EASTSIDE BANDS - THE MEN FROM S.O.U.N.D.

                     THE MEN FROM S.O.U.N.D. (circa 1966)
                                     
                     (left to right: Tony Rodas, Richard Rosas, Mark Guerrero,
                                George Ochoa, Ernie Hernandez)

Band Members (1966-1968):

Mark Guerrero (lead vocals, lead guitar)
Richard Rosas (bass)
Ernie Hernandez (drums, lead & harmony vocals)
Tony Rodas (Farfisa organ)
George Ochoa (lead vocals)
Richard Mojarro (lead vocals, guitar, harmonica) 1966
Richard Morin (lead vocals, guitar) 1968
Steve Verdugo (lead vocals, electric piano) 1968

The band began as Mark & The Escorts (SEE MY POST EASTSIDE BANDS - MARK & THE ESCORTS) who changed their name in 1966 to THE MEN FROM S.O.U.N.D. As you might expect is was a play on words from the popular television show THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. The SOUNDS come pro a popular British horns band, Sounds Incorporated.

As with many Eastside Bands of the day, this band went through some different incarnations. The band would take on member George Ochoa (SEE MY POST EASTSIDE LEGENDS - THE SLAUSON BROTHERS) as their lead vocalist.

The band was extremely popular and played nearly every venue on the Eastside circuit.

Another incarnation of the band featured the addition of Steve Verdugo who played keyboard, guitar and was a lead vocalist. Steve would go on to record "Hollywood"/"My Lady" for Ediie Davis' Gordo Records in 1973.

For much more information on THE MEN FROM S.O.U.N.D please visit Mark Guerrero's blog:

https://markguerrero.net/misc_60.php


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SOLELY FOR HISTORICAL & EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES

EASTSIDE OLDIES - PART 4

Here is a look at ten more records that were the sound of the city back in the day.

EASY COMPANY - "LET'S TALK IT OVER"

Band from East Los Angeles, California with members Henry Estrada (vocals & guitar), Rogelio (Pee Wee Benzor), David Benzor, Eddie Benzor

Released in 1982, "Let's Talk It Over" was released on the Kick record label.

ALBERT TORRES & THE STARFIRE BAND - "SOMEBODY PLEASE"

Albert Torres & The Starfire band from San Jose, California recorded this cover version of the Vanguard's classic "Somebody Please" Date of release not known

IRENE - "FORGET"

Irene Soto from Los Angeles, California recorded "Forget", a teen girl group sound for Baronet records in 1962.

RAY CAMACHO & THE TEARDROPS - "I TOLD YOU SO"

Ray was born in El Paso, Texas and was raided in Mendota, California. He attended Fresno City College and supported himself playing music with his band, The Teardrops.

The musicians were recruited from the Southwestern states and California. The band toured constantly and one of their favorite places to play was Phoenix, Arizona.

"I Told You So" was recorded in Tuscon, Arizona in 1966 and released on the Copper State label.

THEE EPICS - "MAMA SAID"

Produced and arranged by Doug Salma (of Doug & Freddy fame) Thee Epics recorded this cover version of The Shirelles smash hit "Mama Said"

The tune was released on the Soulville No. 1 record label in the mid-1960's. It can also be found on the album, "Eastside Revue"

THEE IN CROWD - "MONKEY TIME"

Band from San Gabriel, California with members Art Hernandez, Grover Berumen, Bobby Esparza, Larry Vallejo, Richard Hernandez, John Gonzales, Joe Perez and Ray Diaz.

Thee In Crowd recorded a cover version of the Major Lance smash hit "Monkey Time" The  tune was released on the Living Sound record label. Date not known

The band still performs live

AZUSA - "OH WHAT A NIGHT"

The band was originally known as Azusa and later Balance of Azusa, Funk, soul & R&B band from Azusa, California, The band has been performing over 40 years and their lead singer is Sammy Medina.

In 1983 as Azusa the band recorded a cover of The Dells classic "Oh What A Night" for Moon Dance Records.

The record was later re-pressed but this time as Balance on the Balance label in 1983

Sammy Medina & Balance at Nick's Taste Of Texas"

JOE ROMERO - "OH BABY"

More than likely related to Chan Romero of "Hippy Hippy Shake" fame, Joe Romero recorded a doo wop styled single for the Dore record label titled "Oh Baby" in 1960.

