Rocket 88", a rhythm and blues song, he changed musical direction to a new sound which came to be called rock and roll.

Although several members of the Comets became famous, Bill Haley remained the star. With his spit curl and the band's matching plaid dinner jackets and energetic stage behavior, many fans consider them to be as revolutionary in their time as the Beatles were a decade later.

Following Haley's death, no fewer than seven different groups have existed under the Comets name, all claiming (with varying degrees of authority) to be the continuation of Haley's group. As of the end of 2014, four such groups were still performing in the United States and internationally.

Grammy Hall of Fame

"Rock Around the Clock" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, a Grammy award established in 1973 to honor recordings that are at least 25 years old and that have "qualitative or historical significance."

Images for kids

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  BillHaley/Elvis/HankSnowTicket – Oklahoma City newspaper ad. for Sunday October 16, 1955; two shows at the Municipal Auditorium. Note: Elvis Presley's first appearance to be co-promoted (with Hank Snow) by Colonel Tom Parker.

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  Bill Haley & His Comets in 1954. Left to right: Joey D'Ambrosio, Dick Richards, Bill Haley

See also

In Spanish: Bill Haley & His Comets para niños