About
Gaynel Hodge was born in Los Angeles, California, and became heavily involved in doo-wop, rhythm and blues and jazz from his earliest years. He began writing songs and playing piano professionally by age 13; joining, starting and practicing with vocal harmony groups on street corners of Los Angeles as 'an alternative to getting into trouble.'
By age 15, Hodge was already a regular session musician in recording studios throughout Los Angeles, and in 1954 had co-written the multi-platinum hit “Earth Angel” together with friends Jesse Belvin and Curtis Williams. He went on to form the original Platters with his brother, Alex Hodge, and sang and played piano with them on their first 17 recordings.
Hodge wrote, arranged, recorded or performed with such artists as Lou Rawls, Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, Johnny "Guitar" Watson, Dr. John, Ted Taylor, Little Johnny Taylor, Richard Berry, Dick Dale, Don and Dewey, The Chambers Brothers, The Rivingtons, The Olympics, Johnny Morissette, Tony Allen and Duane Eddy.
Gaynel settled in Phoenix, Arizona in 1974 after extensively touring with The Ink Spots. He married Margerite Ilona in 1975. Hodge was a vivid part of the Phoenix music scene until they moved to the Netherlands in 1999. In the 2000s he continued to tour several months of the year throughout Europe, the Middle East and the United States. In his final years he performed special engagement concerts well past the age of 80.
Gaynel lived with his wife in The Hague from 1999 until 2015, then moving to Amsterdam until his passing at age 83 on June 3, 2020.
He will always be remembered for his charisma and ability to fill any room with music and get even the toughest crowds on their feet.
By age 15, Hodge was already a regular session musician in recording studios throughout Los Angeles, and in 1954 had co-written the multi-platinum hit “Earth Angel” together with friends Jesse Belvin and Curtis Williams. He went on to form the original Platters with his brother, Alex Hodge, and sang and played piano with them on their first 17 recordings.
Hodge wrote, arranged, recorded or performed with such artists as Lou Rawls, Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, Johnny "Guitar" Watson, Dr. John, Ted Taylor, Little Johnny Taylor, Richard Berry, Dick Dale, Don and Dewey, The Chambers Brothers, The Rivingtons, The Olympics, Johnny Morissette, Tony Allen and Duane Eddy.
Gaynel settled in Phoenix, Arizona in 1974 after extensively touring with The Ink Spots. He married Margerite Ilona in 1975. Hodge was a vivid part of the Phoenix music scene until they moved to the Netherlands in 1999. In the 2000s he continued to tour several months of the year throughout Europe, the Middle East and the United States. In his final years he performed special engagement concerts well past the age of 80.
Gaynel lived with his wife in The Hague from 1999 until 2015, then moving to Amsterdam until his passing at age 83 on June 3, 2020.
He will always be remembered for his charisma and ability to fill any room with music and get even the toughest crowds on their feet.
|
His WorkGaynel most famously co-wrote the global hit, "Earth Angel" which has been covered more than 100 times, reached Number 1 in the Billboard RnB Chart.
The song “Earth Angel” is classic doo wop music. “Earth Angel (Will You Be Mine)” was written by Curtis Williams, Jesse Belvin, and Gaynel Hodge (uncredited). (For those who like music history, Williams was with the group The Hollywood Flames and was on their record “Buzz-Buzz-Buzz.” Please click here to read more and listen to “Buzz-Buzz-Buzz.”. Gaynel Hodge was also with The Hollywood Flames, The Platters, and The Turks. Hodge wrote and performed for many aritsts.) Anyway, back to this song, The Penguins released “Earth Angel” in 1954 on the Dootone label. It was the B-side to “Hey Señorita,” but it soon became much more popular and reached #1 on the Billboard R&B chart in 1955 and #8 on the U.S. Pop chart. It was also featured in the film Back to the Future. Since its release, there have been many covers. However, the version of “Earth Angel” by The Penguins is ranked #152 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Another honor is from The Library of Congress, which added “Earth Angel” in 2004 to the National Recording Registry. |
|
