Ram Jam - Black Betty

What this video is

Released in June 1977, Ram Jam's 'Black Betty' promo clip arrived years before MTV launched (1981), making it a rare surviving artifact of the pre-cable promotional film era. Producers Jerry Kasenetz and Jeffry Katz — veterans of the bubblegum pop scene who had worked with the Ohio Express and 1910 Fruitgum Company — assembled Ram Jam around guitarist Bill Bartlett and re-released a recording originally made by…

Why it matters

Represents the commercial apex of blues-derived hard rock in 1977, bridging bubblegum production sensibility with proto-heavy-metal guitar intensity. The track's enduring ubiquity at sporting events and in film soundtracks — including the 2001 film Blow — cemented it as a canonical rock standard,…