Chan Romero
Encyclopedia
Robert Lee "Chan" Romero (born July 7, 1941, Billings
, Montana
) is an American
rock and roll
pioneer and contemporary of Ritchie Valens
, best known for his seminal 1959 hit, Hippy Hippy Shake
.
was of Spanish
and Apache
stock while his mother
was a mix of Mexican
, Cherokee
and Irish
. Both had migrated to Montana during the Great Depression
, seeking employment as migrant farm workers. His nickname was bestowed on him by his grandfather. Since Romero often ran around without footwear, the nickname, from a Spanish
phrase meaning "little boy with pig's feet" seemed appropriate.
Romero cites a major turning point in his life in 1955. That was the year Elvis Presley
performed "Hound Dog
" on The Steve Allen Show
. Presley was Romero's biggest influence prior to the arrival of Valens.
The teenaged Chan Romero hitchhiked to East Los Angeles
, California
in 1958. It was there he wrote "Hippy Hippy Shake" and thus launched his career. An uncle introduced Romero and his music to an A&R
representative from Specialty Records
; Sonny Bono
. Bono was particularly taken with a song called "My Little Ruby" and asked Romero to polish the song and to return in a few weeks. Romero needed to return to school in Montana and never returned to Specialty.
Upon forming a band upon his return, it soon became clear that Valens had a tremendous impact on Romero, so much so that the two artists, who never met, sounded alike and shared much the same ethnic heritage. Two months after the plane crash that claimed Valens' life, manager Don Redfield sent a tape to Valens' manager, Bob Keane
, in Los Angeles. Keane was greatly impressed with the recordings and hailed Romero as a successor to Valens, immediately signing him to a contract on Del-Fi Records
, the same label as Valens.
When Romero returned to Los Angeles, Keane introduced him to Valens' grieving mother with whom Romero became close. Her home served as Romero's home during his visits to Los Angeles; he slept in Valens' bedroom. He remains close to the family and has performed at the Ritchie Valens memorial concert held yearly in Pacoima, California.
Romero's career skyrocketed with the release of "Hippy Hippy Shake" in July 1959. Released first in the U.S.
and later in Australia
and in the UK
, it soon came to the attention of Paul McCartney
who liked the song and sang it at the Cavern Club in Liverpool
and the Star Club in Hamburg
during his early years with The Beatles
. The 1964 version by The Swinging Blue Jeans
hit number one across Europe
.
"Hippy Hippy Shake" remained a popular cover song as well as appearing in numerous movie soundtracks, among them Uncle Buck
, It Takes Two and Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
. Perhaps the best-known version to contemporary audiences appeared in 1988 on the soundtrack of Cocktail as performed by The Georgia Satellites. A version by The Beatles appeared on the 1994 release Live at the BBC
. "Hippy Hippy Shake" was recorded by Polish singer Czesław Niemen in 1964.
Romero's first visit to Palm Springs, California
in 1964 inspired him to make the area his home. He still lives in the area and divides his time between Palm Springs and Billings.
Romero's daughter Holly Romero Sanchez is the youth pastor along side Alfonzo Sanchez at Living Word in the Desert in Indio, California. Holly also participates on the worship team as the keyboardist and Alfonzo (aka DJ YMA) "scratches" alongside his wife on stage, adding a unique flare to the Living Word worship.
Billings, Montana
Billings is the largest city in the U.S. state of Montana, and is the principal city of the Billings Metropolitan Area, the largest metropolitan area in over...
, Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
) is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
pioneer and contemporary of Ritchie Valens
Ritchie Valens
Ritchie Valens was a Mexican-American singer, songwriter and guitarist....
, best known for his seminal 1959 hit, Hippy Hippy Shake
Hippy Hippy Shake
Hippy Hippy Shake is a song written and recorded by Chan Romero in 1959. That same year, the song reached number three in Australia.A cover version by Italian rocker Little Tony appeared in the same year and found moderate success in the United Kingdom and Italy.A version by UK-based band The...
.
Life and career
Romero's heritage was rather mixed. His fatherFather
A father, Pop, Dad, or Papa, is defined as a male parent of any type of offspring. The adjective "paternal" refers to father, parallel to "maternal" for mother...
was of Spanish
Spanish people
The Spanish are citizens of the Kingdom of Spain. Within Spain, there are also a number of vigorous nationalisms and regionalisms, reflecting the country's complex history....
and Apache
Apache
Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...
stock while his mother
Mother
A mother, mum, mom, momma, or mama is a woman who has raised a child, given birth to a child, and/or supplied the ovum that grew into a child. Because of the complexity and differences of a mother's social, cultural, and religious definitions and roles, it is challenging to specify a universally...
was a mix of Mexican
Mexican people
Mexican people refers to all persons from Mexico, a multiethnic country in North America, and/or who identify with the Mexican cultural and/or national identity....
, Cherokee
Cherokee
The Cherokee are a Native American people historically settled in the Southeastern United States . Linguistically, they are part of the Iroquoian language family...
and Irish
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. Both had migrated to Montana during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, seeking employment as migrant farm workers. His nickname was bestowed on him by his grandfather. Since Romero often ran around without footwear, the nickname, from a Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
phrase meaning "little boy with pig's feet" seemed appropriate.
Romero cites a major turning point in his life in 1955. That was the year Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
performed "Hound Dog
Hound Dog (song)
"Hound Dog" is a twelve-bar blues written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller and originally recorded by Willie Mae "Big Mama" Thornton in 1952. Other early versions illustrate the differences among blues, country, and rock and roll in the mid-1950s. The 1956 remake by Elvis Presley is the best-known...
