I follow Rob Stoner on Facebook. The musician posts photos of his time with Bob Dylan’s Rolling Thunder Revue and other bands. the pictures that really receive my attention are from his time with Robert Gordon’s band with Link Wray on guitar. They are an amazing looking band. Every time I see a photo of them on stage, I’m struck with the feeling that I missed an amazing show that night. If you track down their concert videos online, I can hear that is so true. Link Wray was a guitar legend who brought the nasty with his first hit “Rumble.” The Rock Prophet – The Story of Link Wray gives us a picture of the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer’s life in music.
Link Wray was born in Dunn, North Carolina and was half Shawnee as his mother was a member of the tribe. Various people talk about him growing up in an area where the KKK was extremely active when he was growing up. The family eventually moved to Portsmouth, Virginia when his dad went to work in the shipyards. Link and his brothers started an instrumental band right in the early days of rock music. We learn how he created “Rumble” in 1958. You might have heard the song in Pulp Fiction. He invented distortion by busting up his guitar amp by shoving pencils into the speaker. Even more importantly was Wray discovered the power chord. The song became a smash hit and scared parents. Some people viewed “Rumble” as description of a gang fight. The song found itself being banned from radio stations for fear it’s wicked chords would create an army of juvenile delinquents. Link proved to not be a one hit wonder when “Raw-Hide” also charted. The film charts his career which had him playing and recording long after most of the ’50s acts were “retired” or part of the nostalgia circuit. Although his money situation was weird since his brother got the lion’s share. Link didn’t seem to care since he had money coming from his military disability payments since he lost a lung in the Korean War. We get the story of how Link Wray met up with Robert Gordon and Rob Stoner. Link and Gordon were a doubles act on stage. Robert would step aside in the middle of the set so Link could go instrumental. The movie follows how Link Wray moved to Europe for the last twenty years of his life.
The Rock Prophet – The Story of Link Wray is a complicated portrait of an artist. While Wray is lionized for his achievements, we also see that he wasn’t so wonderful. He fathered 9 kids and one tale of a child trying to meet him at a gig was not warm. He never seemed to have great manager so his musical legacy remains rather spotty. You’d only think he was a one hit wonder when he made so many amazing records over the decades. There’s talk and video of his final years on the road. While Link Wray was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2023, this was a belated honor. He passed away in 2005. What’s amazing is how many musicians want to praise Link in this documentary and want you to track down his music beyond “Rumble.” Among the people who talking are Steven Van Zandt, Robert Gordon, Jimmy Page, Slim Jim Phantom, Nils Lofgren and Rob Stoner. Director John Waters (Pink Flamingos) gives us a sense of why Link Wray’s music matters to him and should to you. The Rock Prophet – The Story of Link Wray is a beautiful tribute to the artist.

The Video is 1.78:1 anamorphic. The quality varies from the vintage footage to the new interviews. The Audio is LPCM 2.0 stereo. You’ll want to crank this up when Link Wray hits to those cords to “Rumble.” The movie is subtitled in English.
Trailer (2:54) has people talking about the guitar sound Link Wray achieved. John Waters is amazed that Link Ray’s “Rumble” got banned even though it was an instrumental.
MVD Visual presents The Rock Prophet – The Story of Link Wray. Directed by Jon Brewer. Screenplay by Laura Brewer. Featuring Link Wray, Rob Stoner, Iggy Pop, Neil Young, Steve Van Zandt, John Waters, Bob Harris and Robert Gordon. Running Time: 89 minutes. Rating: Unrated. Release Date: June 20, 2025.