The Googie nickname was given to him by his father because it was the first word he uttered as an infant. Many of these singles featured legendary Hollywood session players such as saxophonist Plas Johnson, drummer Earl Palmer, bassist Red Callender and guitarist Johnny "Guitar" Watson. In 1956, René, who played jazz and jump-blues piano, began writing and recording singles for Class as the Googie René Combo and Googie René Band. Rene worked in the production end of the label. René's songwriter and band-leader father, Leon, and singer-songwriter Bobby Day formed Class Records in Hollywood at the dawn of the 1950s. Rafael Leon "Googie" René was one of the more colorful and overlooked West Coast R&B artists of the 1950s and '60s.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |