I have joined spiritually, several churches in Texas and California. In 1974, I went to the front of the altar to the Reverend James Cleveland, at his church on Washington Boulevard near Crenshaw Boulevard and I joined his church. It was the celebration of the 5th anniversary in Los Angeles, for Rev. Cleveland moving from Detroit. I remember Natalie Cole being at that church service on what was for me, a special Sunday morning in my life. Alphonso then married, GERALDINE ASHLEY at the Ambassador Hotel in L.A., having a huge wedding party. It was there that I first met BILLY PRESTON, who was playing at the wedding. He just came from recording with George Harrison (of the BEATLES) in London. I have met an endless number of beautiful people because Alphonso, at the time, was one of the African American community leaders. Unfortunately, in 1971, Alphonso was shot to death while I was back in Germany between 1971 and the end of 1972. Before his death, he was the pastor for the funeral of George Jackson at Ashley Grispy´s Funeral Home. George Jackson was killed in San Francisco by police bullets at the courthouse when he and others took a judge hostage. Angela Davis was then on the FBI´s most wanted list and served time in jail, solitaire, for supposedly being the registered owner of the gun used in the hostage taking. It was worldwide news.

During 1972, I met IKE&TINA TURNER and their review in Hamburg. It was Soko Richardson, their drummer, who I met first. He is still my friend today. I was getting in contact with everybody once I made it back to L.A.. I was working for Mary Williams Music, a company in the heart of Hollywood on Selma Avenue, involved with NBC-TV´s MIDNIGHT SPECIAL, securing and clearing mechanical song rights for television producers, because TV shows are taped and therefore constitute a mechanical right, which would be like pressing records. Everything was recorded live. I had the opportunity to be on the tapings at NBC studios in Burbank, California. I was able to get THE INTRUDERS from the famous Philly Sound, on the show. Their hit at the time was, "I´ll Tell My Mama". I was hanging out with guys like Leon Russell, Jazz Pianist, who owned Black Jazz Records and my friend, one hit wonder, Gene Redding, who had a top 20 pop hit produced by The Doobie Brothers. I don´t know what happened to Gene, but Leon passed away suddenly around 1980. My new girl became Gail Robinson. She was one of the IKETTES I first met in Hamburg with Ike. We lived in Hollywood, Michigan, and Hamburg. I got her in a group called LES HUMPHRIES SINGERS. In Germany, we had our story in Bravo magazine and a front-page national article in the BILD newspaper. But we broke up, and I was on my way back to the USA.