Singer-Songwriter Brenton Wood, known for his hits “The Oogum Boogum Song” and “Gimme Little Sign,” has died of natural causes at his home in Moreno Valley. He was 83.
Wood died peacefully in his sleep Friday, according to his managers, Isabel and Manny Gallegos.
Manny Gallegos, who also served as Wood’s personal assistant, told Entertainment Weekly the singer had been ill for several months.
“I was there [Thursday] night at his house,” Gallegos told the magazine. “I was playing the piano for him. He was in the hospital bed, and I told him, ‘Friend, is there anything you want to say to your fans? And he says, you tell my fans I said, ‘Catch you on the rebound.’”
Those words come from the title of a song Wood released in 1967.
He was in the midst of a farewell tour, “Catch You on the Rebound: The Last Tour,” but had to postpone several dates due to ill health, including a May 2024 hospitalization.
Born Alfred Jesse Smith on July 26, 1941 in Shreveport, La., he later adapted his stage name from Los Angeles’ Brentwood community where his manager at the time lived.
His family had moved to San Pedro in the 1950s and later to the Compton area, where he graduated from Compton High School. He also attended Compton College, where he began to explore his interest in music.
Wood also spent time in Long Beach and several South Los Angeles communities while teaching himself piano, writing songs and harmonizing with neighborhood friends, he told the Los Angeles Times in 1992.
After recording songs for several small record labels, Wood signed with Double Shot Records, which released the infectious “Oogum Boogum Song” in 1967. It reached No. 19 on the R&B charts and No. 4 on the pop charts.
His follow-up single, “Gimme Little Sign” reach No. 9 on the Billboard charts in September 1967. A third song, “Baby You Got It,” peaked at No. 34 on the Hot 100 chart during the last week of 1967.
In 1972, Wood formed his own record label, Prophesy Records, and later founded Mr. Wood Records. He continued to release new music, but never repeated the chart success of his 1967 hits.
But those songs continued to find new audiences and were featured in movies including “Almost Famous” and “Don’t Worry Darling” and TV shows such as “Big Little Lies,” “The Umbrella Academy,” and “Eastbound and Down.”
His songs also remained popular with Latinos throughout California and the Southwest, which kept him in high demand at cultural events as well as on the car and bike club circuit.
“They’ve kind of picked me out of the whole batch, and they keep me going,” Wood told the Times. “I appreciate it, because if I was waiting for the big boys to call, I’d have died a long time ago.
“They’re very loyal. This is like the third generation of kids that have been following me. The kids like my music. It’s timeless music I think, because everyone that grows up is bound to go through this at one time or another — break up, get back together, boyfriend-girlfriend type stuff.”