TOBY & RAY & THE MARGILATORS - "JUST WAITING FOR YOU"

Toby and Ray out of Santa Clara, California were backed by a group called The Margilators
Not much known about the band except that they recorded a doo wop tune called "Just Waiting For You." It was released in 1959 on the Blue Moon label.

THE ANGELENOS - "DOWN IN EAST LA"

One can possibly surmise that the band as from Los Angeles with East LA in the title and the song being recorded for the Highland record label. The record was released in 1966.

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SOLELY FOR HISTORICAL AND EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES

VINYL CLASSICS - LONELY BLUE NIGHTS WITH ROSIE

Rosie & The Originals first three singles including the all-time classsic "Angel Baby" were recorded for Highland Records.

In 1962 on the advice of Jackie Wilson, Rosie Hamlin moved to Brunswick Records which released  two singles one of which was a re-release of "Lonely Blue Nights" and "We'll Have A Chance"


Brunswick released an album titles "Lonely Blue Nights With Rosie" in 1962. (Brunswick 54102)
The album would not include the Highland smash single of "Angel Baby"/"Give Me Love"

Track List:

Side 1:

Lonely Blue Nights
Read The Story Of Love
My Darling Forever
No Other Love Will Ever Do
We'll Have A Chance
Angel From Above

Side 2:

The Time Is Near
Baby Baby Baby
I Found A Dream
Maybe I'm Dreamin'
Cloud Nine
It's Time To Go Home.


Rosie's unmistakable vocals are accompanied by an orchestra directed by Dick Jacobs

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SOLELY FOR HISTORICAL AND EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES!!

THE EASTSIDE SOUND - A RETROSPECTIVE LOOK (PART 2)

In part 1 of The Eastside Sound - A Retrospective look I traced the roots of The Eastside Sound from th late 1940's to the early 1960's.

I defined the term "Eastside Sound"as a hybridization of musical styles, genres and influences played and sung by young artists in Los Angeles and it's surrounding areas. Those Musical styles, genres and influences included traditional Latin music, Jazz, Big Band, rhythm and blues, vocal group harmony and popular music.

Part 2 chooses to begin with the rise of Ritchie Valens as a rocker,a ballad singer and one whose popularity would make a big splash in the music scene before his untimely death.

In the early 1960's the course and culture of rock & roll music would change at home and abroad. The existing sound would continue to evolve and new musical influences would come into play.
This musical evolution would most notably give rise to the Eastside Bands.

The new musical influences causing the music to evolve would come from many sources,

Teachers like Bill Taggert, Salesian High School's teacher and musical director inspired artists like The Ambertones by introducing them to jazz & big band while Johnny Gamboa whose music had been influenced by his parents and grandparents moved away from traditional jazz and rhythm & blues to playing what was popular on the radio.

Bands like The Leggeriors honed their craft by imitating songs in their record collection.

DooWop and rhythm & blues would continue to inspire artists like Cannibal & The Headhunters.

The Beach Boys and the surfing craze would influence bands like Mickey & The Invaders.

The British Invasion would have its greatest effect on the Eastside Sound with the Beatles influencing Mark & The Escorts and The Beatles along with Rolling Stones influencing Thee Midniters as well as garage bands like The Romancers and Thee Counts.

Christian Youth Organizations (CYOs) in many  areas offered more in way of education and after school activities. They offered inspiration for advancement in learning music and sponsored battle of the bands. Those battle of the bands would give rise to competition and to practicing and honing their skills. They also sponsored school dances and church activities and social events. One such inspired band was Thee Enchantments. Promoters like Johnny Jay would find venues around the LA area for bands to play.

Eastside record owners and producers like Eddie Davis and Eddie Torres gave local talent discovered and developed by people like Bill Cardenas a chance to go into the studio and put their music on records. Cardenas and Max Uballez started youth social clubs where the bands could play.

Local disc jockeys like Casey Casem, Dave Hull, Art Laboe and Huggy Boy along with their radio stations would play and promote the music as well as sponsor dances and concerts.

The entire East Los Angeles area and surrounding communities became a hot bed for musical talent and the excitement generated paved the way for the Eastside Sound to become a vital part of the history of rock & roll music and to have a lasting effect on our generation and generations to come.

This excitement in music in the youth would lead to a new movement in the late 1960's. The movement towards a political awakening and new musical influences for the turbulent times to come.

