Mixtures Stompin At The Rainbow

It all happened at the Rainbow Gardens in Pomona, California, 1960, as The Mixtures, mighty kings of the West Coast's Eastside dance hall scene, rocked and ruled the house. As the movement for integration that began in Mississippi and Alabama was taking shape nationwide, it was not only the South that was segregated. In the Southern California of the Fifties, non-white races were more allied, though it was rare you'd find them mixed in a band. As the dawn broke on rock'n'roll, "The Mixtures," a six man party band—was at different times comprised of African Americans, Hispanics, Asians, Caucasians and a Native American, made history. Stepping onstage to the tune of a warm up, the band would move through instrumental superjams, crowd-pleasing pop till the house and all its inhabitants dripped in a cold sweat. By the time they got to Ike and Tina's "It's Gonna Work Out Fine," into which they'd injected their own brand of soul-styled horns and guitar at all the right stops, they'd have the roof tore off.