The Rockets - Back Talk (1981) & Rocket Roll (1982) (2LPs on 1CD)

The Rockets were formed in 1972 by former Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels members Johnny "Bee" Badanjek and Jim McCarty. Vocals and drums were handled by Badanjek, McCarty was on lead guitar, John Fraga was on bass guitar 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 in Detroit, The People's Ballroom in Ann Arbor, and The Rock 'N Roll Farm in Wayne, Michigan.
The band took on a new sound in 1976 when David Gilbert was brought in by new manager Gary Lazar, who also managed Detroit RCA Victor recording artist Dan Schafer, to take over vocals from Johnny Bee and Donnie Backus took over on keyboards. Gilbert had fronted several bands and was one of several lead singers that passed through the ranks of Ted Nugent and The Amboy Dukes. In 1971, he toured with them for a year and a half before forming Shadow which led to a record deal with RSO Records.
The Rockets made five studio albums that produced several minor hits, including a rocking rendition of Fleetwood Mac's "Oh Well", which made the Top 40.
Always a popular group in Michigan, The Rockets received some attention outside of the state but never became a true national act. Their first album, Love Transfusion, was released in 1977. During this period, they also opened some shows for Kiss. The album failed to produce any hits.
The 1979 self-titled release featured the hits, "Oh Well" and "Turn Up The Radio". This record also featured David Hood on bass guitar, 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". The album was dedicated to Skynyrd members Ronnie Van Zant, Steve Gaines and Cassie Gaines, who all perished in Skynyrd's infamous 1977 plane crash.
Their third album (with the addition of new bass guitarist Dan Keylon) was the 1980 release No Ballads. "Desire" was a popular tune from this album. Next came the Back Talk album in 1981 (with another new bass guitarist, Bobby Haralson) and then Rocket Roll in 1982. "Rollin' By The Record Machine" from this release was the last hit for the band. Their final release, Live Rockets, was recorded on December 26 and 29, 1982, to a sold-out house at the Royal Oak Music Theatre near Detroit. This was the first time the band recorded with back-up vocalists, Shaun Murphy and Suzy Jennings, who continued to tour with them.
The Rockets performed their last two shows at Pine Knob near Detroit on August 28 and 29, 1983. The band members went their separate ways. Bandajek, McCarty and the rest went on to other projects. Gilbert played in several bands and learned the trade of Dryvit. He was 49 when he died of liver cancer in 2001. Dennis Robbins went on to become a solo artist signed to Giant Records in the 1990s and a multi-platinum hit songwriter, co-writing numerous country songs such as "Two Of A Kind (Working On A Full House)", "Get Me To The Church On Cumberland Road", "Do You Love Me (Just Say Yes)", "Too Much Month At The End Of The Money", and more.
Bobby Neil Haralson died in the 1990s. John Fraga, bassist, died September 27, 2010 at 69 (born July 1, 1941).
(everipedia.org/wiki/lang_en/The_Rockets_(band))