Rocket 88

"Rocket 88" (originally written as Rocket "88") is a rhythm and blues song that was first recorded in Memphis, Tennessee, on March 3 or 5, 1951 (accounts differ). The recording was credited to Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats, who were actually Ike Turner's Kings of Rhythm.

The record reached no. 1 on the Billboard R&B chart. Many experts acknowledge its importance in the development of rock and roll music, with several considering it to be the first rock and roll record.

Original version

The original version of the twelve-bar blues song was credited to Jackie Brenston (Ike Turner's saxophonist) and his Delta Cats, which hit number one on the R&B charts. The band was actually 19-year-old Ike Turner and his Kings of Rhythm band, who rehearsed at the Riverside Hotel in Clarksdale, Mississippi. Brenston sang the lead vocal and was credited with writing "Rocket 88". The song was a hymn of praise to the joys of the Oldsmobile "Rocket 88" automobile which had recently been introduced, and was based on the 1947 song "Cadillac Boogie" by Jimmy Liggins. It was also preceded and influenced by Pete Johnson's "Rocket 88 Boogie" Parts 1 and 2, an instrumental, originally recorded for the Los Angeles-based Swing Time Records label in 1949.

Rocket 88 (band)

Rocket 88 is the name of a United Kingdom-based boogie-woogie band formed in the late 1970s by Ian "Stu" Stewart, Charlie Watts, Alexis Korner and Dick Morrissey.

The band is named after the 1949 Pete Johnson instrumental "Rocket 88 Boogie" and is also the title of their 1981 live album, recorded by the Rolling Stones Mobile Studio. The first known use of the phrase "Rocket 88" was for the Oldsmobile Rocket 88 car introduced by General Motors in 1949.

The continuation of an ad hoc band formed by Stewart, Watts and Bob Hall, George Green, Colin Smith,John Picard, the band featured many top British musicians, who would meet up when possible during the late 1970s and early 1980s for what was an ongoing jam session. Other "regular" members of the band included the above-mentioned founding members, plus Jack Bruce, Danny Adler, Don Weller, Colin Hodgkinson, Zoot Money, Chris Farlowe, Hal Singer, Mickey Waller, Pete York, Dave Markee, Harvey Weston, Charlie Hart, Willie Garnett and Malcolm Everson.

Rocket 88 (album)

Rocket 88 is an album recorded live in Germany in 1981 by the boogie-woogie band Rocket 88. The band had a casual line-up, and founder/producer/band-member Ian Stewart in his liner notes makes reference to the other "permanent" band-members who were not present for that particular recording. Although it is rumoured that there are numerous bootleg live takes from other concerts, it is the band's only officially released album. It was recorded using the Rolling Stones Mobile Studio.

Track listing

Side 1

1. "Rocket 88" (Pete Johnson) 7:27

2. "Waiting For The Call" (Jack Bruce/Peter Brown) 10:16

3. "St. Louis Blues" (W.C. Handy) 7:55

Side 2

4. "Roll 'Em Pete" (Pete Johnson/Joe Turner) 5:52

5. "Swindon Swing" (Colin Smith) 7:34

6. "Roadhouse Boogie" (Pete Johnson) 7:17

7. "Talking About Louise" (Alexis Korner) 5:14

Line-up