Tag Archives: tejano music

Tacho’s Sabado Playlist

Posted on July 2, 2022 | Comments Off on Tacho’s Sabado Playlist

Lots of new music hit this week.

The Latin Breed – Come and Get It – Known for their ability to go from Tejano to R&B in an instant, the legendary Latin Breed lays down some amazing musicality with this funky tune. Give it a listen and enjoy the vocals of Ben Miranda and the hard-driving Latin Breed horns.

Los Palominos – No Le Digas A Nadie – They’ve been warning us that they were dropping a sure hit and they came through. Uvalde’s own Los Palominos released this first single, and Humildes classic, since their personnel change. One thing is for sure, they have not lost any of their commitment to the legacy sound that put them on the map decades ago. If anything, this recent musical styling brings back some 90s hey-day memories. Our friends at Tejano Nation have more.

Grupo Fuerte – Mucho Corazon – The Houston-area’s own, Carlos Maldonado y Grupo Fuerte, has a long history as a heavy-hitting conjunto. This rendition of a classic on their 25th Anniversary, with some nice pasaditas on the bajo sexto, the dueling saxes, and a great vocal, is what we needed.

Joe Lopez y El Grupo Mazz – Dame La Mano – This is another Tejano single which has been charting in Mexico radio and on online platforms from the King of Tejano’s latest album, Love From The Heart. Written by Lopez, the tune has more of an 80s synth sound that fits in with the current demand for new tunes. The entire album is definitely a must-have.

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Posted in 2022, Cultura, DC Promo, Historia, Media

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Tacho’s Sabado Playlist

Posted on February 5, 2022 | Comments Off on Tacho’s Sabado Playlist

The music continues to drop with some long-awaited tunes making it on to digital platforms and radio. Here are a few tunes to get you through this weekend.

Isabel Marie – No Me Mires Asi – The singing sensation has gone off on her own and with a great production team to produce this powerful cumbia penned by Latin Grammy winner Juan Treviño. She has been developing her talent for a long while and seems to keep finding her sound. Check it out. Also, check out some of her pandemic creations with keyboardist/producer Mario Ortiz.

Emanuel J – Pensando En Ti – Another young vocalist, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, Emanuel J finally released his sophomore album, Numero Dos. He’s been busy. Ever the journeyman musician, he’s worked with artists, such as Bobby Pulido and David Lee Garza while developing his talent. He’s another artist who kept working in the studio during the pandemic.

David Lee Garza y Los Musicales – Solamente Tu – DLG and the band are set to release their next production, Solamente Tu, and this title track has been out for a few months. The album, voiced by Cezar Martinez, will include a really good medley of 80s-era DLG/Emilio tunes and a lot of new material. For now, enjoy this catchy cumbia.

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Posted in Accion, Cultura, DC Promo, Media, Reviews

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Tacho’s Sabado Playlist

Posted on December 11, 2021 | Comments Off on Tacho’s Sabado Playlist

It’s been awhile and there is some good music out there. It’s also the season for seasonal tunes. Check these out.

Percy Cardona – Linus and Lucy- Percy comes from the giant metroplex of Big Wells, TX. After some stints with various Tejano bands, as well as Americana sensation The Last Bandoleros, he has recently landed as the new accordionist for The Mavericks. Thankfully, he still gets to work on side projects and this rendition of Lucy and Linus is very Tex-Mex, accordion-heavy with a tough Bajo Sexto (by Eddie Perez) background. It’s already a favorite among many music lovers.

LA .45 – Joy to the World/Angels We Have Heard on High – La .45, a horn-based sensation from SATX, released this little medley of Xmas tunes in ranchera fashion. The sax solos are by Ricky Ray Hernandez, one of my fave players and a Texas State grad. Mike Torres, III and John Ontiveros are quite the innovators on this one.

