Butch rillera biography of martin

Imagine being part of one of the first rock ‘n’ roll / rhythm ‘n’ blues bands in your county….. back when this kind of music was often marginalized by the general public, or or at least by the newspapers.

In 1955, the Rhythm Rockers were such a band in Orange County, California.

This month, we’re mourning the recent passing of Barry Rillera, a founding member of that band, who had a very colorful career in the music industry.

The Rhythm Rockers was formed by Rick and Barry Rillera, two brothers that fell in love with the type of rhythm ‘n’ blues music that they heard on DJ Hunter Hancock‘s radio show. As Rick explained to Jim Washburn in 1991, “Those records of black music were really our influences for playing …The goal for us, the ultimate, was to play that music and be accepted by black musicians. And it turned out after we got rolling with the group, we played in black clubs in Watts for years and th Butch rillera biography of martin short!