The Carlos Brothers

The Carlos Brothers were a duo consisting of Jimmy Carlos and Pete Antoniano. They were half-brothers from the same mother but with different fathers. Although the brothers were part Spanish and part Filipino, they consider themselves Chicanos. The brothers grew up in the Latino section of East L.A. and became friends with Ritchie Valens, who brought the brothers to Bob Keene’s attention in 1958. Keene signed them to his Del-Fi Records label, and in November of that year their first Del-Fi single was issued under the name of The Shadows. Both Keene and the brothers changed names. Bob became Bob Keane due to some confusion and problems with his twin brother Verrill Keene, and The Shadows became The Carlos Brothers, probably because quite a few bands by the name of The Shadows already existed. For their next single, the duo recorded Tonight and Come On, Let’s Dance. For that session, they were joined by Ritchie Valens playing guitar on both sides. The record was released just weeks after Ritchie’s tragic death on February 3, 1959. The Carlos Brothers’ career produced four singles for Del-Fi between 1958 and 1960. A last single followed on the New York based Zen label in 1963 before the brothers vanished without a trace...