Frankie Caballero, Jr. – Quedate – Frankie dusted off an oldie but goodie from my 80s fave, Bobby Naranjo y Direccion and stayed true to the original while giving it his own sabor.

Miguel Hernandez – Al Fin – Miguel is one of my favorite guitarists and underrated vocalists in la onda Tejana. He’s also a good songwriter and arranger who has worked with Percy Cardona (see above). This is a bold effort that isn’t your run-of-the-mill studio recording. He seems to go 10% above what is coming out recently. Enjoy.

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Posted in 2021, Cultura, Media

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Tacho’s Sabado Playlist

Posted on October 16, 2021 | Comments Off on Tacho’s Sabado Playlist

Time to load up that playlist, again. There are some new singles that will soon be inching up the charts in the Tejano genre. Here are a few.

Jay Perez – Para Volvernos Amar – This tune is a soon-to-be Joe Revelez penned classic. Perez’s soaring vocals, particularly during the chorus, are exceptional. His musicians provide a fat bass line and a classic sound that Perez has stuck with throughout his solo career. Give it a listen. The R&B harmonies are amazing, too.

Chente Barrera – Senorita Cantinera – As previously posted, Chente recently released an homenaje to the legendary Primo, Roberto Pulido y Los Clasicos. All those Pulido classics some of enjoyed on our sister’s 8-track player are on this release. And Senorita Cantinera is still a classic as Chente powers through through highs, much like Pulido did in the 70s.

La Fiebre – Cuidala – I had previously added this one to the playlist, but now, it has an on official video from Freddie Records. With it’s tough horns, melodic acordeon, and that sweet rhythm guitar, it’s a tune worthy of a Latin Grammy nom. And the whole album was nominated. Check out the vid.

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Tacho’s Playlist

Posted on September 19, 2021 | Comments Off on Tacho’s Playlist

Time to add a few more tunes to your playlist. Here are a few awesome finds.

Los Texmaniacs – El Rancho Grande – Recently, a new compilation paying tribute to the late great Freddy Fender was released. Included in the mix of tunes was Grammy winners, Los Texmaniacs with their rendition of El Rancho Grande. With Josh Baca’s squeezebox and Max Baca’s signature bajo sexto, this tune is fast becoming a favorite. Check it out.

Los Nuevos Dudes – La Luz – One of my favorite duos during the late 80s was Los Dudes, which featured Joe Revelez and Anthony Hernandez sharing vocal and keyboard duties. Their live shows never disappointed as the two-man band made a lot of noise. Revelez, now, teams up with former Gary Hobbs keyboardist Hector Gutierrez on this new tune. Revelez has not lost his touch with his jazzy keyboarding, with the accomplished Gutierrez adding a strong segunda.

The Latin Breed – Ay Mujer – Recently, The Latin Breed released a new album of re-recorded hits featuring their most recent lead vocalist Ben Miranda. Ay Mujer was one of the top hits from Latin Breed’s best seller, Breakin’ the Rules from 1988. Since then, the legendary big band has made several albums, but this is the first time they have re-recorded some of their biggest hits featuring a newer vocalist. Folks will remember that Breakin’ The Rules launched the career of Jay Perez. The Latin Breed does not disappoint with their tight horn and rhythm section, but Ben Miranda also impresses. After 50 years in the business, The Latin Breed continues to tour putting on powerful performances.

And as we begin Raza Heritage Month…

The Tortilla Factory – Mi Gente – A few years ago, The Tortilla Factory recorded this powerful tune, a sequel to Little Joe, Johnny y La Familia’s legendary Las Nubes. El Gato Negro Ruben Ramos, El Charro Negro Bobby Butler, and Alfredo Guerrero provide a 3-part harmony, while Joe Gallardo offers up some trombone licks. Listen to the lyrics. The video features some powerful images, too. One familiar face is our friend, former Senator Gonzalo Barrientos.

