The Rockats began in 1980 after the breakup of Levi & the Rockats. Levi left to go solo and guitarist Stephen "Dibbs" Preston and stand-up bassist Smutty Smith decided to keep the band going. Preston moved to vocals and Barry Ryan and Tim Scott joined on guitars along with ex-New York Dolls and Heartbreakers drummer Jerry Nolan on drums.
The band played in and around New York for most of 1980, building a large following and opening shows for The Clash, The Pretenders, and even Kiss. They also released a single on their own Kat Tail Records, "Rockabilly Doll". At this point Nolan left to rejoin Johnny Thunders in The Heartbreakers and was replaced with Lewis King.
Chris Blackwell (owner of Island Records) signed the band after he saw Iggy Pop, Phil Lynott (Thin Lizzy), Frankie Infante (Blondie), and Johnny Thunders join the band on stage for a very long encore one night in New York. Island released "Live at The Ritz" in May 1981 to rave reviews and gained the band a nationwide following. The Rockats hit the road for the next year headlining their own shows as well as touring with or opening shows for acts such as Hall & Oats, The GoGo's, David Bowie, Dave Edmunds, The Cramps, Tina Turner, and more.
Tim Scott and Lewis King left in late '82 and were replaced with Danny B. Harvey and Mike Osborne. The band appeared in the movie "Where The Boys Are '84" and on Dick Clark's "American Bandstand". Soon after the group was signed to RCA and released the album "Make That Move" along with a video for MTV.
The Rockats broke up in 1985 and became involved in individual projects. Smith, Preston, and Ryan reformed in 1992 with drummer Ira Kay for a successful tour of Japan, where the group was very popular. Smutty left in 1997 and Dibbs and Barry continue to keep The Rockats rockin' with Mike "Chops" Laconte on the King Doublebass and Eddie Everett on drums.
DISCOGRAPHY
Rockabilly Doll (Single, 1980) Live At The Ritz (1981) Make That Move (EP, 1983) Raw In Japan (1992) The Last Bop (1993) Downtown Saturday Night (1994) The Good, The Bad, The Rockin' (1997) True Hearted Woman (2000) Rollin' Thunder (2001) Wild Love (2003)
Just wanted to let you guys know that your "Wild Love" cd is constantly spinning in my car (: In fact, it is on the top of my list for "traveling music" today! Love me some Rockats! Thanks for being so awesome (: Billie*
