
Contemporary acts including Lenny Kravitz , Velvet Revolver and Wyclef Jean will share the bill with rock pioneers like James Brown and Bo Diddley for "Rock Through Time," a two-day New York City concert event that caps Rolling Stone magazine's "50 Years of Rock and Roll" summer.
The Miller Brewing Company-sponsored event, which takes place at Roseland Ballroom on Sept. 17 and 18, will also feature The Doors of the 21st Century, The Darkness, The Strokes, Cheap Trick and Ben Folds .
No tickets will be sold for the event, but Miller plans to give away nearly 1,000 tickets, along with hotel and airfare to New York. Information about the contest is available to fans over 21 years old at Miller's website.
Rolling Stone is touting 2004 as rock and roll's 50th anniversary, as measured from the release of Elvis Presley's first professional record, "That's All Right." That starting point has led to debate amongst rock historians, who argue that other touchstones--ranging from Bill Haley and the Comets' 1954 hit "Rock Around the Clock" to various earlier R&B tracks--would be more appropriate.