Troy, MI - Dec. 1, 2010 - The North American International Auto
Show (NAIAS) Charity Preview takes place at Detroit's Cobo Center,
Friday, Jan. 14, 2011, and will once again serve as the black-tie
gala that is one of the top single-night fundraising events in the
nation. For 2011, it will feature yet another hometown favorite
with national ties: Detroit's own, The Rockets.
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Legendary hometown rock band, The Rockets perform at NAIAS
Charity Preview fresh from a year that featured a Distinguished
Achievement Award at the Detroit Music Awards, an opening
performance for the J. Geils Band this summer at a sold-out DTE
Music Theater, and a triumphant headlining at Detroit's Fillmore
last month. The Rockets previous-11-year, six-album rock 'n' roll
journey earned them solid credibility in the music industry as a
roof-raising live band when headlining or opening for bands such as
KISS, ZZ Top, REO Speedwagon, The Who and Bob Seger and the Silver
Bullet Band, and drew the attention of The Kinks, Blondie, Iggy Pop
and David Bowie.
"Charity Preview is about raising money for children in need in
our community," said Barron Meade, Chairman, 2011 NAIAS. "Having
the Rockets perform at our Charity Preview drives home that sense
of community, passion and spirit the event illustrates. Charity
Preview is about a celebration of the Motor City; the Rockets are
tremendous ambassadors of this city's musical heritage and our
hard-working culture."
Formed in 1972 by former Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels
bandmates guitarist Jimmy McCarty and drummer Johnny "Bee"
Badanjek, the Rockets took off locally as mainstays of Detroit
radio between 1979-83. Three of the group's albums - "Rockets," "No
Ballads" and "Back Talk" - hit the Billboard 200 chart between
1979-81 while "Can't Sleep" and "Desire" hit Billboard in the Hot
Hundred singles chart. Over that time, songs such as "Turn Up the
Radio," "Oh Well" (a Top 40 national hit), "Takin' It Back" and
"Rollin' By the Record Machine" were popular Motor City anthems.
However, years of non-stop touring prompted a farewell live album
recorded at the Royal Oak Music Theater and a final show at a
sold-out then-Pine Knob Music Theater took place in 1983.
Based on encouragement from fans and music industry insiders
alike, The Rockets have fired up the engines again with a series of
reunion activities that created more than just memories. McCarty
and Badanjeck are joined by a formidable team of veterans including
vocalist Jim Edwards, bassist Marvin Conrad, and Danny Taylor on
keyboards, and are readying new material for an upcoming
release.
Since its inception in 1976, Charity Preview has raised more
than $82 million for children's charities in metro Detroit, over
$37 million of which was raised in the last seven years alone.
Medical treatment, clothing and support services for local kids in
need all are made possible through the purchase of Charity Preview
tickets.
Tickets for the 2011 NAIAS Charity Preview can be purchased at
www.charitypreview.com.
Beneficiaries of the Charity Preview include: Boys & Girls Club
of Southeastern Michigan; Boys Hope Girls Hope of Detroit; The
Children's Center; Judson Center; The Detroit Institute for
Children; Think Detroit PAL; March of Dimes; The Children's
Hospital of Michigan Foundation; and the DADA Charitable Foundation
Fund, a fund of the Community Foundation for Southeast
Michigan.
(Photos courtesy of Ken Settle.)
