Turn Up The Radio.....Desire.....Oh Well.....Rollin' By The Record Machine.....just a
few of the great tunes from a Detroit original; a rock band called
THE ROCKETS.
No, it's not Love and Rockets, nor is it the
60's band also called the Rockets.
It's the Motor City's seemingly forgotten ROCKETS,
fronted by the late-great David Gilbert. The Rockets flame
burned bright and they
came so very close to jetting into rock'n roll's stratosphere.
But it was not to be, The Rockets
burned out, re-entry
was fatal and spelled the end of this kick-ass band.
I was fortunate
enough to see this awesome band twice in their heyday.
This is my tribute to a long-lost band
that made quite an impression on a young Michigan rocker so
many years ago......
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ROCKETS HISTORY....
The Rockets were formed in 1972 by former
Mitch Ryder & The Detroit
Wheels members Johnny "Bee" Bandajek and Jim McCarty. Vocals and drums were
handled by Bandajek, McCarty was on lead guitar, John Fraga was on bass
and Marc Marcano was on keyboards. Johnny Bee was the driving force
and primary songwriter for the Rockets. In the early days, The Rockets paid
their dues playing gigs at venues such as,
The Rainbow Room and
The Peoples Ballroom in Detroit, and
The Rock 'N Roll Farm in Wayne Michigan.
The band took on a new sound in 1976 when David Gilbert was brought in to take over vocals from Johnny Bee. Gilbert had fronted several garage bands and had a brief stint singing for Ted Nugent and The Amboy Dukes in 1971. His drinking and drug habits didn't set too well with the Motor City Madman. Gilbert's raw vocal power proved to be just the ticket to complete the Rockets sound. However, as Nugent had before them, Bandajek and McCarty quickly realized Gilbert would be trouble for the band with his frequent drug and booze binges. The friction between them would go on for seven years before it eventually tore the band apart. Five studio albums produced several minor hits including a rocking rendition of Fleetwood Mac's "Oh Well". Always a popular group in Detroit, and Michigan, The Rockets had gotten some attention outside of the state, but never really got the big break to become a true national act. The first album, Love Transfusion, was released in 1977. It failed to produce any hits. The 1979 self-titled release featured the hits, "Oh Well" and "Turn Up The Radio". This record also featured on bass, David Hood, one of the "Swampers" from the famous Muscle Shoals Sound Studios in Alabama. Muscle Shoals was mentioned in Lynyrd Skynyrd's southern rock anthem "Sweet Home Alabama". Also, this Rockets album was dedicated to Skynyrd members Ronnie Van Zant, Steve Gaines and Cassie Gaines, who all perished in Skynyrds infamous 1977 plane crash. The third attempt came in 1980 with "No Ballads", "Desire" was a popular tune from this album. Next came the "Back Talk" album in '81 and then finally "Rocket Roll" in 1982. "Rollin' By The Record Machine" from this release was the last hit for the band. The final release, "Live Rockets" was recorded on New Years Eve 1982 at the Royal Oak Music Theatre near Detroit. The Rockets performed for their last two shows at Pine Knob (now known as DTE Energy Music Theatre) near Detroit on August 28th & 29th, 1983. The band splintered and the members all went their separate ways. Bandajek, McCarty and the rest went on to other projects. Gilbert played in a couple of short-lived local bands and ended up taking a job hanging drywall. His lifelong abuse of drugs and alcohol along with divorces, death and suicide had taken its toll. Former rock star David Gilbert was 49 when he died of cirrhosis in 2001. R.I.P. David. (V1.0 7-23-05) |
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ROCKETS MEMBERS....
DAVID GILBERT (1951-2001) - Vocals 1976-83 (Albums:1,2,3,4,5,6)
JIM McCARTY - Guitar 1972-83 (Albums:1,2,3,4,5,6)
JOHN BANDAJEK - Drums 1972-83 Vocals 1972-76 (Albums:1,2,3,4,5,6)
DENNIS ROBBINS - Guitar 1977-81 (Albums:1,2,3,4) JOHN FRAGA - Bass 1972-79 (Albums:1,2) DAVID HOOD - Bass 1979 (Album:2) DAN KEYLON - Bass 1980 (Album:3) BOBBY HARRELSON - Bass 1981-83 (Albums:4,5,6)
MARC MARCANO - Keyboards 1973-?? DONNIE BACKUS - Keyboards 1979-83 (Albums:2,3,4,5,6)
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| ROCKETS CONCERT PHOTOS - TORONTO 1981.... |
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| ROCKETS ALBUMS.... |
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1) LOVE TRANSFUSION - 1977
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2) ROCKETS - 1979
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3) NO BALLADS - 1980
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4) BACK TALK - 1981
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5) ROCKET ROLL - 1982
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6) LIVE ROCKETS - 1983
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