Rocket 88

E406215

"Rocket 88" is a 1951 rhythm and blues song, often credited to Ike Turner’s band, that is widely regarded as one of the earliest rock and roll records.

All labels observed (2)

Label Occurrences
Rocket 88 canonical 7
"Rocket 88" (Bill Haley version) 1

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (45)

Predicate Object
instanceOf single
song
associatedWithArtist Ike Turner
Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats
surface form: Jackie Brenston
bandLeader Ike Turner
basedOn 1949 Oldsmobile 88
surface form: Oldsmobile Rocket 88 car model
chart Billboard R&B/hip-hop charts
surface form: Billboard Rhythm & Blues Records chart
chartPeakPosition 1
chartPerformance number one on Billboard R&B chart
composer Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats
surface form: Jackie Brenston
countryOfOrigin United States of America
surface form: United States
creditedAs one of the earliest rock and roll records
engineer Sam Phillips
genre rhythm and blues
rock and roll
hasBackingBand Kings of Rhythm
hasBSide Come Back Where You Belong
hasInfluenceOn development of rock and roll
hasNotableFeature early use of guitar distortion caused by damaged amplifier
hasNotableGuitarist Willie Kizart
hasNotableSaxophonist Raymond Hill
includedIn various rock and roll history compilations
instrumentationFeature distorted electric guitar
saxophone
language English
leadVocalist Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats
surface form: Jackie Brenston
lyricalTheme Oldsmobile Rocket
surface form: Oldsmobile Rocket 88 automobile
lyricist Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats
surface form: Jackie Brenston
musicalStructure 12-bar blues
oftenCreditedTo Ike Turner
surface form: Ike Turner and his Kings of Rhythm
originalFormat 45 rpm record
78 rpm record
performer Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats
producer Sam Phillips
recognizedBy Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
recordedAt Memphis Recording Service
recordedIn 1951
recordingLocation Memphis, Tennessee, United States
surface form: Memphis, Tennessee
recordLabel Chess 1458
Chess Records
releaseDate 1951-04
RockAndRollHallOfFameList Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll
surface form: 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll
songwriterCreditName Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats
subjectOf claims as first rock and roll record
tempo up-tempo

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (8)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Ike Turner notableWork Rocket 88
1949 Oldsmobile 88 nickname Rocket 88
Essex Records released Rocket 88
this entity surface form: "Rocket 88" (Bill Haley version)
The Saddlemen notableWork Rocket 88
The Saddlemen performedSong Rocket 88
Kings of Rhythm notableWork Rocket 88