Unsound...you are surely correct that the cultural impact of The Beatles was enormous in many, many ways.
OTOH, consider Chuck Berry's cultural contribution for a second. For the first time, Berry (along with a few contemporaries) brought black pop culture to white audiences on a mass basis. True, this music needed a white salesman (see Elvis per the OP), but Berry and Little Richard and a handful of peers were the primary force in this major transformation of pop culture. It's easy to forget that jump jazz was considered "jungle music" - and rock n roll was considered literally dangerous. Black cultural impact on mainstream culture was resisted at every turn.
Looking around today, I think that I'd personally argue that the original '50s rockers had the greater influence on contemporary American culture, but I'd agree it's hard to conclusively settle this question.
OTOH, consider Chuck Berry's cultural contribution for a second. For the first time, Berry (along with a few contemporaries) brought black pop culture to white audiences on a mass basis. True, this music needed a white salesman (see Elvis per the OP), but Berry and Little Richard and a handful of peers were the primary force in this major transformation of pop culture. It's easy to forget that jump jazz was considered "jungle music" - and rock n roll was considered literally dangerous. Black cultural impact on mainstream culture was resisted at every turn.
Looking around today, I think that I'd personally argue that the original '50s rockers had the greater influence on contemporary American culture, but I'd agree it's hard to conclusively settle this question.