Bob Destiny (born Ralph Philip Brown in in San Juan Puerto Rico) was a singer-songwriter and musician who was a star by age of just six years old! Starting out as a tap dancer in a group called “The Five Chocolate Drops,” this break helped the young artist rise to fame, earning him a place in a film with Shirley Temple!
At about the same time Destiny found a strong passion for music and learnt to play the piano. This later gave him work in piano bars in New York, where he also trained in theatre and dance. In an era where racial discrimination was preventing him from proceeding forward in acting, a lucky break led him to an encounter with Billie Holiday and from that meething he began to accompany her on piano! Throughout the 50’s and 60’s he played, sang and danced in various Broadway shows, as well as appearing in several Hollywood films, but it was in 1956 that he recorded his first album as a singer!
Destiny really was the perfect name for this artist!
In 1969 he left the US to teach music in Algeria at the Algerian National Theatre and in 1970 he released a couple of 45s, including today’s song Mahna (Troubles), which was issued on the Freedom Musique label. It was issued about the same time as his other wild romp, Wang Dang (a track which has been compared to the likes of James Brown/The Sonics) and shares the same raw energy; this time unleashing itself in a powerful and tortured soul/funk lament! Check it out above.
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