Preston Epps
Preston Epps (born 1931 in Oakland, CA) still performs in clubs in Southern California and the Southwest region of the United States. A one-hit-wonder, Epps scored a number 14 pop hit in 1959 with "Bongo Rock," but subsequent singles felled on deaf ears. He learned to play the bongos and other percussion instruments during the Korean War while stationed in Okinawa.
When his duties ended, he forsook Northern California for Southern Cali, sustaining himself by working odd jobs; he hung around the emerging beatnik, hippie set by frequenting coffeehouses, and pounding the skins for the appreciative heads. DJ Art Laboe discovered Epps at a cozy, laid-back coffeehouse and signed him to his newly founded Original Sound Records. Epps' "Bongo Rock" became the label's first hit; Laboe released a second single, "Bongo, Bongo, Bongo," in 1960 that slotted 64 positions lower.
Epps first album, Bongo Bongo Bongo, dropped in 1960 on the heels of the second single and did okay. However, subsequent singles, "Bongo in the Congo," "Bongo Rocket," "Bongo Boogie," "Flamenco Bongo," "Mr. Bongo," "Bongo Shuffle," and other Bongo derivatives failed to generate any interest. Two more albums, Bongola (1961) and Surfin' Bongos (1962), went unnoticed; you can find select recordings by Epps on numerous vinyl and CD compilations. The Incredible Bongo Band updated "Bongo Rock" (Epps co-wrote the instrumental with Arthur Egnoian, a pseudonym for Arthur Laboe) and rode it to number 73 in 1973.
Epps played a bongo player in the movie Girl In Gold Boots, released in 1969. The flick was about a draft-dodger, a drifter, and his wannabe-dancer girlfriend; all get implicated in a murder centering around drugs, sex, and rock & roll in the late '60s. Epps has done extensive session work, including an appearance on Gypsys' debut LP for Metromedia Records. Still active, Epps plays a variety of clubs in Southern California including Monteleone's West, the Lozano Restaurant, and the Atlas Supper Club.
© Andrew Hamilton /TiVo
Artistas semelhantes
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Bongo Bongo Bongo
Jazz - Lançado por Trunk Records em 01/01/2000
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Bongo Bongo Bongo
Pop - Lançado por Concord Records, Inc. em 01/01/2000
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Bongo Bongo Bongo
Rock - Lançado por Universal Digital Enterprises em 26/05/1960
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4 Hits, vol. 1 (Mono Version)
Wilbert Harrison, Freddy Cannon, Preston Epps
Rock - Lançado por BNF Collection em 01/01/1959
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Anthology: The Bongo King (Remastered)
Pop - Lançado por Master Tape Records em 16/04/2021
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Doin' the Cha-Cha-Cha
Pop - Lançado por Hitbeat Records em 01/08/2020
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Preston Epps Calypso
Pop - Lançado por Crownstar Records em 16/04/2019
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Bongos-a-Go-Go: The Complete Preston Epps (1958-1962)
Pop - Lançado por Jasmine Records em 01/01/1991
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Bongo Rock - Single
Rock - Lançado por Multimusic México em 20/02/2017
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Bongo Rock (Mono Version)
Pop - Lançado por BNF Collection em 01/01/1959
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Doin' the Cha Cha Cha (Mono Version)
Pop - Lançado por BNF Collection em 01/01/1960
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Bongo Rock
Jazz - Lançado por Black Sheep Music em 16/05/2013
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Bongola - The Very Best Of
Rock - Lançado por Master Classics Records em 01/01/2011
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Rockin' in the Congo
Pop - Lançado por Jazz Crooners em 01/10/2020
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Bongo Rock
Pop - Lançado por Music Manager em 29/07/2015
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Preston Epps Calypso
Asia - Lançado por Inspired Studios em 16/04/2019
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Beautiful American Girl
Pop - Lançado por Hitbeat Records em 17/08/2020
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Bongo Bongo Bongo
Jazz - Lançado por CoolNote em 01/01/2000
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Another Wipe Out
Pop - Lançado por Hitbeat Records em 01/08/2020
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Bongo Rock
World - Lançado por Smith & Co. em 20/07/2011
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo