Cannibal and the Headhunters founder and L.A. Chicano rock pioneer dies

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Back in 1965, I discovered the story of Robert “Rabbit” Jaramillo and his band – they were *this* close to hitting it big and becoming major rock stars. It’s a really fascinating piece of music history, because they had all the potential in the world.

Cannibal and the Headhunters, a band from the Eastside, became famous in the spring with their hit song, “Land of 1,000 Dances.” The catchy tune, known for its repeating “nah na na na nah” chorus, led to TV appearances on shows like “American Bandstand.” They shared the stage with popular artists such as the Temptations, the Righteous Brothers, Marvin Gaye, and the Rolling Stones. Their energetic and well-rehearsed performances caught the attention of the Beatles, who invited them to open for their second U.S. tour that summer.

The Headhunters rejoined the Beatles in Los Angeles in August for two concerts at the Hollywood Bowl, shortly after the Watts riots. During one performance, Jaramillo danced so enthusiastically that his pants tore, and he and the other band members playfully slid across the stage on their backsides, much to the delight of the Los Angeles audience.

In a 2015 interview with the Times, Jaramillo recalled, “We were the main attraction! It didn’t matter what race anyone was. We came to perform and always tried our best to give the audience a great experience.”

After the Beatles’ tour finished a few nights later, the Headhunters resumed their tour in the fall, this time alongside the popular British band, the Animals.

But Jaramillo and his friends never recorded another hit, and he left the group two years later.

Music

Francisco M.

His daughter, Julie Trujillo, explained that he wished he could have continued, but he had to support his family. She said he always felt some sadness about having to stop.

Jaramillo died Aug. 8 of congestive heart failure in Pueblo, Colo. He was 78.

After leaving his band, he disappeared from the music scene so completely that when Tom Waldman researched his 1998 book, “Land of a Thousand Dances: Chicano Rock ‘n’ Roll from Southern California,” people believed he had already passed away. However, Waldman discovered he was living in Pueblo, Colorado, where he’d moved in the late 1970s and had been working as a railroad signal maintainer.

His still-strong tenor was reserved for belting gospel songs at the Pentecostal church he attended.

Waldman described him as dedicated and reflective about his work – not overly enthusiastic, but definitely not resentful. He added that the musician always took pride in the band’s accomplishments, which eventually inspired Waldman to create a musical loosely based on their story.

The book brought attention back to the vibrant Chicano rock scene of the 1960s on the Eastside. This led Jaramillo to rejoin his former bandmates for several more years of performances with enthusiastic fans. As the final surviving member of The Headhunters, he continued to share the story of their incredible summer in 1965 – when the four Mexican American musicians from Los Angeles showed the world they could compete with the biggest names in rock – through documentaries and interviews for the rest of his life.

Bobby Jaramillo was born in Colusa, California, to parents who had immigrated from Mexico. When he was young, his family moved to the Boyle Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles. Growing up, Jaramillo was part of a vibrant East L.A. music scene where young Mexican Americans blended different styles – including doo-wop, surf rock, and traditional Mexican trios – eventually creating a unique sound known as Chicano rock or brown-eyed soul. While a student at Lincoln High, Jaramillo teamed up with his brother Joe and friend Richard Lopez to form a band called Bobby and the Classics, and they rehearsed in a converted chicken coop in the Jaramillos’ backyard.

When Frankie Garcia joined Bobby and the Classics as their lead singer, the band changed its name to the Headhunters. This came from a shrunken head that bandmate Jaramillo displayed in his 1949 Chevy. Each member adopted a stage name based on a nickname they had growing up: Frankie Garcia became ‘Cannibal,’ Sal Lopez was ‘Scar,’ Joe D’Ambrosio was ‘YoYo,’ and Robert ‘Rabbit’ Jaramillo earned his name from his prominent front teeth.

The teenage band quickly became popular in their hometown, playing at churches and local theaters. A local producer then recorded their song “Land of 1,000 Dances,” inviting members of car clubs to join in the studio, singing and clapping to capture the energy of a lively Eastside party. The song reached number 30 on the Billboard charts, and Jaramillo learned about its success while working with his brother and Lopez, picking peaches in Northern California to help support their families.

Years later, Jaramillo recalled getting an excited phone call: ‘You need to come back-the record is a hit!’ They were then asked to perform on the ‘Hullabaloo’ television show. The money they earned from that appearance finally allowed them to return home.

The group’s lively performance on a national TV show is said to have impressed Paul McCartney. According to band members, McCartney mentioned to Beatles manager Brian Epstein that he wanted them to be the opening act for a Beatles concert.

Trujillo recalls asking his father how important the Beatles were, and being surprised by the response: ‘He had no idea who they were.’ His father was only focused on the fact that he enjoyed singing, regardless of the music’s origin.

Trujillo recalls her father telling stories about the Headhunters’ brief fame. He talked about things like the time he and Ringo Starr secretly went to smoke marijuana, and another time when Cher playfully sat on Jaramillo’s lap during a crowded taxi ride.

Trujillo recalls his father mentioning their manager hadn’t treated them fairly, leaving the band with little money and forcing them to pursue other jobs. Despite any success his father might have achieved, the family simply knew him as ‘Dad,’ not as a celebrity.

After retiring from the Santa Fe railroad in the 1990s and returning to Southern California, Jaramillo felt the urge to perform again. In 1999, Gregory Esparza joined Jaramillo and Lopez, replacing Garcia who had passed away in 1996. Esparza explained that the group, known as the Headhunters, didn’t play many public shows due to a disagreement over the rights to their name, but he often rehearsed with the original members – he estimates ‘hundreds’ of times.

Esparza explained that the band’s early success felt like a rapid climb to fame. ‘They were experiencing the thrill of achieving big things so young,’ he said. ‘That recognition meant everything to them.’ He later led another famous Chicano rock band, Thee Midniters.

I remember hearing about this crazy festival in San Bernardino. Apparently, the promoter told the band they wouldn’t get paid if they announced themselves as the Headhunters. But Rabbit, being Rabbit, walked onstage with this huge grin and just said, ‘You all know who we are!’ The crowd went wild, of course. It’s a legendary story – a real ‘stick it to the man’ moment.

Obituaries

In the mid-1960s, he and his high school bandmates had a nationwide hit song called ‘Land of 1000 Dances.’ They even had the opportunity to perform as the opening act for major artists like the Rolling Stones, the Righteous Brothers, and the Beatles in 1965.

Jaramillo returned to Colorado in the mid-2000s due to health problems, but he continued to sing throughout his life. In 2017, he was honored with an induction into the Chicano Music Hall of Fame at Su Teatro in Denver. The crowd erupted when he walked onstage with a cane, then surprisingly threw it aside to dance to the Headhunters’ famous song. At his church, Good Shepherd Fellowship in Pueblo, people often requested he sing Christian songs, with “The Blood That Jesus Shed for Me” by Andraé Crouch being a particular favorite. He also enjoyed doing karaoke with his grandson, Daniel Hernandez, and often chose classic songs like “Daddy’s Home” and “Sixteen Candles.”

Hernandez, who lives in Phoenix and originally grew up in East L.A., described Jaramillo as a mysterious man who never shared details about his past. However, Hernandez recalled that whenever Jaramillo sang, people were always impressed, often buying them drinks and complimenting his voice.

Jaramillo is remembered by his two brothers, as well as his eight children, fifteen grandchildren, and seventeen great-grandchildren. A service celebrating his life was held at Good Shepherd Fellowship and concluded with his casket being carried out to the song “Land of 1,000 Dances.”

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2025-09-26 13:32