The Kings of Rhythm are an American rhythm & blues and soul group formed in the late 1940s in Clarksdale, Mississippi and led by Ike Turner through to his death in 2007. Turner would retain the name of the band throughout his career, although the group has undergone considerable lineup changes over time. The group was an offshoot of a large big band ensemble called the Top Hatters. By the late 1940s Turner had renamed this group The Kings of Rhythm. Their early stage performances consisted largely of covers of popular jukebox hits of the day. A 1951 lineup of the group recorded the song "Rocket 88", which was an early example of Rock 'n' Roll. In the 1960s they became the band for the Ike & Tina Turner Revue. For a few years in the early 1970s they were renamed The Family Vibes, and released 2 albums under this name, both produced by, but not featuring Ike Turner. The band have continued, for a time under the leadership of pianist Ernest Lane (himself a childhood friend of Turner's), and continues to tour with vocalist Earl Thomas. The group has been running for at least 64 years.
Famous quotes containing the words kings and/or rhythm:
“It is an imprudence common to kings to listen to too much advice and to err in their choice.”
—Pierre Corneille (1606–1684)
“The two elements the traveler first captures in the big city are extrahuman architecture and furious rhythm. Geometry and anguish. At first glance, the rhythm may be confused with gaiety, but when you look more closely at the mechanism of social life and the painful slavery of both men and machines, you see that it is nothing but a kind of typical, empty anguish that makes even crime and gangs forgivable means of escape.”
—Federico García Lorca (1898–1936)