Brenton Wood: Beloved singer known for iconic 1967 hit 'The Oogum Boogum Song' dies aged 83

The late artist died on Friday 3 January surrounded by his friends and family at his Moreno Valley home in California. The news of his death was first reported by TMZ and his assistant, Manny Gallegos, confirmed the news to the outlet.

The cause of death has not been disclosed but Manny told the NYPost: “It just was his old age. He was 83 years old.

"He went in his sleep peacefully. The love that he gave us, God took him the same way”.

Manny also shared to the outlet that Brenton relayed to him a message to his fans on Thursday 2 January.He told his assistant, "I might not be here for long," and Manny revealed, "He said, ‘Catch you on the rebound'".

The specific phrase had meaning for Brenton, whose final tour was also named that and had a 1967 song with that title. According to Manny, the tour ended on Valentine’s Day weekend in 2024 and shortly after the late 83-year-old started to feel sick. Then in May 2024, he was hospitalised.

Brenton was born Alfred Jesse Smith on July 26, 1941 in Shreveport, Louisiana but raised in San Pedro, California when his family moved there when he was a child. Brenton grew up learning the piano and was inspired by the likes of Jesse Belvin and Sam Cooke when it came to playing the piano and writing songs.

He attended college at East Los Angeles College and sang in local R&B groups. As he went solo, he took up the stage name Brenton Wood based on the wealthy Los Angeles neighbourhood Brentwood.

He signed with with Brent Records and Wand Records where his early singles did not chart. But then he changed to Double Shot Record where his notable single The Oogum Boogum Song took off. The song landed at No. 34 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1967 and No. 19 on the Billboard R&B charts.

His other songs, Gimme Little Sign and Baby You Got It respectively peaked at No. 9 and No. 34 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1967. Come Softly to Me was his last solo song to chart where it reached No. 97 on Billboard’s R&B tally in in 1978.