Posted on Mar 3, 2018
Rocket "88" - Jackie Brenston & His Delta Cats
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The First Rock and Roll Song
Was Elvis or Jackie Brenston the Father of Rock and Roll?
by Robert Fontenot
Determining the first rock and roll record is sort of like claiming to have invented sliced bread — it's hard to parse. As with television, the inventors of rock are varied — a lot of brilliant minds working on the same thing mostly independently of each other. And, as with TV, the actual invention of rock was perfected long before the status quo got a hold of it. That's why though some claim Elvis Presley's "That's All Right, Mama" as the first rock and roll record, others claim "Rocket 88" by Jackie Brenston as the rightful owner of the title.
The "Official" First Rock and Roll Record
For decades, many rock fans claimed Rock Around The Clock (1954) by Bill Haley And The Comets as the first rock and roll record, but that was merely the first rock record to enter the national consciousness (i.e., become a hit), unless you count the more restrained doo-wop of the Penguins' Earth Angel (1954) (which was actually released after "Rock Around The Clock" but became a hit in much less time).
After a while, rock critics won out over popular opinion, enshrining Elvis' cover of That's All Right, Mama (1954) as the originator of the rock and roll genre. However, as rhythm and blues artists of the 50s started to claim their rightful heritage as midwives of rock's birth, other earlier records began to surface in the public's mind: chief among them Jackie Brenston's Rocket 88 (1951), now generally considered the first rock song.
The Debate Over Who Pioneered Rock and Roll Music
However, the discussion does not stop there.
Turn the time machine back even further than Brenston's 1951 number and you find Fats Domino's The Fat Man (1950), Wynonie Harris' Good Rockin' Tonight (1948), and Freddie Slack's House Of Blue Lights (heard here in a similar version, 1946). Some folks have nominated even earlier tunes, but those haven't gained much critical or popular support.
If you don't buy the "Rocket 88" model, there are other pre-Elvis songs that get mentioned often in these lists, such as Arthur Smith's Guitar Boogie (the first national hit with electric guitar, 1948), The Dominoes' infamous Sixty Minute Man (1951), Lloyd Price's raw R&B smash Lawdy Miss Clawdy (1952), "Big Mama" Thorton's original version of Hound Dog (1953) and the Crows' remarkable Gee (1953).
How Do You Determine the First Rock Song?
So what's the song that started rock and roll? Look closely, and the Elvis and Bill Haley songs seem to come closest. Why? Rock and roll is an amalgamation of American popular music, and these two songs cover the most ground. Haley combined jump blues with a western swing in "Clock," while Elvis, Scotty, and Bill blended country picking and hollering with pure blues and an uptempo shuffle. Elvis did not invent rock and roll — no one did — but he gave it the world's largest push, accidentally and offhandedly creating rockabilly as a byproduct of the original experiment.
By comparison, recordings which are as good or better than this performance don't measure up in terms of musical cross-pollination. Most of these songs work in one style — boogie or jump blues usually.
The Elvis and Haley discs, for better or worse, sound like new musical forms, although there will always be those who say that this is only because both men are white.
However, hot on Elvis' heels was a young man named Chuck Berry who was about to transform an old country tune called "Ida Red" into a boot-stomping bluesy workout named Maybelline. More proof that good music sees no color, and that rock and roll has always been bigger than any one person — bigger than all of us, in fact.
https://www.thoughtco.com/were-gonna-rock-were-gonna-roll-2521785
"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 number one on the Billboard R&B chart. Many music writers acknowledge its importance in the development of rock and roll music, with several considering it to be the first rock and roll record.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_88
Was Elvis or Jackie Brenston the Father of Rock and Roll?
by Robert Fontenot
Determining the first rock and roll record is sort of like claiming to have invented sliced bread — it's hard to parse. As with television, the inventors of rock are varied — a lot of brilliant minds working on the same thing mostly independently of each other. And, as with TV, the actual invention of rock was perfected long before the status quo got a hold of it. That's why though some claim Elvis Presley's "That's All Right, Mama" as the first rock and roll record, others claim "Rocket 88" by Jackie Brenston as the rightful owner of the title.
The "Official" First Rock and Roll Record
For decades, many rock fans claimed Rock Around The Clock (1954) by Bill Haley And The Comets as the first rock and roll record, but that was merely the first rock record to enter the national consciousness (i.e., become a hit), unless you count the more restrained doo-wop of the Penguins' Earth Angel (1954) (which was actually released after "Rock Around The Clock" but became a hit in much less time).
After a while, rock critics won out over popular opinion, enshrining Elvis' cover of That's All Right, Mama (1954) as the originator of the rock and roll genre. However, as rhythm and blues artists of the 50s started to claim their rightful heritage as midwives of rock's birth, other earlier records began to surface in the public's mind: chief among them Jackie Brenston's Rocket 88 (1951), now generally considered the first rock song.
The Debate Over Who Pioneered Rock and Roll Music
However, the discussion does not stop there.
Turn the time machine back even further than Brenston's 1951 number and you find Fats Domino's The Fat Man (1950), Wynonie Harris' Good Rockin' Tonight (1948), and Freddie Slack's House Of Blue Lights (heard here in a similar version, 1946). Some folks have nominated even earlier tunes, but those haven't gained much critical or popular support.