MEMORIAL SERVICES FOR EDUARDO "EDDIE' TORRES NOVEMBER 5,2019

MEMORIAL SERVICES FOR EDUARDO "EDDIE' TORRES NOVEMBER 5,2019

EASTSIDE LEGEND EDDIE TORRES PASSES AWAY

Eddie Torres was born and raised in Texas and after a stint in the Marine Corp he relocated to California.

Eddie attended East Los Angeles College and majored in sociology. Upon graduation Eddie took on a job working with gang members and potential gang members to keep them out of trouble.

As part of his plan in helping gang members, Eddie began promoting dances with local bands. At a dance held at St Alonsos Church in East Los Angeles, Eddie met a band called The Fabulous Gentiles. Impressed by the band Eddie urged them to change their name. They became Thee Midniters (taken from one of their favorite groups Hank Ballard & The Midnighters).

Eddie became the groups manager and arranged concerts for the band while giving them discipline and direction. The band would do as many as four shows a night traveling great distances between performances and their popularity grew.

Over the years Eddie became friends and partnered with Dick Hugg "Huggy Boy" and they promoted and sponsored concerts and dances in the neighborhood as well as the Huggy Boy Show.

To promote the band, Torres contacted Mike Carcano, owner of The Record Inn on Whittier Boulevard who showcased the band's record releases by holding in-store appearances. While the rest of the world was caught up in Beatlemania, Eddie Torres in East Los Angeles, California was giving rise to Midnitersmania.

In December, 1965 Eddie booked Thee Midniters to a major concert held at the Hollywood Bowl and hosted by Casey Kasem and radio station KRLA. The band also got exposure on local television shows Shebang and 9th Street West.

In 1966, Torres started his own record label, Whittier Records to further promote the band and their music. Thee Midniters were now the hottest band in town but Eddie wanted them to get them to the next level. He urged them to start writing their own songs which under major pressure they did.

The only thing missing was a record deal with a major record label and national exposure. Eddie contended that his Whittier label would become as big as another local record label, A&M Records but try as he might Eddie could never achieve that success.

RCA Records became interested in signing the band but a deal was never made. The band has their side of the story and Eddie has his. Whether Torres didn't want to lose control of the band and sabatoged any deal or the fact that RCA didn't want to give Torres or the band any upfront money for their album "Love Sprecial Delivery" is up for discussion.

The RCA debacle marked the beginning of the end of the relationship between Eddie and the band. Eddie officially departed in late 1968.

Eddie did not leave the music business. He would go on to promote other Chicano musicians including Thee Impalas, The Runabouts and Mark Guerrero. The importance and impact of Eddie Torres on the East Los Angeles music scene can not be over emphasized. He gave us the best band to ever come out of East L.A...... Thee Midniters.

Eddie Torres passed away October 17,2019, a legend of the Easiside Sound.

Land Of 1000 Dances - The Rampart Records Complete Singles Collection, by Various Artists

"Something musically vital was happening in East Los Angeles when all-around entertainment guru Eddie Davis' Rampart Records documented the fusion that became the West Coast Eastside Sound. Founded in 1961, Rampart Records is now celebrating its 58th anniversary with this box set collection. Rampart produced music unlike any other -- rock & roll and rhythm and blues, but with a Mexican twist. The singles on this collection are from Rampart's first 17 years, as the sounds changed from doo wop to R&B to garage to funk to disco. Hear East LA's greatest hits from the West Coast's longest running independent record company. Discover the amazing history and super-fine music from the classic Rampart Records catalogue, still going strong after 58 years! Among the gems heard on Land Of 1000 Dances is 'Hector Parts 1 & 2,' a double-barreled, organ-driven instrumental by The Village Callers, which was heard on the soundtrack to Once Upon a Time... In Hollywood, Quentin Tarantino's hit summer film starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt. Other top-flight Rampart acts surveyed include the storming, horn-driven garage soul unit The Blendells, whose cover of Stevie Wonder's single 'La La La La La' is a crate digger classic; R&B foursome The Atlantics, whose lineup included future '70s love man Barry White; soul balladeer Ron Holden; The Soul-jers, the military-garbed duo of former Mixtures vocalists Philip Tucker and Delbert Franklin; Motown-styled vocal quartet The Four Tempos; Latin songstresses Didi Scorzo and Graciela Palafox; and funk/disco pioneers Eastside Connection. Hector Gonzalez, bassist of Eastside Connection, has overseen Rampart's assets since Eddie Davis' death in 1994 and co-produced Land Of 1000 Dances with Michael Minky."

