Chapter

High School Dropout, Car Wash Legend, Studio Musician

With two weeks of his high school senior year completed, Kenny left to follow his dream.

He started his Mondays at 7 AM at a car wash in Alhambra, California. He worked until 11 AM, went home, showered, ate a quick lunch, and reported for work at El Dorado Recording Studio in Hollywood.

Hollywood recording studios were hopping in those days, and El Dorado was no exception. The studio was busy turning out potential hits and recording demo records. Singers and songwriters from all over the world came to Hollywood to audition and shop their songs. The basic requirement for actors was photos — typically "8×10 glossies." Song demos were submitted on acetate discs called "dubs."

The tall, round building of Capitol Records, located on Vine Street one block from the famed corner of Hollywood & Vine, housed an internationally famous record label. A recording session at Capitol was hard to get and very expensive.

Directly across Vine Street was Johnny Otis' El Dorado Studios, located within World Wide Attractions and owned by famed promoter Hal Zeiger, who occupied the entire second floor above the Steve Allen Playhouse at 1228 North Vine.

A singer or songwriter could record a song much cheaper and quicker across the street at El Dorado Studios, where arrangers, musicians, and engineers were on site and available.

A special two-song demo package at El Dorado Studio might include three hours of Hollywood studio time, a Hollywood arranger, a band of Hollywood studio musicians playing piano, guitar, bass, and drums, and four nicely labeled dubs… $795.

Seventeen-year-old Kenny was on the recording staff making $10 a song. A typical day started at noon, went until six, and sometimes lasted into the night. Some days they would record and produce as many as six songs.

With gasoline at 22 cents a gallon, sixty bucks was not a bad payday for a kid.

Chapter

Johnny Otis

El Dorado Studios and Eldo Records were owned by the legendary Johnny Otis, known as "The Godfather of Rhythm and Blues," who had discovered and produced hits by singers like Sam Cooke, Etta James, Hank Ballard, The Coasters, and Jackie Wilson.

Johnny Otis was a great mentor to Kenny. He was of Greek heritage and had decided at an early age to live his life as a Black man. He was a musical genius — master of piano, vibes, guitar, and drums, and a very special vocalist with hit records as far back as 1948.

His 1958 rock standard "Hand Jive" was a key piece in TV and motion pictures, including TV's Happy Days and the 1978 movie Grease with John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John.

Johnny Otis had a TV show where Kenny often appeared, and the Johnny Otis Band played every night at The California Club in South Central Los Angeles.

Chapter

Southern California Music Business, 1958

World Wide Attractions produced rock and roll and country western shows all across California. Every Saturday night was a dance and show at the El Monte Legion Stadium.

Located about forty miles from Hollywood, it was known as the birthplace of West Coast rock and roll. The Legion featured a roster of stars that would include every hit maker from Jerry Lee Lewis to Ritchie Valens to Ray Charles.

Every Saturday night show would be advertised on the radio with Red Gilson's opening signature announcement: "Hi Cats and Chicks! This is the Old Red Cat saying, you'll be rocking and rolling this Saturday night at the El Monte Legion Stadium, where there's plenty of free parking and teenagers are always welcome. No Levis or Capris, please."

Besides the Legion, each Southern California weekend would offer rock and roll and country western shows at different places like Harmony Park Ballroom in Anaheim; the Long Beach, San Bernardino, and Riverside Municipal Auditoriums; the Rendezvous Ballroom in Balboa; the Montebello Armory; The Ice House in Pasadena; The Golden Bear in Huntington Beach; and The Troubadour in Hollywood.

The Paramount Theater in downtown Los Angeles often featured weekend-long movie and stage shows, hosted by local DJs like Art Laboe, Jimmy O'Neill, and Wolfman Jack, running from 10 AM to midnight.

The show portion would be followed by a movie like The Wild One, Blackboard Jungle, Rebel Without a Cause, or Teen-Age Caveman. The theater would empty, refill, and the show and movie would repeat.

A typical show might feature Jackie Wilson, Brook Benton, Dinah Washington, Fats Domino, Little Richard, The Coasters, The Shields, The Flamingos, Bobby Day, and Eddie Cochran — a host of hitmakers with the backup music provided by the young Fender bass-playing Kenny Laursen and his bandmates.

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