Brenton Wood

Brenton Wood
Background information
Birth name Alfred Jesse Smith
Born (1941-07-26) July 26, 1941
Origin Shreveport, Louisiana
Genres Soul, R&B, pop
Occupation(s) Singer-songwriter
Instruments Vocals, Keyboards

Brenton Wood (born Alfred Jesse Smith, July 26, 1941, Shreveport, Louisiana)[1] is an American singer and songwriter known for his two 1967 hit singles, "The Oogum Boogum Song" and "Gimme Little Sign".

Career

The family moved to San Pedro in Los Angeles, California when Wood was a child. He attended San Pedro High School for part of his freshman year before moving to Compton, where Brenton became a member of the Compton High School track team and received several awards for his athletic achievements.

Following his high school graduation, Wood enrolled in East Los Angeles College. Soon after, he took the stage name Brenton Wood, possibly inspired by the wealthy Los Angeles enclave of Brentwood (some sources state that the name is in honor of his "home county"), with a second possible connection of Bretton Woods. During this period, his musical interests began to manifest themselves. He was inspired by Jesse Belvin and Sam Cooke, and he began cultivating his songwriting skills, also becoming a competent pianist.[1]

Early singles for Brent Records and Wand Records failed to chart. Wood signed with Double Shot Records, and his "The Oogum Boogum Song" reached #19 on the US Billboard R&B chart and #34 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the spring of 1967. In Southern California, "The Oogum Boogum Song" hit the top 10 on KGB-FM and #1 on KHJ. Wood's biggest hit came a few months later, as "Gimme Little Sign" hit #9 on the pop chart, #19 on the R&B charts, #2 on KHJ, and #8 in the UK Singles Chart;[2] sold over one million copies; and was awarded a gold disc.[1] The title is not actually sung in the song; the chorus instead repeats "Give Me Some Kind of Sign." Wood's "Baby You Got It" peaked at #34 on the Hot 100 during the last week of 1967 and #3 on KHJ on 31 January 1968.

Wood recorded a duet with Shirley Goodman. His next song to reach the charts was "Come Softly to Me" in 1977.

He returned again in 1986 with the album Out of the Woodwork,[3] which included contemporary rerecordings of his early hits, along with several new tracks, including the single, "Soothe Me."[4]

His album This Love Is for Real came out in 2001. Among his later appearances was in 2006 on the Los Angeles public access program Thee Mr. Duran Show, where Wood and his band performed several of his hit singles.[5]

Recently, in 2014, he partnered with William Pilgrim & The All Grows Up for a remake of the song "Gimme Little Sign" on their recently released album, Epic Endings (available on iTunes and Amazon) which came out in August.[6]

Cover versions

"The Oogum Boogum Song" was covered by Alex Chilton. "Gimme Little Sign" was later covered by Danielle Brisebois, who had a hit with it in 1994. "Gimme Little Sign" was recorded by soul singer Ronnie Jones on his 1978 LP, Me and Myself. It was also recorded by Ricky Nelson. In Singapore, Brown Boys who were from the Philippines, recorded it for release on an EMI single (CHK) in 1968. It was the B-side to "Goin Out Of My Head"/"Can't Take My Eye Off You" medley. The Trailers, who were a Singaporean band also recorded it for release on an RCA EP dubbed their "Soul EP" also in 1968. Los Angeles ska/rocksteady/reggae band, Hepcat, covered "Gimme Little Sign" on their Push 'N Shove album.

Discography

Albums

Studio
Compilations

Chart singles

Filmography

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. p. 233. ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
  2. 1 2 Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 610. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  3. ↑ "Brenton Wood - Out Of The Woodwork (Vinyl, LP, Album)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2015-08-19.
  4. ↑ "Brenton Wood - Soothe Me / $Cold Cash$ (Vinyl)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2015-08-19.
  5. ↑ "Thee Mr. Duran Show - Videos - Brenton Wood". Mrduran.com. 2006-06-07. Retrieved 2015-08-19.
  6. ↑ "William Pilgrim & The All Grows Up | The Junction of Americana & 60's Soul". Williampilgrim.com. Retrieved 2015-08-19.
  7. 1 2 Stephen Thomas Erlewine (1941-07-26). "Brenton Wood | Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2015-08-19.
  8. ↑ "Popdown (1967)". IMDb.com. Retrieved 2015-08-19.

External links

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