Kip Tyler and the Flips were an American
rock and roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm a ...
band best known for recording "Jungle Hop."
Beginnings
The group started in
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
in 1957, right after
Kip Tyler
Kip Tyler (May 31, 1929 – September 23, 1996) was an American singer and bongo player.
Early life
Elwood Westertson Smith was born in Chicago, Illinois.
Career
Lead singer of Sleepwalkers during his time at Union High School and later teamed ...
was no longer needed for the band, 'Jimmy Daley and The Ding-A-Lings', which had produced the soundtrack songs in connection to the 1956 movie ''
Rock, Pretty Baby''.
Success
Their first record was "Let's Monkey Around" (b/c "Vagabond Mama"); recorded at Starla Records. The group recorded at
Challenge Records and found more success from their singles produced there. In early 1958, Challenge released their first hit "Jungle Hop".
Ebb Records
Later in 1958, they recorded at Ebb Records with another single: "She's My Witch" (b/c "Rumble Rock"), which was also successful. In 1959, they recorded another one there called "Oh Linda" (b/c "Hali-Lou"), which was their last record together.
Band members
Some noteworthy members joined this band, including drummer
Sandy Nelson
Sander Lloyd Nelson (December 1, 1938 – February 14, 2022) was an American drummer. Nelson, one of the best-known rock and modern jazz drummers of the late 1950s and early 1960s, had several solo instrumental Top 40 hits and released over 30 ...
and future
Wrecking Crew members
Larry Knechtel
Lawrence William Knechtel (August 4, 1940 – August 20, 2009) was an American keyboard player and bassist who was a member of the Wrecking Crew, a collection of Los Angeles-based session musicians who worked with such renowned artists as Simon & ...
(later of
Bread) and guitarist
Mike Deasy
Michael William Deasy (born February 4, 1941) is an American rock and jazz guitarist. As a session musician, he played on numerous hit singles and albums recorded in Los Angeles in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. He is sometimes credited as Mike De ...
.
Kip Tyler by Tony Wilkinson with Klaus Kettner
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References
Musical groups from Los Angeles
Rock music groups from California
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