A music group that recorded with the Wrecking Crew at Gold Star in the 1970’s.
The H&W Story
This 1970s music group recorded 15 songs with the legendary Wrecking Crew studio musicians at Gold Star Studios in Hollywood. With a rich melodic folk-rock-country style sound, similar to Laurel Canyon type music, the album was re-released as a CD in 2004. Their songs now have renewed interest in movies and television.
Homestead & Wolfe Was An Intersection!
Homestead and Wolfe was a group of friends who met in the youth group of the Good Samaritan United Methodist Church. They performed music in worship and in a youth group of 250 kids. They toured the United States in 1972, then recorded from 1973-75. Their church is still located at that corner of Homestead Road and Wolfe Road – right across the street from Apple Computers.
Originally released in 1975, Homestead & Wolfe’s lone and unknown privately pressed LP is an artifact so lost to time, it has never appeared in any discography, list of rare records, or catalog, anywhere
– Karl Ikola, Anopheles Records
They were organized and led by Ernie Bringas, the youth pastor who earlier in his career was a founding member of the Rip Chords. That group was a 1960s surf and hot rod vocal group with five hit singles on the Billboard top 100, including ‘Hey Little Cobra’.
Homestead & Wolfe performed original material in a rich, melodic folk-rock-country style that was well executed, as well as earnest and personal.
Our group was so good that I contacted my old friends the Wrecking Crew and with their instrumental backing recorded 15 original tracks between 1973 and 1975 at the preeminent Gold Star Studios in Hollywood. The album was titled Our Times.
– Ernie Bringas, in his autobiography “Mexican Roots, American Soil“, June 2016, Phantasm Press, page 244-246, ISBN 0692721584
Our Times – The Story Of The Homestead & Wolfe LP Record
Originally released in 1975, Homestead & Wolfe’s LPL was a privately pressed LP. Therfore it was an artifact so lost to time, and has never appeared in any discography, list of rare records, or catalog, anywhere. However, exist it does.
As a Minister of Youth at Good Samaritan UMC in Cupertino, CA. from 1969-75, Bringas gave the band the ultimate “leg up” in the business. He produced this finely crafted recording using his old Hollywood connections with the Wrecking Crew and Stan Ross at Gold Star Studios in Hollywood. He first met Stan Ross while recording his songs prior to forming the Rip Chords! From 1973-75, Homestead and Wolfe went to Gold Star Recording Studios in Los Angeles,
JoAnne Avery Neish, a lead singer in the group, arranged all of the music and band charts. The CD insert gives a fun story about her first experience providing the Wrecking Crew with charts. The original songs were written by all of the group members themselves. Bringas took the lead to write and perfect lyrics with the band members on each song.
These recordings featured top flight studio musicianship from legendary “Wrecking Crew” – Drummer Hal Blaine, guitarists Ben Benay and Al Casey, bass player Ray Pohlman, and pedal steel guitar player Jay Dee Maness. See pictures of their recording sessions on the pics page.
The vocalists on the Homestead & Wolfe recordings, were: JoAnne Avery Neish, Janice Gundy, Brian Gundy, Dave Rupel, Ernie Bringas, Ted Larson.
Anopheles Records Put Homestead & Wolfe To CD
The original LP was re-discovered by Karl Ikola of Anopheles Records (San Francisco) in 2004. The goal of his record company is to archive and release unknown and under-appreciated music. Karl found a way to contact group member, Ted Larson, who linked him to Ernie Bringas, and together all agreed to work with Karl to re-release the LP as a CD.
The original 16-track, 2″ tapes were brought to Fantasy Studios in Berkeley and the old tapes were ‘baked’ in preparation to get all of the original tracks moved to digital. The album, plus the six additional singles, were made into a CD which was distributed by Anopheles Records as release number: Anopheles 008.
The harmonies and arrangements of H&W recall both the Mamas and the Papas and the Carpenters at times, but much of the music deals with darker themes: the story of Wounded Knee told in “See The Children Die”, the organ fueled psychedelia of “Your Freedom’s In Question” aimed at the Nixon administration at the time, it remains apropos today.
– Karl Ikola of Anopheles Records
With the release of that CD in 2004, the story of Homestead & Wolfe is now released to the world.
Music In Filmography
Fast forward to 2021, and we began working with a song manager in Los Angeles who works to get songs in movies and film. We’re now proud to say that our songs have been used in two shows for TV streaming:
- “King Of The Mountain” – was used by HBO Max on the series – “Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty” – in episode 3 of season 1 (March 20, 2022) during the closing credits. The song really fits what the owner of the team was trying to be.
- “Do I Love You” was included in the FX Network show Atlanta in episode 302 on March 24, 2022. Our song played lightly in the background as Darius and Van browsed in a thrift shop.
Fifty years after H&W was formed, our music is now being heard by millions thanks to our music friends in San Francisco and Los Angeles.
Listen / Buy – Homestead And Wolfe Songs
- H&W now has a “Bandcamp” page where anyone can purchase our CD on-line to save as files, or stream within Bandcamp. Check it out —> HomesteadWolfe.Bandcamp.com
- H&W is on Spotify and has a Spotify Radio Playlist
- Our 2004 ‘real hard’ CD is still available for purchase at AnophelesRecords.com
Songs & Videos – Critics Rave About The CD – More of the Story – Pictures