They were discovered by Rampart Records label owner and founder Eddie Davis. They were among the 1960s Mexican-American musicians and singers who pioneered the "East Side Sound" of Los Angeles, a musical phenomenon that attracted international attention. Francisco Mario (Frankie Cannibal) Garcia founded the group in 1965; The record reached No. 30 in the
Billboard Hot 100 chart in early 1965, The single's success would lead them to record an album with the same name, which reached No. 141 in the
US.
Wilson Pickett recorded the song into a national hit in 1967, also using the "na, na, na, na" lyric. On May 7, 1965, Cannibal and the Headhunters performed in a concert for WVOK with the Rolling Stones, the Beach Boys, the Righteous Brothers, and Marty Robbins in Birmingham, Alabama at Legion Field. Three months later, Paul McCartney requested that Garcia and his group join the Beatles tour, from August 15 through August 31, 1965, at Shea Stadium New York and at the Hollywood Bowl California. Frankie "Cannibal" Garica, leader since the group's formation, died on January 21, 1996, aged 49. Robert Jaramillo died on August 8, 2025. In 2012, Richard Lopez and Albert Garcia, who performed and sang as members of the original
Cannibal and the Headhunters, filed an opposition with the United States Patent and Trademark Office contesting Robert L. Zapata’s application to register the group’s name as a trademark. The case, heard before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB Proceeding No. 91204521), argued that the name
Cannibal and the Headhunters originated with the original vocal group formed in 1964 and that Zapata, who joined years later, was not entitled to exclusive ownership of the mark. The case was dismissed with prejudice and the opposition proceeding terminated on August 27, 2013. ==References==