If you don't buy the "Rocket 88" model, there are other pre-Elvis songs that get mentioned often in these lists, such as Arthur Smith's Guitar Boogie (the first national hit with electric guitar, 1948), The Dominoes' infamous Sixty Minute Man (1951), Lloyd Price's raw R&B smash Lawdy Miss Clawdy (1952), "Big Mama" Thorton's original version of Hound Dog (1953) and the Crows' remarkable Gee (1953).
How Do You Determine the First Rock Song?
So what's the song that started rock and roll? Look closely, and the Elvis and Bill Haley songs seem to come closest. Why? Rock and roll is an amalgamation of American popular music, and these two songs cover the most ground. Haley combined jump blues with a western swing in "Clock," while Elvis, Scotty, and Bill blended country picking and hollering with pure blues and an uptempo shuffle. Elvis did not invent rock and roll — no one did — but he gave it the world's largest push, accidentally and offhandedly creating rockabilly as a byproduct of the original experiment.
By comparison, recordings which are as good or better than this performance don't measure up in terms of musical cross-pollination. Most of these songs work in one style — boogie or jump blues usually.
The Elvis and Haley discs, for better or worse, sound like new musical forms, although there will always be those who say that this is only because both men are white.
However, hot on Elvis' heels was a young man named Chuck Berry who was about to transform an old country tune called "Ida Red" into a boot-stomping bluesy workout named Maybelline. More proof that good music sees no color, and that rock and roll has always been bigger than any one person — bigger than all of us, in fact.
https://www.thoughtco.com/were-gonna-rock-were-gonna-roll-2521785
"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 number one on the Billboard R&B chart. Many music writers acknowledge its importance in the development of rock and roll music, with several considering it to be the first rock and roll record.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_88
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Posted 7 y ago
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Thanks SGT John " Mac " McConnell for asking an intriguing question that only God would know because communication was limited in the 1950s.
I know Elvis Presley was not the father of Rock and Roll and he never claimed to be.
"It was a black and white alloy of Fats Domino, Lloyd Price, Ike Turner, Hank Williams, Joe Turner, Louis Jordan, Ray Charles, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Buddy Holly - and Elvis Presley."
FYI COL Mikel J. Burroughs LTC Stephen C. LTC Wayne Brandon LTC Bill Koski Maj Bill Smith, Ph.D. Capt Seid Waddell Capt Tom Brown MSG Andrew White SFC William Farrell SSgt Robert Marx PO1 William "Chip" Nagel SP5 Mark Kuzinski SP5 Robert Ruck SPC Margaret Higgins SGT Charles H. Hawes SGT (Join to see) SGT (Join to see) Maj Marty Hogan CPL Craig Cheltenham
I know Elvis Presley was not the father of Rock and Roll and he never claimed to be.
"It was a black and white alloy of Fats Domino, Lloyd Price, Ike Turner, Hank Williams, Joe Turner, Louis Jordan, Ray Charles, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Buddy Holly - and Elvis Presley."
FYI COL Mikel J. Burroughs LTC Stephen C. LTC Wayne Brandon LTC Bill Koski Maj Bill Smith, Ph.D. Capt Seid Waddell Capt Tom Brown MSG Andrew White SFC William Farrell SSgt Robert Marx PO1 William "Chip" Nagel SP5 Mark Kuzinski SP5 Robert Ruck SPC Margaret Higgins SGT Charles H. Hawes SGT (Join to see) SGT (Join to see) Maj Marty Hogan CPL Craig Cheltenham
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John, When I was 16, about 1961 or 1962......... yes, I was 16 at one time....One of my best friends had a tri-power Rocket 88, Very sweet!
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SGT John " Mac " McConnell
We were all 16 at least once Dennis. Laffs ! Cool ride of a Lead sled back then...
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CWO3 Dennis M.
SGT John " Mac " McConnell - My troops would never believe I was a Teen once, All Chief Petty Officers and Warrants were born old! And yes it was a cool ride and the "88" had a back seat every teen in the 60's would die for especially at the Dive-in!
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CWO3 Dennis M.
PO3 Bob McCord - I had a French teacher that was an absolute Knock out when I was in 10th grade. Miss Lafayette! I can see her in my minds eye right now, blond and built! Every boy wanted to take French, even me (which I failed)! I don't think se was even 30 at the time! OOla la, Oui, oui ! my best friend had a Rambler, but he could never pick up a girl in it!
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CWO3 Dennis M.
PO3 Bob McCord - I was a fuzzy dice man on my rear view mirror in my 56 Chevy. I was raised on Long Island, NY and there was a set rule about Fuzzy Dice from the rear view mirror.. If you were flying white dice on the turnpike or into the burger drive in joints, it was telling the girls you were a good guy, if you were flying red dice, it was telling them that you had the devil in you and were a little wild and were a little dangerous, and if you were flying black dice you were a BAD boy. The girls knew the code and would be attracted to what ever they were in the mood for at the time. We all carried all three colors. I still have fuzzy dice on my rear view mirror in my 57 Chevy's...my wife only lets me fly white dice!!!!!
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