| Rockit Fuel Only | |
| Type: | studio |
| Artist: | Evan Johns |
| Cover: | Rockit Fuel Only.jpg |
| Released: | 1991 |
| Label: | Rykodisc[1] |
| Producer: | Evan Johns |
| Prev Title: | Please Mr. Santa Claus |
| Prev Year: | 1990 |
Rockit Fuel Only is an album by the American musician Evan Johns, released in 1991.[2] [3] He is credited with his backing band, the H-Bombs.[4] [5] Johns supported the album with a North American tour.[6]
Rockit Fuel Only was produced by Johns, who also played mandolin on the album.[7] [8] It was recorded in Dallas.[9] Drummer Jim Starboard sings lead on one track.
"Dig That Boogie" is a cover of the Roy Hall song; "Burnin' Over What I Done" is about the televangelist Jimmy Swaggart.[10]
Trouser Press wrote that "'Boogie Disease' and 'Little Scene Setter' are among the rip-it-up corkers that keep Evan Johns among rock'n'roll's guitar elite."[11] The Orlando Sentinel thought that Johns "detonates his guitar with unpredictable but always spine-shaking results on everything from the monumentally grungy 'Back in the Back Seat' to the roaring 'Little Scene Setter' to the Texas-swinging-out-of-orbit 'Under the Willows in Dixie' to the wistful 'Meant for You'."
The Austin American-Statesman noted that "Johns is more an extremist than a revivalist."[12] The Chicago Tribune complained that "it takes nearly three-quarters of the album and a swaying little tune called 'In the Groove' before he and the band find a groove that isn't just a mindless boogie stomp (with lyrics to match)." The Houston Chronicle concluded that "Johns is in a class by himself when it comes to imagination and fretboard exploration"; the paper later listed the album among the 40 best of 1991.[13]
AllMusic wrote: "Johns' craggy vocals make this 100-proof roadhouse rock even when he's in a relatively mellow mood, and it's never too long before he kicks things back into overdrive on fourth-gear rockers like 'Back in the Backseat', 'Sugary Action', and the title cut."