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Take Two

La La Brooks on growing up in the golden age of funk

Image of singer Lala Brooks.
Image of singer Lala Brooks.
(
Courtesy of LaLa Brooks
)
7th February 1964: Phil Spector's American soul singing group The Crystals, from left to right; Barbara, Dee Dee, Fran and La La, all wrapped up at London Airport for their first visit to this country, hot on the heels of their successful singles 'Then He Kissed Me' and 'Da Doo Ron Ron'.
7th February 1964: Phil Spector's American soul singing group The Crystals, from left to right; Barbara, Dee Dee, Fran and La La, all wrapped up at London Airport for their first visit to this country, hot on the heels of their successful singles 'Then He Kissed Me' and 'Da Doo Ron Ron'.
(
Keystone/Getty Images
)

Take Two translates the day’s headlines for Southern California, making sense of the news and cultural events that affect our lives. Produced by Southern California Public Radio and broadcast from October 2012 – June 2021. Hosted by A Martinez.

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Back in 1963, the song "Da Doo Ron Ron" was a huge hit. The track, produced by Phil Specter, was recorded by The Crystals, featuring our guest La La Brooks. Fifty years later, Brooks is back at it with a new solo album called "All Or Nothing."

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Brooks got her start at the age of 12, when she was recruited to join the aforementioned musical group. By the age of 13 she had the opportunity to perform with famous funk and soul acts like James Brown.

Brooks joins the show to talk about her most memorable times meeting Brown and many more stories from her long and storied career as a singer.