Herbie Hancock - Rockit (12" Long Version)

Herbie Hancock - Rockit (Long Version) / 12 Inch Extended Remix (HQ Audio)

When Rockit made the top ten on both sides of the Atlantic in August 1983, it was the first time most people had heard scratching.

We might not have expected Herbie Hancock, of all people, to be the one to bring the still largely underground technique to the mainstream.

Hancock was primarily known as a jazz pianist, composer, and bandleader, with a career dating back to the 1960s. He'd had his first big hit in 1962 with Watermelon Man and had been part of Miles Davis' Second Great Quintet.

In the 1970s, he released a succession of jazz-funk and jazz-fusion albums, increasingly introducing electronic and disco sounds as the decade progressed.

Rockit came about after Hancock's manager introduced him to bassist and producer Bill Laswell, who was collaborating with keyboardist Michael Beinhorn in the band Material. Laswell and Beinhorn had been experimenting with blending jazz and hip-hop elements, and they proposed a collaboration with Hancock to explore this new direction.

Hancock, intrigued by the emerging hip-hop scene, agreed.

The initial recording sessions took place at BC Studio in Brooklyn, New York. Laswell and Beinhorn laid down the foundational tracks using an Oberheim DMX drum machine (the same drum sounds heard on New Order's Blue Monday and Malcolm McLaren's Buffalo Gals the same year).

Grand Mixer D.ST (now known as DXT) was brought in to contribute scratching. Born Derek Showard, Grand Mixer D.ST was part of the early New York hip-hop scene. His stage name D.ST was inspired by the Delancey Street subway station in New York City, and he was a member of Afrika Bambaataa’s Universal Zulu Nation.

Hancock added synthesizer parts, including the main melody, using instruments such as the Fairlight CMI and the Rhodes Chroma. The track was completed with overdubs at RPM Studios in Manhattan and Hancock's home studio in West Hollywood.

Rockit climbed to number 1 on the US Hot Dance Club Play chart and reached the top 10 in the UK, Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, and Switzerland - its international appeal assisted by it being an instrumental.

A full album of hip-hop inspired, and jazz infused material resulted from the Hancock-Material collaboration. Titled Future Shock it was Hancock's 29th album and was certified Platinum in the US.

Rockit's video was one of the first to prominently feature turntablism, introducing the art form to a wider audience. Directed by Godley & Creme, it also featured robotic sculptures by artist Jim Whiting, adding to the futuristic feel of the track and earning it heavy rotation on MTV, a level of exposure that was rare for jazz-related tracks at the time.

And when Grand Mixer D.ST performed Rockit live with Herbie Hancock at the 1984

Grammy Awards, it was one of the first live televised DJ and scratching performances in history.

Featured here is the Long Version (also known as the S-T-R-E-T-C-H-E-D Version).

Rockit is Hancock's highest-charting single around the world in a six-decade career.

Label: CBS Cat no: TA3577 Year: 1983