Jackie Brenston

Jackie Brenston (August 24, 1928 or 1930  – December 15, 1979) was an American singer and saxophonist who, with Ike Turner's band, recorded the first version of the rock-and-roll song "Rocket 88" in 1951.

Biography
Brenston was born in Clarksdale, Mississippi. Brenston's birth date has long been the source of speculation. The birth date on his headstone, August 24, 1928, is the same date on his army enlistment records. However, in 1974, Brenston stated that he was born on August 24, 1927. His obituary in the Clarksdale Press Register gave his birth date as August 15, 1930, a date endorsed by researchers Bob Eagle and Eric S. LeBlanc. Brenston had a troubled youth and often ran away from home. It has been theorized that his mother, Ethel Brenston, falsified his age so that he could join the army. Brenston claimed he served more than three years in the 82nd Airborne, but records show that he enlisted on January 19, 1946, and was released on December 18, 1946.

Returning to Clarksdale from army service, Brenston learned to play the tenor saxophone and linked up with Ike Turner in 1950 as a tenor sax player and occasional singer in Turner's band, the Kings of Rhythm. The local success of the band prompted B. B. King to recommend them to studio owner Sam Phillips in Memphis, Tennessee, where the band made several recordings in early March 1951, including "Rocket 88" on which Brenston sang lead and was credited with writing. Turner led the band but provided no vocals for "Rocket 88". Brenston later said that the song was not particularly original; "they had simply borrowed from another jump blues about an automobile, Jimmy Liggins' "Cadillac Boogie" ". Turner continued to maintain that he wrote the music and that he and the band jointly wrote the lyrics.

Phillips licensed the recordings to Chess Records in Chicago, which released "Rocket 88" as by Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats instead of Ike Turner and his Kings of Rhythm featuring Jackie Brenston. Turner blamed Phillips for this error. The record soon reached number one on the U.S. Billboard R&B chart. It sold approximately half a million copies. Turner and the band had been paid $20 each for the record. The exception was Brenston, who sold the rights to Phillips for $910.

Phillips later claimed that this was the first rock and roll record. While there are other records that are also said to be the "first", many sources confirm that Rocket 88 was certainly among the first of the rock 'n' roll genre. Phillips used income from the success of the record to start Sun Records the following year.

The success of the record caused friction within the group. After one further recording session, Brenston left Turner's band to pursue a solo career. Brenston later went on to perform in Lowell Fulson's band for two years. He returned to play in Turner's band in 1955. Although he occasionally sang with the band, Turner allegedly barred him from singing "Rocket 88".

In 1958, Brenston played saxophone in the Cobra session with Turner which produced the singles "Double Trouble" and "All Your Love (I Miss Loving)" by Otis Rush. By now an alcoholic, Brenston continued playing in local bands. In 1960, Turner signed with Sue Records and released "A Fool In Love" with his future wife Tina Turner. Turner wrote one of Brenston's last recordings, "Trouble Up The Road" / "You Ain't The One" was released on Sue in 1961. Brenston's final recording session was in Chicago with Earl Hooker's band in 1963, and released on Mel London's Mel-Lon label, but alcoholism took a toll on his career.

In spite of brief fame from "Rocket 88", Brenston did not achieve success in his career. "He never had another hit and became an alcoholic ... Brenston finally quit music, became a truck driver and died forgotten in 1979."
He died of a heart attack at V.A. Hospital in Memphis on December 15, 1979.

Legacy
Brenston had a significant influence on Bill Haley and the Comets.

In 2007, Rev-Ola released a compilation of twenty-four vintage sides recorded by Brenston. Of his legacy, the music historian Richie Unterberger wrote,

Discography

Singles 

 1951: "Rocket 88" / "Come Back Where You Belong" (Chess 1458) – Jackie Brenston and His Delta Cats
 1951: "My Real Gone Rocket" / "Tuckered Out" (Chess 1469) – Jackie Brenston and His Delta Cats
 1951: "Juiced" / "Independent Woman" (Chess 1472) – Jackie Brenston and His Delta Cats
 1952: "Hi Ho Baby" / "Leo The Louse" (Chess 1496) – Jackie Brenston and His Delta Cats
 1952: "Blues Got Me Again" / "Starvation" (Chess 1532) – Jackie Brenston and His Delta Cats
 1956: "What Can It Be" / "Gonna Wait For My Chance" (Federal 12283) – Jackie Brenston With Ike Turner's Kings Of Rhythm
 1957: "Much Later" / "The Mistreater" (Federal 12291) – Jackie Brenston With Ike Turner's Kings Of Rhythm
 1961: "Trouble Up The Road" / "You Ain't The One" (Sue 736) – Jackie Brensten With Ike Turner's Orchestra
 1962: "Want You To Rock Me" / "Down In My Heart" (Mel-Lon 1000) – Jackie Brenston

Albums appearances 

 1984: Rocket 88: Jackie Brenston & His Delta Kings Featuring Ike Turner (Chess/P-Vine Records)
 1984: Sun Records: The Blues Years 1950–1956 (Sun Records)
 1994: The Sue Records Story (EMI Records) 4-CD set
 1991: Ike Turner, Kings Of Rhythm – Trailblazer (Charly R&B)
 2004: A Proper Introduction To Ike Turner/Jackie Brenston: Rocket 88 (Proper Records)
 2007: Jackie Brenston – The Mistreater (Rev-Ola Records)
 2008: Ike Turner – Classic Early Sides 1952–1957 (JSP Records)
 2008: Rockin' Memphis (Proper Records)
 2010: The Legendary Ike Turner – That Kat Sure Could Play! The Singles 1951 To 1957 (Secret Records Limited) 4-CD set
 2012: Ike Turner – Studio Productions: New Orleans And Los Angeles 1963–1965 (Ace Records)
 2013: After Sun: What The Stars Of The Legendary Sun Record Company Did Next (Fantastic Voyage Records) 3-CD set
 2022:  Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats – The Blues Got Me Again: Singles 1951–1962 (Jasmine Records)

Notes

References

Sources
Dawson, Jim; Propes, Steve. What Was the First Rock'n'Roll Record? .
Tosches, Nick. Unsung Heroes of Rock'n'Roll. .

External links
 

Year of birth unknown
1979 deaths
Memphis blues musicians
Electric blues musicians
African-American saxophonists
American rhythm and blues musicians
Musicians from Clarksdale, Mississippi
Blues musicians from Mississippi
Rock and roll musicians
Chess Records artists
Federal Records artists
Sue Records artists
20th-century American musicians
Kings of Rhythm members
Ike & Tina Turner members
United States Army soldiers
American male saxophonists
20th-century American male musicians