Los Bravos were a
SpanishSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.
[The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though España , Estado español and Nación española are used interchangeably...]
beat group, formed in 1965, and based in
MadridMadrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. It is the third-most populous municipality in the European Union after Greater London and Berlin, and its metropolitan area is the third-most populous city by urban area in the European Union after Paris and London.The city is located on the river...
. Their single "
Black Is Black"Black Is Black" is a song by rock band Los Bravos, released in 1966 as the group's debut single for Decca Records. Produced by Ivor Raymonde, the song reached number two in the UK,number four in the U.S.,and number one in Canada....
" reached #2 in the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
in July 1966, and #4 in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
(the first Spanish group to do so) selling over a million
recordsA gramophone record, commonly known as phonograph record, vinyl record, or simply record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed modulated spiral groove usually starting near the periphery and ending near the centre of the disc...
.
The band were an amalgamation of two
popPop music is a music genre that developed from the mid-1950s as a softer alternative to rock 'n' roll and later to rock music. It has a focus on commercial recording, often orientated towards a youth market, usually through the medium of relatively short and simple love songs...
groupsIn music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform songs. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band* Dansband* Fife and drum...
, Los Sonor and The Runaways. Los Bravos' lead singer, Mike Kogel, was from
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
. His
vocalThe human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal folds for talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, etc. Human voice is specifically that part of human sound production in which the vocal folds are the primary sound source...
styling was sometimes likened to
Gene PitneyGene Francis Alan Pitney was an American singer-songwriter. He was also a guitarist, pianist, drummer, and sound engineer. In 2002, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Through the mid-1960s, he enjoyed success as a recording artist on both sides of the Atlantic...
's. Their
singleIn music, a single is a short recording of one or more separate tracks. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats.-History:...
"
Black Is Black"Black Is Black" is a song by rock band Los Bravos, released in 1966 as the group's debut single for Decca Records. Produced by Ivor Raymonde, the song reached number two in the UK,number four in the U.S.,and number one in Canada....
" reached #2 in the
UK Singles ChartThe UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record industry. The full chart contains the top 200 singles based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 of this list...
in July
1966-Events:*January 3 - Hullabaloo shows promotional videos of The Beatles songs "Day Tripper" and "We Can Work it Out".*January 8 - Shindig! airs for the last time on ABC, with musical guests the Kinks and the Who...
and #4 in the U.S.
Billboard Hot 100The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday; while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chartA record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
, the first Spanish group to achieve this.
Los Bravos were a
SpanishSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.
[The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though España , Estado español and Nación española are used interchangeably...]
beat group, formed in 1965, and based in
MadridMadrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. It is the third-most populous municipality in the European Union after Greater London and Berlin, and its metropolitan area is the third-most populous city by urban area in the European Union after Paris and London.The city is located on the river...
. Their single "
Black Is Black"Black Is Black" is a song by rock band Los Bravos, released in 1966 as the group's debut single for Decca Records. Produced by Ivor Raymonde, the song reached number two in the UK,number four in the U.S.,and number one in Canada....
" reached #2 in the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
in July 1966, and #4 in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
(the first Spanish group to do so) selling over a million
recordsA gramophone record, commonly known as phonograph record, vinyl record, or simply record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed modulated spiral groove usually starting near the periphery and ending near the centre of the disc...
.
Biography
The band were an amalgamation of two
popPop music is a music genre that developed from the mid-1950s as a softer alternative to rock 'n' roll and later to rock music. It has a focus on commercial recording, often orientated towards a youth market, usually through the medium of relatively short and simple love songs...
groupsIn music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform songs. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band* Dansband* Fife and drum...
, Los Sonor and The Runaways. Los Bravos' lead singer, Mike Kogel, was from
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
. His
vocalThe human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal folds for talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, etc. Human voice is specifically that part of human sound production in which the vocal folds are the primary sound source...
styling was sometimes likened to
Gene PitneyGene Francis Alan Pitney was an American singer-songwriter. He was also a guitarist, pianist, drummer, and sound engineer. In 2002, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Through the mid-1960s, he enjoyed success as a recording artist on both sides of the Atlantic...
's. Their
singleIn music, a single is a short recording of one or more separate tracks. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats.-History:...
"
Black Is Black"Black Is Black" is a song by rock band Los Bravos, released in 1966 as the group's debut single for Decca Records. Produced by Ivor Raymonde, the song reached number two in the UK,number four in the U.S.,and number one in Canada....
" reached #2 in the
UK Singles ChartThe UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record industry. The full chart contains the top 200 singles based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 of this list...
in July
1966-Events:*January 3 - Hullabaloo shows promotional videos of The Beatles songs "Day Tripper" and "We Can Work it Out".*January 8 - Shindig! airs for the last time on ABC, with musical guests the Kinks and the Who...
and #4 in the U.S.
Billboard Hot 100The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday; while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chartA record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
, the first Spanish group to achieve this. The
songA song is a metrical composition intended or adapted for singing, especially one in rhymed stanzas; a lyric; a ballad....
sold over one million copies world wide. The track was
writtenA songwriter is someone who writes the lyrics, as well as the musical composition or melody to songs. One who writes only lyrics is a lyricist, while one who writes only music is a composer.-History and background of songwriters:...
by Tony Hayes and Steve Wadey, in their
recording studioA recording studio is a facility for sound recording. Ideally, the space is specially designed by an acoustician to achieve the desired acoustic properties...
for cutting
demoA demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for musicians to approximate their ideas on tape or disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, producers or other artists...
discsA gramophone record, commonly known as phonograph record, vinyl record, or simply record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed modulated spiral groove usually starting near the periphery and ending near the centre of the disc...
in
Hoo St Werburgh- Introduction :Hoo St Werburgh is one of several villages on the Hoo Peninsula in Kent, England to bear the name Hoo. It constitutes a civil parish in the borough of Medway, which according to the 2001 census had a population of 7,356. The surrounding countryside is beautiful, and ranges from...
