Saturday Speaker Series — Stomp and Shout: The Untold Story of Northwest Rock & Roll
Sat, Sep 13
|Old Redmond Schoolhouse
Please note this is an in person program. A recording will NOT be available following the event. View www.humanities.org/events to find Peter Blecha's other scheduled presentations.
Time & Location
Sep 13, 2025, 10:30 AM – 12:00 PM
Old Redmond Schoolhouse, 16600 NE 80th St, Redmond, WA 98052, USA
About the Event
Northwest Rock & Roll’s historical highpoints are well documented—in the late 20th century, Nirvana, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, and other grunge gods took the world by storm. Previously, Seattle’s Queensrÿche and Heart had ruled the heavy metal realm. However, well prior to that, legions of local 1950s and ‘60s garage rock bands – including The Kingsmen, Paul Revere & The Raiders, and The Sonics – had all fueled teen dances with their versions of the region’s signature song, “Louie, Louie.” Yet these iconic bands are only half the story. In this talk, join author Peter Blecha to discover the lesser-known but vitally important bands and scenes that laid the foundation for what was to come—finally connecting all the dots between the fabled Northwest era of Ray Charles, Quincy Jones, and Jimmy Hendrix, and the R&B-spiked roots of a distinct regional artform: the “Original Northwest Sound.”
Speaker bio:
Peter Blecha (he/him) is…