The rip-roaring sound of East Los Angeles’ Chicano rock ’n’ rollers of the ’60s and ’70s receives definitive treatment on Land of 1000 Dances: The Rampart Records Complete Singles Collection, due on November 29, 2019 for independent music retail’s annual Black Friday Record Store Day.

Produced by the independent Los Angeles label Minky Records, the four-CD set, which is being released in a limited edition of 1,000 copies, provides a complete overview of defining Mexican-American rock released in a 30-year period between 1961 and 1991 by Rampart, the small but influential company run by entrepreneur, manager, and producer Eddie Davis.

Minky has previously released single-CD collections devoted to two acts that appeared on Davis’ Linda and Gordo imprints: Stompin’ at the Rainbow by the multi-racial R&B unit The Mixtures and Music Is the Answer by God’s Children, the early ’70s soul/funk unit fronted by East Side vocal legends Little Willie G. (of Thee Midniters) and Lil’ Ray.

But Land of 1000 Dances — the product of nearly a decade of research and production — is the most in-depth overview ever assembled of what is familiarly known as the “West Coast East Side Sound.” The eruptive music that launched a thousand low riders down Whittier Boulevard is chronicled through the story of the music’s most prominent and prolific label.

Eddie Davis, who was previously an aspiring singer and Los Angeles restaurateur (“I cooked a lot of hamburgers to make those records,” he said in 1960), found initial music biz success in 1963 with “Farmer John,” a rowdy live-in-the-studio remake of Don & Dewey’s 1959 R&B hit by the Mexican-American group The Premiers. That local smash was issued under his Faro banner, but Rampart would soon become the principal outlet for his musical discoveries.

In his introductory essay, Luis J. Rodriguez — former poet laureate of Los Angeles and author of the bestselling memoir Always Running — says Rampart was Davis’ “dream … of a Motown for Chicano performers.”

Featured among the collection’s 79 tracks (all pristinely mastered by Mark Wheaton) are the original hits of East L.A.’s breakout band Cannibal & the Headhunters, whose pounding 1965 cover of Chris Kenner’s “Land of 1000 Dances” rose to No. 30 on the American singles chart. The quartet went on to appear as the opening act on The Beatles’ ’65 tour, which included legendary stops at Shea Stadium in New York and the Hollywood Bowl.

Rampart’s dozens of 45s covered a bounty of other great music in a variety of styles, ranging through doo-wop, R&B, and soul into funky instrumentals and garage rock and through funk, disco, and Latin pop. Davis did not restrict himself to signing Chicano performers, and Rampart was also the home of many gifted African-American talents.

Among the gems heard on Land of 1000 Dances is “Hector Parts 1 & 2,” a double-barreled, organ-driven instrumental by the Village Callers, which was heard on the soundtrack to Once Upon a Time … In Hollywood, Quentin Tarantino’s hit summer film starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt.

Other top-flight Rampart acts surveyed include the storming, horn-driven garage soul unit The Blendells, whose cover of Stevie Wonder’s single “La La La La La” is a crate digger classic; R&B foursome The Atlantics, whose lineup included future ’70s love man Barry White; soul balladeer Ron Holden; The Soul-jers, the military-garbed duo of former Mixtures vocalists Philip Tucker and Delbert Franklin; Motown-styled vocal quartet the Four Tempos; Latin songstresses Didi Scorzo and Graciela Palafox; and funk/disco pioneers Eastside Connection.

Hector Gonzalez, bassist of Eastside Connection, has overseen Rampart’s assets since Eddie Davis’ death in 1994 and co-produced Land of 1000 Dances with Michael Minky.

Deep background on Rampart’s acts and such behind-the-scenes players as key producer-manager Billy Cardenas is supplied in a thoroughly researched historical essay written by the late Los Angeles critic, journalist, and music historian Don Waller, author of The Motown Story.

The first discography of Rampart’s single releases brings together complete recording information on the label’s 45 rpm output. A special 38-page “Rampart on the Road” portfolio features rare photos and memorabilia of tour and East L.A. appearances by Cannibal & the Headhunters (who are seen in hitherto unpublished snapshots with The Beatles) and other performers.

Today, the legacy of Rampart Records can be heard in the work of such Grammy-winning East L.A.-bred artists as Los Lobos and La Santa Cecilia. Land of 1000 Dances affords the deepest look available at a sound that broke out of the barrio to rule the charts.

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