, near Rochester,
KentKent , originally Cantia, is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the River Thames estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent...
,
EnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The song was later
coveredIn popular music, a cover version, or simply cover, is a new rendition of a previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
by
Johnny HallydayJohnny Hallyday is a French singer and actor. An icon in the French-speaking world since the beginning of his career, he is considered by some to be the French version of Elvis Presley....
and the
FrenchFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
based outfit
Belle EpoqueBelle Epoque was the name of a female vocal trio, based in Paris, France. The group first rose to popularity during the mid to late 1970s with a disco remake of the song, "Black Is Black", originally a hit in 1966 for the Spanish group Los Bravos.-History:Belle Epoque consisted of lead singer...
, and in 1977 their
discoDisco is a genre of dance music that that had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, psychedelic and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and early 1970s...
version of the song coincidentally also reached #2 in the
UKThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
.
Los Bravos' follow-up single, "I Don't Care", reached #16 in the
UKThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
in October 1966. In 1967 the band participated in the Sanremo Music Festival, failing to qualify for the final with the song "Uno come noi" in Italian. The band were the subjects of two
SpanishSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.
[The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though España , Estado español and Nación española are used interchangeably...]
comedic
moviesFilm encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the motion picture industry. Films are produced by recording images from the world with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects....
: in 1967
Los chicos con las chicas,
directedA film director, or filmmaker is a person who directs the making or production of a film. Some also consider a film producer to be a filmmaker....
by
Javier AguirreJavier Aguirre Onaindía , popularly nicknamed El Vasco, is a Mexican football manager and former midfielder...
and in 1968,
¡Dame un poco de amooor...!, directed by
José María ForquéJosé María Forqué was a Spanish screenwriter and film director.- Filmography :* 1947 : Juventudes de España, bajo una Patria hermosa* 1951 : María Morena* 1951 : Niebla y sol...
and Francisco Macián. Their song "Going Nowhere" from the
soundtrackA soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the synchronized...
to
Los chicos con las chicas was re-issued as a part of the Rhino Records series,
Nuggets II: Original Artyfacts from the British Empire and Beyond, 1964–1969.
One of Los Bravos' founding members Manuel Fernandez committed suicide on 20 May 1967, at the age of 23, after the death of his bride Lottie Rey in an auto accident. He had been driving the car and was riddled with guilt.
Band members
- Mike Kogel (born 25 April 1945, Berlin
Berlin is the capital city and one of sixteen states of Germany. With a population of 3.4 million within its city limits, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city and the eighth most populous urban area in the European Union...
) - vocalsSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. A person who sings is called a singer or vocalist...
- Antonio Martinez (born 3 October 1945, Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. It is the third-most populous municipality in the European Union after Greater London and Berlin, and its metropolitan area is the third-most populous city by urban area in the European Union after Paris and London.The city is located on the river...
) - guitarThe guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that adapts readily to a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six strings, but four-, seven-, eight-, ten-, eleven-, twelve-, thirteen- and eighteen-string guitars also exist. The size and shape of the neck and the base of the guitar...
. Martinez died in a motorcycle accident en route to his office in 1990.
- Manuel Fernandez (29 September 1943, Seville
Seville is the artistic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level. The inhabitants of the city are known as Sevillanos or...
— 20 May 1967) - electric organIn biology, the electric organ is a muscular organ common to all electric fish used for the purposes of creating an electric field; a behavior used for navigation, communication and also sometimes for the incapacitation of prey.- Electrocytes :...
- Miguel Vicens Danus (born 21 June 1944, Ferrol, Galicia) - bass guitar
The electric bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a plectrum....
- Pablo Gomez (born 5 November 1943, Barcelona
Barcelona is the capital, most populous city of the Autonomous Community of Catalonia and the second largest city in Spain, with a population of 1,615,908 in 2008. It is the 11th-most populous municipality in the European Union and sixth-most populous urban area in the European Union after Paris,...
) - drumThe drum is a member of the percussion group of music instruments, technically classified as a membranophone.. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with parts of a player's body, or with some sort of...
s
Singles
The following singles reached the Billboard Hot 100 or UK Top 40
- "Black Is Black
"Black Is Black" is a song by rock band Los Bravos, released in 1966 as the group's debut single for Decca Records. Produced by Ivor Raymonde, the song reached number two in the UK,number four in the U.S.,and number one in Canada....
" (1966) - UKThe UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record industry. The full chart contains the top 200 singles based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 of this list...
#2 U.S.The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday; while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
#4
- "I Don't Care (1966) - UK #16
- "Bring a Little Lovin'" (1968) - U.S. #51
Albums
Original studio albums
- Black Is Black (1966) - Sindrome - U.S. #93
- Bring a Little Lovin' (1968) - Parrot
Parrot Records defaults here. For the earlier Chicago-based blues label, see Parrot Records .Parrot Records was a division of London Records in the U.S.A. which started in 1964...
- All the Best (1993) - compilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from multiple recording artists, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, source or subject matter...
- DeccaDecca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; later the link with the British company was broken for several decades...
See also
External links