Rockie Charles had already logged decades in music as a singer and guitarist whose soulful blues style finally drew notice in the mid-1990s. Born Charles Merick on November 14, 1942, in Boothville, Louisiana, he entered the scene during the early 1960s by performing with several New Orleans R&B ensembles that reflected the influence of Earl King and Chuck Berry. Although tryouts for Minit and Imperial yielded no results, he still managed to lay down a few sides for Black Patch in the middle of the decade, among them the track “Sinking Like a Ship.”
A move to Nashville followed, where he supplied instrumental support for O.V. Wright, Little Johnny Taylor, and Roscoe Shelton. By 1970 he was back in New Orleans, launching his own imprint, Soulgate, and scoring a local hit with the single “The President of Soul.” The rise of disco soon eroded his momentum, however, and for most of the next twenty years he earned his living as a tugboat captain and oyster fisherman.
In 1994 Orleans Records producer Carlo Ditta answered an advertisement Charles had placed in a local entertainment magazine. Two years later the singer issued his debut solo album, Born for You.
