Sunday, August 28, 2011

A Rocket in My Pocket

I will be initiating a new cycle of posts soon. Sorry the blog has been dormant so long.

The roots of I Got a Rocket in My Pocket
Most commonly associated with Little Feat's unique version and a cover by NRBQ, this classic actually sends us back to 1958. The song was originally composed by Vic McAlpin and Jimmy Lloyd, whose initial 1957 recording, Rio de Rosa for Roulette featured excellent work by session guitarists Hank Garland and Grady Martin. Both are also featured on the original "Rocket in my Pocket," Martin handles the solo work. The song enjoyed immediate success as it was covered the same year by Johnny Devlin and later Jimmy Grubbs.

3 comments:

  1. Hank Ballard? Not Hank Garland?

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  2. Thanks for the correction, I know it was Garland, I'm not sure why I inadvertently put Ballard, (another favorite). I never quite understood why Martin and Garland appear together on so many Decca and Roulette recordings. They were two of the top players in the genre, why put them together, Ronnie Self's Decca work is a good example.

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