Singer Anita May was already embarking on a music career while attending National City Junior High School. After becoming a member June Jackson's backing band the Bootleggers, she recorded a number of Jackson's songs. Her guitarist Johnny "Cobra" Romero also played with Jackson.
Anita May & the Interstate 5 was a northern soul group known for their 1968 Audio Arts single "Tarnished Angel," produced and written by J. J. Jackson, aka June Jackson (Bootleggers, the Jackaels) and featuring a catchy b-side called "When It's Dark." Many think "Tarnished Angel" is the answer record to Bertha Tillman's "Oh My Angel." "Tarnished Angel" was reissued years later on a compilation album called Gangster Soul Girlz Harmony.
May also recorded tracks like "Fifty Percent Won't Do."