Chuck Higgins

Chuck Higgins, a saxophonist who also handled trombone and trumpet duties, secured his place in R&B through the composition "Pachuko Hop," a track that has stayed a steady favorite with Latino listeners even though it failed to register on the wider R&B charts of the early 1950s. Born in Gary, he relocated to Los Angeles as a teenager in 1940. There he played trumpet in his high-school band before studying at the Los Angeles Conservatory, where he assembled a group that included pianist Frank Dunn and saxophonist Johnny Parker among its members. Higgins eventually switched to saxophone within the band and penned "Pachuko Hop," whose blistering tempo, blasting saxophone break, and gritty texture—along with the title’s use of “Pachuko,” the period slang for a Mexican-American in oversized trousers sporting a key chain—turned the number into a defining 1950s anthem for local Latino audiences. Its B-side, “Motorhead Baby,” later prompted the stage name of Frank Zappa sideman James “Motorhead” Sherwood and supplied the moniker for the heavy metal band Motörhead. Higgins shared Los Angeles bills with artists from Charlie Parker to the Orioles, and his own lineup at one stage featured Johnny “Guitar” Watson. Although none of the many singles he cut for Aladdin, Caddy, Lucky, Specialty, or Dootone reached national attention, he remained a strong regional draw from the 1950s into the early 1960s, when he stepped away from performing to teach music at local high schools and a college. A mid-1970s comeback attempt stalled after he tried shifting to a disco sound; he returned to his honking R&B style in the late 1970s and, by the mid-1980s, was touring England while once again appearing in Los Angeles clubs.