AILSA CHANG, HOST:
The singer Brenton Wood had a string of infectious soul and R&B hits in the 1960s. His music was rooted in the city of Los Angeles and its Chicano communities, and it captured hearts for decades. Wood died on January 3 at the age of 83. NPR's Isabella Gomez Sarmiento has this appreciation.
ISABELLA GOMEZ SARMIENTO, BYLINE: Brenton Wood fell in love with the piano when he was 12 years old. Speaking to NPR in 2023, Wood remembered how he overheard a man from his neighborhood playing at the local rec center.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR BROADCAST)
BRENTON WOOD: And I watched him play, and I watched him play. And when he finished, I got up and tried the same thing he did, but my hands weren't big enough.
GOMEZ SARMIENTO: Wood taught himself to play piano and harmonized. More than a decade later, he had his first hit with 1967's "Oogum Boogum Song."
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "THE OOGUM BOOGUM SONG")
WOOD: (Singing) Oogum, oogum. Boogum, boogum. Boogum, now, baby, you're casting your spell on me.
GOMEZ SARMIENTO: The song was inspired by the miniskirt and bell-bottom fashion of the era.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "THE OOGUM BOOGUM SONG")
WOOD: (Singing) And you wear that cute miniskirt with your brother's sloppy shirt. I admit it, girl, that I can dig it.
GOMEZ SARMIENTO: Within a few short months, Wood struck gold again, this time with the song "Gimme Little Sign."
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "GIMME LITTLE SIGN")
WOOD: (Singing) Just give me some kind of sign, girl - oh, my baby - to show me that you're mine, girl. Oh, yeah.
GOMEZ SARMIENTO: That song peaked at No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100. Wood told NPR he was single when he was writing some of his most popular love songs, but he described himself as the neighborhood flirt.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR BROADCAST)
WOOD: When I would write songs, I'd call up ladies and ask them, what do you think about this? What do you think about this? You know, and that kind of gave me some direction.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "BABY YOU GOT IT")
WOOD: (Singing) I run after you like a fool would do, but mama didn't raise no fools. And I should know...
GOMEZ SARMIENTO: Born Alfred Jesse Smith in Shreveport, Louisiana, Wood was one of 11 children. His family moved to California when Wood was young, and his artistic name was inspired by the Brentwood neighborhood Los Angeles.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "BABY YOU GOT IT")
WOOD: (Singing) There's nothing fake about you, baby, you got it. You know that people can be cruel. They say I've lost my cool, but it's very hard to keep my cool when I'm around you.
GOMEZ SARMIENTO: After several of his songs charted in the mid-1960s, Wood created his own label, Prophesy Records. His music became especially popular with the low rider communities of east LA. Last year, while wrapping up his farewell tour, Wood told NPR that the Chicanos and cholos of his neighborhood were the backbone of his fan base.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR BROADCAST)
WOOD: They followed me, they have supported me, long after the records came off the charts.
GOMEZ SARMIENTO: On Sunday, people gathered at Montebello City Park in California to celebrate Wood's life and take his music for one last cruise.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "I LIKE THE WAY YOU LOVE ME")
WOOD: (Singing) Because I like the way you love me, oh, girl. Oh.
GOMEZ SARMIENTO: Isabella Gomez Sarmiento, NPR News.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "I LIKE THE WAY YOU LOVE ME")
WOOD: (Singing) Every time you're kissing me thrills me from my head to feet. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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