The House
Rockers.
A Kentucky rhythm & blues story.
Georgetown roots. Lexington connections. A sound you can still hear.
Hero: an AI-created artistic recreation inspired by the supplied Lyric Theatre photograph. It is not an archival image or evidence of a House Rockers performance at the Lyric.
The House Rockers.
In their own time.
Two original photographs preserve the band together and Leslie Bailey beside the House Rockers vehicle. Select either photograph to enlarge it.
Before the history
became an archive,
it was a night out.
The House Rockers—also printed as The Houserockers—belong to Central Kentucky’s rhythm & blues story. The band brought together musicians with Georgetown and Lexington connections, including Charles Vinegar, George Gentry, and Alonzo Robinson.
Their surviving 1964 single brings that story into the present. Two songs. One red Trophy International label. Press play and spend a few minutes with the sound.
Two sides.
One Kentucky record.
Hear both recordings, explore the original labels, and follow the details that survive in the grooves.
Come On Baby
Put the needle down. Listen for the voice, the rhythm section, and the band’s musical conversation.
I’m So Lonely
Take a second listen. Follow the vocal phrasing and the instrumental responses around it.
Audio files supplied for this exhibit. The 1964 release is listed as Trophy International 1500; these digital transfers run approximately 2:50 and 2:52. Recording-session personnel are not established by the sources reviewed. Playback begins only when you choose it; starting one track pauses the other.
Read the record’s label and release details
“Come On Baby” credits “Robinson”; “I’m So Lonely” credits “Williams.” Both labels identify Fayette Music, BMI. The catalog lists matrices R4KM-6091 for “Come On Baby” and R4KM-6092 for “I’m So Lonely.” The name appears as “The Houserockers.”
View the Kentucky label discography ↗ · Explore the soul discography ↗Lives behind
the music.
A band’s history lives in more than a record label. It lives in musicians, memories, and the communities that shaped them.
Charles Vinegar
June 24, 1925–March 5, 2011
Charles Vinegar was a lead singer with the House Rockers. He attended Ed Davis High School and was a World War II veteran.
Explore his story
Born in Grant County in 1925, Vinegar’s life connected music with military service, Army and Department of Defense employment, and farming. His obituary offers a direct documentary link between his name and the band.
The obituary does not identify him as the vocalist on the two recordings presented here.
Read the 2011 obituary ↗George Gentry
A Dunbar High School graduate, Gentry played in the House Rockers before becoming a familiar presence in Lexington jazz.
Explore his story
A 2007 Herald-Leader tribute, preserved by musician David Hall, links Gentry to the band through his wife’s recollections and Alonzo Robinson’s testimony. His career also included work with Ike Turner and Otis Redding.
A 1997 oral-history index includes his discussion of Black bands, segregation, and the Lyric Theatre.
Read the tribute ↗Explore the oral-history index ↗
Alonzo Robinson
March 8, 1933–April 10, 2013
Alonzo Robinson was a member of the House Rockers alongside George Gentry. His recollections of Gentry preserve a personal connection to the band’s history.
Explore the connections
Robinson remembered Gentry as a respected musician and a devoted family man. The “Come On Baby” label carries the surname “Robinson” as a writing credit; it does not give a first name.
Robinson’s membership in the House Rockers is verified. Further research can add detail about his years with the band and musical career.
Read the bandmate testimony ↗Avalon “Mackie” Wilson
April 18, 1929–December 29, 2013
House Rockers · bass guitar
Harry “Sonny Boy” Williams
House Rockers · organ · lead singer
Jesse Jackson
House Rockers · drums
David Lee Jackson
House Rockers · guitar
Leslie Bailey
Leslie Bailey was a member of the House Rockers. This photograph shows him beside a vehicle bearing the band’s name.
All eight musicians featured here are verified members of the House Rockers: Charles Vinegar, George Gentry, Alonzo Robinson, Avalon “Mackie” Wilson, Harry “Sonny Boy” Williams, Jesse Jackson, David Lee Jackson, and Leslie Bailey.
George Gentry’s, Alonzo Robinson’s, Avalon “Mackie” Wilson’s, and David Lee Jackson’s portraits and the photograph of Leslie Bailey were supplied by the exhibit contributor. Charles Vinegar’s generated portrait was supplied for this exhibit. Original group and vehicle photographs were supplied by the exhibit contributor. Record images and the period newspaper advertisement appear alongside clearly identified generated imagery.
The voices up front.
The band behind them.
Lexingtunes’ history of Bonnie and the Little Boys Blue places the Houserockers among the backing bands that helped animate Lexington’s Black music scene. The Pacesetters appear alongside them as another backing ensemble.
The account names venues including the Georgetown Street VFW, the Pralltown Café, and the Cotton Club in the vocal group’s performance history.
Read the local music history ↗Georgetown roots
Vinegar’s Ed Davis High School connection anchors part of the band’s story in Georgetown and Scott County.
Lexington connections
Gentry’s Dunbar education and Lexington career connect the group with the city’s musicians and audiences.
What the advertisement tells us
This clipping advertises Bonnie and the Little Boys Blue at the VFW Isaac Jones Post 8420 on Georgetown Street. It documents the vocal group and venue; it does not name the House Rockers or establish which backing band played that particular night.
Period advertisement reproduced for historical study. Source: Lexingtunes. Select the clipping to enlarge it.
A living history.
A careful record.
Explore what is documented, what remains open, and where these stories can be followed further.
What is documented?
The 1964 Trophy International single, Vinegar’s lead-singer identification, Gentry and Robinson’s band connection, and the Houserockers’ place in the regional backing-band scene are supported by the linked sources.
Did the House Rockers play the Lyric?
No dated House Rockers engagement at the Lyric has been established in the sources reviewed. This page sits within “The Lyric & Its Stage” as part of the theatre’s broader exploration of Central Kentucky music.
Who sings on these recordings?
The contributor identifies Harry “Sonny Boy” Williams as the band’s organist and lead singer. Sir Shambling suggests Sonny Williams as a possible vocalist on this release; the recording-session attribution remains unconfirmed. Vinegar’s obituary establishes that he sang with the band, but does not identify the voice on this release.
Read the discography’s attribution note ↗Where can the research go next?
Concert advertisements, family photographs, complete record sleeves, and oral histories can add detail to the members’ musical careers and performance dates. Gentry’s indexed 1997 interview provides another route into Lexington’s musical memory.
View the University of Kentucky index ↗Follow the story further.
Original red record-label images: Lexingtunes’ YouTube documentation of “Come On Baby” and “I’m So Lonely.” Newspaper clipping: Lexingtunes. Hero illustration: an AI-created artistic recreation. Original House Rockers band and vehicle photographs supplied by the exhibit contributor. Exhibit research reviewed October 2026.
Continue exploring the stages, journeys, and artists that shaped the Lyric’s musical world.
Explore the Chitlin’ Circuit →