Is this the first rock & roll song?

 

“Dance First. Think later. It’s the natural order.” – Samuel Beckett

Jackie Breston & His Delta Cats featuring Ike Turner on guitar doing  “Rocket 88” recorded in 1951 is reputed to be the first rock & roll song. Not the first song to feature the words but the first example of what would become the dominant musical style of the coming decade. The honking sax, the rollicking piano but especially the scuzzy sound of that guitar, all became hallmarks of the best of early rock & roll and the song still kicks it today. The story goes that the band drove all night from Kansas City to Chess Records in Chicago for their studio recording début. Once there, it was discovered that a hole had been punched in the guitar amp from either the travel or getting it in or out of the trunk of the car the band rode in, hence the lo-fi rumble & fuzz sound of the guitar on this record.

Jackie Breston & His Delta Cats (ft. Ike Turner on guitar) – Rocket 88 (1951)