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Posted in 2021, Accion, Cultura, DC Promo, Media

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QEPD – Ruben Cubillos

Posted on August 3, 2021 | Comments Off on QEPD – Ruben Cubillos

There were some good articles and tributes posted yesterday for Ruben Cubillos, Tejano Music advocate, graphic/visual artist, and performer, who passed away over the weekend. I never got to meet him, but I knew and appreciated his work. We also became FB friends and I partook of some of the intense and productive conversations he would start on the state of the Tejano Music genre.

Regarding articles, check out Tejano Nation and Joey Guerra’s piece in the Chron. My FB friend and Austin PR exec Paul Saldana also had one on FB.

If you’ve ever bought a Selena tee, poster, album, or anything with her logo, you owe it to Ruben Cubillos. Ruben put Tejano music imagery on the map, developing concepts and images for Tejano music album covers when the big record companies were finally investing in the genre in the early 90s. Bands like Mazz, David Lee Garza y Los Musicales, and Selena enjoyed his top-notch and creative concepts, which added much value to their albums.

Along with his professional PR career and his career as a vocalist with the legendary Latin Breed, he was also an advocate. Always willing to offer up some advice to up and coming musicians, he never candy coated it. He was quite honest, especially when it came to how a band should develop their image. Especially during the forced break during the pandemic. But he was also an advocate.

Ruben was one of the leaders of those demanding the HoustonRodeo bring back Tejano music acts after it decided to concentrate on regional Mexican and banda acts. Beyond this, the protests were also about pay parity for Latino acts, equity in distribution of scholarships given from the thousands of dollars made from sold out concerts, and more diversity in rodeo committees. Well, Tejano is still missing from the line-ups, the undocumented are still passed over for scholarship money, even though that’s who attends the banda music concerts, but the message was sent to the rodeo people and Ruben was one of the chief advocates. All the rodeo people did was whine that anyone would complain.

Anyway, Ruben was one of the good ones in an industry that has historically been taken advantage of by corporatism, whether it came from Miami-owned radio stations, LA-based record companies, or corporations who used it to make a buck. When the profits slowed, the genre was cut-off and left to die. But much was learned and the music and culture continues. And Ruben is one of the reasons it continues.

Gracias, Ruben.

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Posted in Cultura, Historia, History, Media, Reviews

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Tejano Music Podcasts to Follow

Posted on July 7, 2021 | Comments Off on Tejano Music Podcasts to Follow

One way to piss me off is telling me that the Tejano music genre is dying. Corporatism tried to give it a knockout punch after exploiting it during the 90s, no doubt, but failed. The Made-in-Texas music genre is alive and thriving on its own. And folks within the industry are talking about it.

My FB friend, Rebecca Valadez, known for her touring work providing background vocals for Janet Jackson and the iterations of Grupo Mazz, as well as an impressive solo career, has taken on a couple of projects. One is her own podcast, which has featured some Tex-Mex greats, as well as folks working in other aspects of our culture. A most informative podcast featured Grammy winning producer Gilbert Velasquez who had a lot to say regarding the future of the genre.

The other podcast is Gibby’s Tejano Round Table, which is hosted by Valadez and Velasquez and brings together a round table of influential folks in the Tejano music genre to discuss the state of Tejano Music, including terrestrial and internet DJs, producers, musicians, and even social media influencers who are keeping the genre alive and kicking.

These are discussions that must be had in other than private surroundings and Valadez and Velasquez are doing the industry a huge favor by putting these discussions out in the open, not just for those who make a living in the industry, but also for the folks who buy the records and attend the dances and concerts. These discussions go beyond entertainer interviews, like those of my favorite Tejano podcast, Behind the Mic with AC Cruz, but they are still pretty entertaining.

One more to add to the list is MARCed Up Live with Marc Martinez. Marc is an accomplished musician who played with legends Joe Posada and Emilio Navaira. His podcast/online show features music and health discussions one might enjoy.

