Los Angeles & West Coast

Header Photo: Diana Ross Source: City of Boston Archives (Wikimedia Commons)

Johnny Otis was born in Vallejo, California, in 1921. His parents Alexander J. Veliotes and Irene Veliotes (nee Kiskakes) were from Greece; they named him Ioannis Alexandres. He...

Charlie Reynolds had remained at the Flash Record store at 623, East Vernon Avenue, in Los Angeles after Leroy Hurte had given up his interest in the shop...

Greg Reeves was a young musician, born in 1950, who came to Motown’s attention at the age of twelve. Reeves had grown up in Warren, Ohio, and had...

Melvin Ragin was usually credited under his pseudonym of Wah Wah Watson. Like Dennis Coffey, he brought an up-date to Motown’s original guitar sound. Ragin was born in...

The “Recorded In Hollywood” label was founded in Los Angeles in 1948 by John Dolphin, a Black record store entrepreneur. The operation was centred on the Dolphin’s of...

Roy Milton was born in Wynnewood, Oklahoma, in 1907. His grandmother was a Chickasaw native American; Milton grew up on a reservation, later relocating to Tulsa. He joined...

R. Dean Taylor was a White Canadian musician who came to Motown in 1964 as a singer, songwriter, and then producer. His first three singles were released in...

Sam Cooke left Keen Records after three years to join RCA in January 1960. The obvious attraction was the opportunities offered by a big multi-national against those on...

During the two years following Sam Cooke’s tragic death in December 1964, RCA Victor released two studio albums, two compilation albums, and eight singles. Over subsequent years, the...