"Rock Me" is a song by the Canadian-American
hard rock
Hard rock or heavy rock is a heavier subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and Distortion (music), distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the Garage rock, garage, Psychedelic rock, psychedelic and blues ...
band
Steppenwolf. It was released on their 1969 album ''
At Your Birthday Party''. It was written by the band's lead singer
John Kay, and was the band's fifth American single release. The song was produced by
Gabriel Mekler and released as a single in 1969, originally as the B-side to "Jupiter Child", but the sides were later flipped.
[ It peaked at #10 on the ]Hot 100
The ''Billboard'' Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), o ...
on April 19, 1969Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
's and Cashbox's top debut the week of March 1, 1969. The song is considered the highlight of the album[ though it had been released for the soundtrack well ahead of the album. The song followed on the heels of the band's two 1968 hits, " Born to Be Wild" which peaked at #2 and " Magic Carpet Ride" which peaked at #3. '']Cash Box
''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...
'' particularly praised the "pulverizing vocal performance."Dave Grusin
Robert David Grusin (born June 26, 1934) is an American composer, arranger, producer, jazz pianist, and band leader. He has composed many scores for feature films and television and has won numerous awards for his soundtrack and record work, incl ...
used the song when he scored the 1968 psychedelic
Psychedelics are a subclass of hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger non-ordinary mental states (known as psychedelic experiences or "trips") and a perceived "expansion of consciousness". Also referred to as classic halluci ...
sex farce movie ''Candy
Candy, alternatively called sweets or lollies, is a Confectionery, confection that features sugar as a principal ingredient. The category, also called ''sugar confectionery'', encompasses any sweet confection, including chocolate, chewing gum ...
'', in which it is the culmination to the soundtrack. Steppenwolf performed the song on the January 5, 1969, episode of ''The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour
''The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour'' is an American television comedy, comedy and variety show television series hosted by the Smothers Brothers and initially airing on CBS from 1967 to 1969.
The series was a major success, especially consid ...
'' and on the German ''Beat-Club
''Beat-Club'' was a West German music programme that ran from September 1965 to December 1972. It was broadcast from Bremen, West Germany on ''Erstes Deutsches Fernsehen'', the national public TV channel of the ARD, and produced by one of its m ...
.'' The song later appeared in the band's live albums '' Live at 25'' released in 1995 and '' Live in Louisville'' released in 2004 as well as all of the band's compilation albums.
Way Back Attack ranks it #31 on its list of the Top 100 Psychedelic Hits of 1966–1969.
In his book ''Die at the Right Time!: A Subjective Cultural History of the American Sixties,'' Erik v. d. Luft noted the surprising theme from the all-male band, fronted by John Kay's gruff voice "complaining that a woman was being objectified for sex."
Chart history
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
References
{{Steppenwolf
1969 singles
Steppenwolf (band) songs
1969 songs
ABC Records singles
Dunhill Records singles