Pat Boone

Pat Boone served as an antidote to the hedonism of rock & roll during the genre's birth in the 1950s. Effectively functioning as the anti-Elvis Presley, Boone sanitized raucous blues and R&B for pop audiences, taming the rhythm and intent of hit singles from Fats Domino ("Ain't That a Shame") and Little Richard ("Tutti Frutti," "Long Tall Sally"), among other Black rockers. For a while, this was a booming business for Boone: he was second only to Presley in terms of commercial success in the late '50s and early '60s. Boone dabbled in country, but he gravitated toward easy listening, which meant his hits had already slowed by the time the British Invasion arrived in 1964. He'd make the occasional return to pop, such as 1997's In a Metal Mood: No More Mr. Nice Guy and 2023's Country Jubilee, yet he sustained a career by concentrating on Christian music.