So, for those who want a more in-depth discussion on the Tejano music genre, follow these podcasts mentioned above. There is a lot of music to be heard and enjoyed. And there is a lot of cultura to preserve.

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Posted in 2021, Cultura, DC Promo

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COVID-19: It is Far From Over

Posted on April 25, 2021 | Comments Off on COVID-19: It is Far From Over

For sixteen years, I’ve written about Chicano politics, culture and other cool stuff. Along the lines of culture is my obvious love for Onda Chicana music, or Tejano music. During the last year, I’ve written about how the Tejano music industry has suffered because of the pandemic, and how even some accomplished Grammy-winning musicians who pushed it and exposed themselves at venues during the pandemic almost died from it.

Anyway, it seems with idiotic state governors fully opening up states around the country, music is returning to the stage. Some big-name bands, like The Mavericks, have had intimate gatherings with limited attendance, distancing, and even masking if the beer can isn’t at ones mouth. I guess this is as responsible as it can get at these things during a pandemic. There have been some attempts at Tejano clubs to have reduced capacity, limited musician (solo/accompaniment acts) concerts that seem to have been productive.

But I’ve also seen Tejano music clubs re-opening to full capacity, and, no doubt, Tejano music fans are hungry to return to their partying ways to spend some of that stimulus (or their hard-earned money). Every now and then, a venue has posted livestreams of the concerts/dances at their venues and there is no distancing, no masks, and one has to wonder what the crowd’s vaccination rate is.

In Texas, the current full vaccination rate is at 23%; unfortunately, demand for the vaccine is dropping and really fast. Some smaller counties are closing up vax sites because the demand is so low. In Florida, the vaccination numbers are similar because of their similarly idiotic governor. And for Brown folks, the vaccination rate is dangerously low. Unfortunately, infection rates and positivity are still high all around. And they are still high for Latinos.

According to the CDC, Latinos are 2 times more likely to get the disease than white and non-Latino groups, 3 times more likely to end up in the hospital, and 2.3 times more likely to die from COVID-19. And since vaccination rates are still low among Latinos, these rates of risk among Latinos are not likely to change any time soon.

So, why the hell are Brown folks packing nightclubs and concert venues? Just because our idiot governor said it was OK? Hell, if we were creating super-spreader events early on during the pandemic at family gatherings, imagine what can happen in a venue full of unmasked strangers screaming and breathing on you.

A reminder: The vaccination only guards you from serious infection.

I know the bands and musicians are looking out for their own livelihood, but they hold some of the responsibility for not limiting attendance at these venues. For not enforcing masking and distancing at these privately owned venues as part of their performance contracts. But I guess the money is just too good. So, if the governors are leaving it up to people to decide how to act and whether or not to get a shot of vaccine, then the people asked for it, right?

There’s a happy-medium in all of this (limited attendance, masking, distancing, serious vax encouragement) that bands and venues seem to want to avoid. Why? It cuts into profits, obviously. And believe me, I long for a good concert, like Los Lobos and The Mavericks at the Greek Theater (outdoors) in LA in the early fall, but even with my shots done, I just don’t trust large groups of people when my responsibility is to my family (some with autoimmune conditions) and my work. The YOLO attitude among our people is exactly what is killing our people.

I guess what I want to tell my Tejano music lovin’ people is this: Slow down! Get Vaccinated! Mask-Up! Distance! Avoid crowds and poorly ventilated venues!

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OMG! That Girl Looks Nothing Like JLo!

Posted on December 7, 2020 | Comments Off on OMG! That Girl Looks Nothing Like JLo!

And that’s how some of the negative “fan” reviews began this weekend about Selena: The Series.

Once you get other little things out of the way, like, there are no mountains in Matamoros and Tejano dancers dance around the dance floor and not in one spot on the floor, well, the rest is an actual attempt at a biography of a struggling, yet short, and ultimately successful career that achieved much in terms of musical quantity and quality.

