Gene & Eunice

Formed in the early 1950s by Forrest Wilson, Jr. (AKA Gene Wilson and Gene Forrest) and Eunice Levy, Gene & Eunice is a rhythm & blues duo best known for their 1954 song “Ko Ko Mo (I Love You So)”. Wilson was born September 3, 1931 in San Antonio, Texas while Levy (birth name: Eunice Russ) was born in Texarkana, Texas in March 12, 1931. They met at a talent show in Los Angeles and began to date. A short while later, they wed and began writing, performing and recording as Gene & Eunice. Their self-penned debut single, “Ko Ko Mo (I Love You So)”, was released in 1954 and climbed to Number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100. The single would have done better had it not been for the many cover versions released as singles at the same time. While Perry Como’s version hit Number 2 on the Hot 100, there were plenty of other versions by artists such as The Crew Cuts, The Charms, Hawkshaw Hawkins, and many others. They signed with Aladdin Records and, in 1955, they had another hit with “This is My Story”, which reached Number 8. The following year, they released the single “Bom Bom Lulu”, which didn’t chart in the U.S. but became a hit in Jamaica. They never scored another hit in the U.S., nor did they release a full-length studio album before their eventual split in 1960. Their singles ended up being a big influence on early Jamaican bluebeat, ska, rocksteady, and reggae music. While their singles went out of print in America, they were reissued in Jamaica. There have been vinyl and CD reissues containing their hits as well as a vinyl EP or rarities titled This is It! Eunice Levy died on May 26, 2002. Gene Wilson died on July 24, 2003.

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