The Rip Chords
musical artist
The Rip Chords were an early-1960s American vocal group, originally known as the Opposites, composed of Ernie Bringas and Phil Stewart. The group eventually expanded into four primary voices, adding Columbia producer Terry Melcher and co-producer Bruce Johnston (best known as a member of the Beach Boys). This group came to be associated with the hot-rod and surf genres of that day, although their first single ("Here I Stand") did not reflect those styles. They recorded for Columbia Records in Hollywood from 1962 to 1965. The group placed five singles on the Billboard Hot 100. They are best known for their number-four single: "Hey Little Cobra".
Group history
Bringas and Stewart became acquainted during the mid-1950s as students at Inglewood High School (about ten miles south of Hollywood). They discovered some complementary musical talents and struck up a friendship. Encouraged by their singing compatibility, they were determined to secure a recording contract. They eventually came to the attention of Arwin Records/Daywin Music in 1962.
The public source identifies “The Rip Chords” as musical artist. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Chords, musical and artist.
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The entry’s evidential value lies in the named roles, institutions and publications that can be tested against primary documentation. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 4, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q16955510. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1962 and 1965.
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This entry incorporates text from “The Rip Chords” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.