" on The Steve Allen Show
The Steve Allen Show
The Steve Allen Show is an American variety show hosted by Steve Allen from June 1956 to June 1960 on NBC, from September 1961 to December 1961 on ABC, and in first-run syndication from 1962 to 1964....
. Presley was Romero's biggest influence prior to the arrival of Valens.
The teenaged Chan Romero hitchhiked to East Los Angeles
East Los Angeles, California
East Los Angeles is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in Los Angeles County, California, United States...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
in 1958. It was there he wrote "Hippy Hippy Shake" and thus launched his career. An uncle introduced Romero and his music to an A&R
A&R
Artists and repertoire is the division of a record label that is responsible for talent scouting and overseeing the artistic development of recording artists. It also acts as a liaison between artists and the record label.- Finding talent :...
representative from Specialty Records
Specialty Records
Specialty Records was an American record label based in Los Angeles. It was originally launched as Juke Box Records in 1946, but later renamed by its owner Art Rupe when he parted company with a couple of his original partners...
; Sonny Bono
Sonny Bono
Salvatore Phillip "Sonny" Bono was an American recording artist, record producer, actor, and politician whose career spanned over three decades.-Early life:...
. Bono was particularly taken with a song called "My Little Ruby" and asked Romero to polish the song and to return in a few weeks. Romero needed to return to school in Montana and never returned to Specialty.
Upon forming a band upon his return, it soon became clear that Valens had a tremendous impact on Romero, so much so that the two artists, who never met, sounded alike and shared much the same ethnic heritage. Two months after the plane crash that claimed Valens' life, manager Don Redfield sent a tape to Valens' manager, Bob Keane
Bob Keane
Bob Keane was an American musician, producer and owner of the record label Del-Fi Records. He was perhaps best known for being the producer and manager of Ritchie Valens.-Early years:...
, in Los Angeles. Keane was greatly impressed with the recordings and hailed Romero as a successor to Valens, immediately signing him to a contract on Del-Fi Records
Del-Fi Records
Del-Fi Records was a record label based in Hollywood, California and owned by Bob Keane. The label's first single released was no 4101 "Caravan" by Henri Rose released in 1958; however, the label was most famous for signing Ritchie Valens. Valens' first single for the label was "Come On Let's Go"...
, the same label as Valens.
When Romero returned to Los Angeles, Keane introduced him to Valens' grieving mother with whom Romero became close. Her home served as Romero's home during his visits to Los Angeles; he slept in Valens' bedroom. He remains close to the family and has performed at the Ritchie Valens memorial concert held yearly in Pacoima, California.
Romero's career skyrocketed with the release of "Hippy Hippy Shake" in July 1959. Released first in the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and later in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, it soon came to the attention of Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
who liked the song and sang it at the Cavern Club in Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
and the Star Club in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
during his early years with The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
. The 1964 version by The Swinging Blue Jeans
The Swinging Blue Jeans
The Swinging Blue Jeans were a four piece 1960s British Merseybeat band, best known for their hit singles with the HMV label; "Hippy Hippy Shake", the follow-up, Little Richard's "Good Golly Miss Molly", and "You're No Good", a Clint Ballard song that provided a change of pace and furnished the...
hit number one across Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
"Hippy Hippy Shake" remained a popular cover song as well as appearing in numerous movie soundtracks, among them Uncle Buck
Uncle Buck
Uncle Buck is a 1989 John Hughes comedy film starring John Candy, Amy Madigan, Jean Louisa Kelly, Gaby Hoffman, and Macaulay Culkin, and co-stars Jay Underwood and Laurie Metcalf.-Plot:Bob Russell Uncle Buck is a 1989 John Hughes comedy film starring John Candy, Amy Madigan, Jean Louisa Kelly, Gaby...
, It Takes Two and Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery is a 1997 American science fiction/action-comedy film and the first film of the Austin Powers series. It was directed by Jay Roach and written by Mike Myers who also stars in the title role. Myers also plays Dr. Evil, Austin Powers' arch-enemy...
. Perhaps the best-known version to contemporary audiences appeared in 1988 on the soundtrack of Cocktail as performed by The Georgia Satellites. A version by The Beatles appeared on the 1994 release Live at the BBC
Live at the BBC (The Beatles album)
Live at the BBC is a 1994 compilation album featuring performances by The Beatles that were originally broadcast on various BBC Light Programme radio shows from 1963 through 1965. The monaural album, available in multiple formats but most commonly as a two-CD set, consists of 56 songs and 13 tracks...
. "Hippy Hippy Shake" was recorded by Polish singer Czesław Niemen in 1964.
Romero's first visit to Palm Springs, California
Palm Springs, California
Palm Springs is a desert city in Riverside County, California, within the Coachella Valley. It is located approximately 37 miles east of San Bernardino, 111 miles east of Los Angeles and 136 miles northeast of San Diego...
in 1964 inspired him to make the area his home. He still lives in the area and divides his time between Palm Springs and Billings.
Romero's daughter Holly Romero Sanchez is the youth pastor along side Alfonzo Sanchez at Living Word in the Desert in Indio, California. Holly also participates on the worship team as the keyboardist and Alfonzo (aka DJ YMA) "scratches" alongside his wife on stage, adding a unique flare to the Living Word worship.