1. Leon "Chaino" Johnson, the self-styled "percussion genius of Africa," was an American bongo player.
12 Facts About Chaino
1. 2.
Chaino was actually born in Philadelphia and raised in Chicago.
3.
Chaino was born in Philadelphia, but he grew up on the South Side of Chicago.
4.
In 1958, Chaino teamed up with record producer Kirby Allan; the pair released several albums in the late 1950s.
5.
Chaino turns in what amounts to a one-man show on a variety of bongos, congo drums, steel drums, gourds and assorted noisemakers, altho [sic] the label's sound work doesn't do it real justice.
6.
Chaino was scheduled to perform with Makeba at the Hollywood Bowl, but was unable to appear because he was in jail at the time.
7.
Chaino's music enjoyed renewed popularity in the late 1990s as part of the revival of interest in the exotica and ultra lounge genres.
8.
Chaino later lived in Oklahoma City where he played in local clubs.
9.
Carl Brandon assisted Chaino by renting a small house and encouraging him to apply for government benefits to stabilize his gypsy lifestyle.
10.
Chaino returned to Chicago for a reunion with his brother.
11.
Chaino was badly injured in a bar fight in Los Angeles in 1998 and again returned to Chicago where he stayed with his brother.
12.
Chaino developed a brain tumor and, in July 1999, he suffered a heart attack following surgery to remove the tumor and died in Chicago.