Rocket 88 - Tribute to Ike Turner

Ike Turner is not the first guy you'd think likely to inspire a tribute album, and this one doesn't exactly have a cavalcade of stars lined up to pay respects. Instead, it's the work of a group of Nashville-based session musicians, Mr. Groove Band, who cover a dozen songs associated with Turner in his long career. That means highly competent, pretty faithful blues-rock-soul versions of "River Deep, Mountain High," "Nutbush City Limits," "Rocket 88," and some classics covered by Turner on record to good effect, like "Proud Mary" and "Come Together." One name is present via Bonnie Bramlett (an ex-Ikette before moving on to bigger things), who sings on "Proud Mary," while Ike's final wife, Audrey Turner, is heard on a few other tracks. It's actually Darryl Johnson who takes most of the lead vocals, however, and manages an eerie similarity to Tina Turner in his vocal delivery. It's well done and, in common with many other tribute albums, unnecessary in view of the availability of the far more significant original recordings. As a bonus track, the CD adds "Prancing," an instrumental from Turner's sessions for his 2007 album Risin' with the Blues.