AIRWAVES

Late last spring, Beverly Murillo-Huizenga was reading the newspaper one Sunday morning when she saw an advertisement that made her jump: The Blendells were scheduled to perform in a “Latino All-Stars” oldies concert at the Greek Theatre.

Murillo-Huizenga’s brother, Sal, had been lead singer of the Blendells, a group from East Los Angeles that started in 1962 and had a nationwide hit in 1964 with a remake of Stevie Wonder’s “La La La La La.” For a year, they toured the West Coast; then four of the members got drafted and the band broke up. Sal had said nothing about a reunion concert.

That’s because Sal, 45, knew nothing about such a concert. It seems a New Jersey-based concert promoter, Mark del Costello, had added the Blendells to the list in the hope that it would reunite the group. The plan worked. Sal immediately called Mike Rincon, the group’s leader.

“I contacted all the members and they said yes without any hesitation,” says Rincon, 45. Four of the six still live in Southern California; Sal Murillo had moved to Tucson and the drummer, Ron Chipres, 42, lives in San Francisco.

The first rehearsals were like a party, Rincon says. “Some of us hadn’t seen each other for 26 years. I’ve lost some hair, and some of us have gotten a little gray. But basically

we are the same people now as we were back then.”

At the oldies show, they performed three songs, including “La La La La La.” “I was nervous. I didn’t know what to expect after 22 years,” says Rudy Valona, 42, lead guitarist. Pre-concert jitters faded with the first notes. “The 10 minutes on stage went by in a flash,” Rincon says.

Although the members now have careers outside music, they are rehearsing both old and new songs they hope to perform and record. The feeling has returned. “We performed so much of this music in the past, it’s like doing it in our sleep,” Rincon says.