Boom Boom is a blues standard written and first recorded by John Lee Hooker in Chicago on October 26, 1961. It was released as a single in 1962 and appeared on the album Burnin' (1962). The tune is an uptempo blues in the key of F, around 168 BPM, built on a tight twelve-bar form with a stop-time hook and a middle Hooker-style boogie. Hooker said he wrote it after a late-night gig at the Apex Bar in Detroit, inspired by bartender Willa who kept saying “Boom boom – you late again.” The song became one of Hooker’s most identifiable tunes and a staple for the early 1960s R&B and UK circuit, later covered by many artists. A 1964 Animals version reached the US charts, and a 1992 revival with Jimmie Vaughan brought it back to the UK charts after it was used in a Lee Jeans commercial. It remains a cornerstone of blues-rock and has earned hall of fame recognition and inclusion on best-songs lists.