For folks whose love of Selena started at Amor Prohibido and Carcacha, or worse, for those whose love of Selena started at Dreaming of You, there seems to be disappointment in the series. For those of us who lived in the 80s and enjoyed 80s, big haired, weird outfit wearing Selena, this series has definitely been a treat and even a respite from current realities.

For those of us who have been fans of the genre for a while, we’ve enjoyed the mention of other artists and events that many of us experienced, such as the importance of the Tejano Music Awards. Whether folks want to accept it or not, there is a lot of history in this genre of music and I really appreciate an attempt to put it out there.

Now, I wasn’t going to be “that fan” who binged it. I’m going to enjoy it as much as I can, so, I only watched the first three episodes, thus far. But some of the criticism has been vicious. Some call it sanitized and white-washed. Others are blaming the patriarchy. Some even blame Netflix. I don’t really see any of what is being criticized in this regard. I’m just trying to enjoy some entertainment that touches on a little history about my culture.

Maybe people don’t want to see Selena’s family’s struggles. The food stamp scene brought out some emotions from me. The scene where the restaurant closes because of the economy tanking hit home with me, too. The scene where Abraham tells his kids that it’s OK to ask for help from the government as he paid his taxes was a speech I heard from my own Pop when we were struggling and I told him about what school kids would say about families on food stamps. It hit home.

The slow ascent to success that Selena went through was also important. Having to find an indie record label to produce, record, and distribute her music without much promotion was tough enough, but the struggle to come up with good songs and dealing with unhelpful songwriters was very telling about what Tejano bands have gone through in their careers. You can’t become a YouTube sensation when Al Gore hadn’t even invented the internets. Hell, just keeping the van and trailer running is something that still occurs in the present-day Tejano business. Showing Selena as appreciative of those that came before her (Laura Canales) was heartfelt, at least as a scene in the show.

The first three episodes provided a good foundation about Selena and the importance of her family in her success. Some of the criticism that the series is all about the dad and brother seems a little whiny. This was a family business. Selena was the main talent, but they all played a part in getting this business started, so, the story needs to be about all of them. I was even appreciative of Suzette’s struggles as a non-musician turned instant drummer for the band and the criticism from within the band as they discovered drum machines and electric drums to get the sound right. Without Abraham’s experiences in his own music career as a What Not To Do List for Selena’s career, and AB’s own struggle to become the family’s musical director, there is no Selena.

Let’s remember that even Beyonce started as a family business and that’s what it is now.

Anyway, I’m enjoying it. The early recordings featured, like Dame Un Beso, or her sped-up version of La Bamba, makes me miss my Tejano cassette collection and the GPX boombox my parents bought me at the Carrizo Springs Wal-Mart.

I’ll keep watching it. Watch it for entertainment or watch it for a little history about a Mexican American icon. But if you are watching it for a different take on the “washing machine” scene from the movie, then it may not be for you.

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Posted in Cultura, DC Promo, Family History, Historia, History, Las Mujeres

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Re-Living History

Posted on May 22, 2020 | Comments Off on Re-Living History

I noticed some Tejano music nighclubs are getting ready to re-open. It’s too damn soon! I even read that Grupo Intocable, one of my favorites, is going to have a “drive-in” concert out in the boonies in Poteet, TX on my birthday. They all say CDC guidelines will be followed, but do you trust people to follow? And what can these places do to enforce them? The federal and state government won’t even enforce it. No, thanks! Stay home.

I saw the lifted tweet-turned-meme below and decided to rewrite it in modern day Vato. Enjoy!

Lots of raza in the club waiting for the Hometown Boys to take the stage. I’m out here in my car watching the scene like I look at the marranitos being made at the panaderia, but chale, I ain’t going in. I can drink a six pack at home and not get the ‘rona. ~ 2020 Rewrite in Vato speak.

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Posted in 2020, Cultura, Health Care, Historia, History

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