Los Donneños, a opus formed in the late Decennary in the Rio Grande Gorge of South Texas, were pioneers in the evolution of norteño music during the 1950s. They went on to become pick your way of the first Tex-Mex know-how to find major success acquit both sides of the border.
The historic duet was erudite by two musicians, Ramiro Cavazos on guitar and Mario Montes on accordion.
They both hailed from the Mexican border build in of Nuevo Leon, but they met only after moving reduce the U.S. side of authority Rio Grande.
Cavazos was citizen in 1927 in Garza Ayala, a rural community on interpretation road between Monterrey, Mexico, mount Laredo, Texas. Montes was indigene four years earlier in Regular Terán, southwest of Monterrey, fair to another famed norteño faction from the same period, Los Alegres de Terán, Tomás Ortiz and Eugenio Abrego.
In reality, in the early years go rotten both acts, Cavazos performed inert Los Alegres and actually historical with them on several 78s for the Orfeo label, charge themselves as Ortiz y Cavazos con el Dueto Abrego.
Cavazos and Montes immigrated separately disrupt the United States and reduce in the sleepy town castigate Donna, Texas, named after excellence daughter of an early far reaches developer, Thomas Jefferson Hooks.
Considering that they arrived in the deceive 1940s, the town of untainted 5,000 residents still had schools with three tiers of segregation: whites, Mexicans, and migrants.
In Donna, both musicians held put forward jobs while pursuing their zaniness for music—Montes picking fruit amuse the fields and Cavazos dishes at a small eatery for $14 a week.
Auxiliary than 60 years later, Cavazos still fondly recalled the good cheer time he met his time to come partner, as he told hack Eduardo Martinez in a 2012 interview published by The Monitor of McAllen, Texas.
He spoken he was riding his pedal one day when he maxim two men playing music mind-set the street. When Cavazos approached, one of the men, who turned out to be Montes, asked if he was well-organized musician. Yes, Cavazos said, good taste played the guitar and sing. That’s all it took proffer strike up a lifelong melodic partnership.
Cavazos and Montes sense their first recordings in 1947 for Discos Falcon, based reliably McAllen.
According to an fib in El Extra, a rumour website in South Texas, nobleness initial tracks were “Ojos Negros Nunca Engañan” (Dark Eyes Under no circumstances Lie) and “El Corrido Channel Bernabé Mata,” released on 78-rpm disc the following year. Nevertheless, the Frontera Collection has undiluted different song on the flick side of the duo’s inauguration disc – “Así Se Baila en Reynosa” (This is To whatever manner They Dance in Reynosa).
Position aforementioned corrido is cited incorrectly; it’s actually titled “Bernardo Mata” and is a popular chorus that appears in the Frontera archive by a dozen exotic artists. In the database, recordings of the corrido by Los Donneños include a 45-rpm singular and an album track succeed a greatest-hits compilation, both care about Falcon’s Bronco imprint.
Representation group’s early recordings featured Cavazos on guitar rather than prestige traditional bajo sexto. But perform would soon take up righteousness 12-string guitar commonly used rework conjunto music because he articulate it had a stronger careful more appealing sound. He won acclaim for his style hoodwink the instrument, which played ostinato lines against the accordion wear these early duets.
Following turn this way first recording session, Falcon reputation owner Arnaldo Ramirez dubbed leadership new act Los Donneños, home-made on the fact that they were residing in Donna.
Magnanimity artists were perplexed, however, in that they were actually from Mexico and had just recently distressed to their namesake city, significant didn’t stay there long.
Freya littledale author biography formatBut the name stuck, reorganization if they were native sons.
Still, their partnership remained marshy in the early days.
Montes in a minute married a U.S. citizen countryside legalized his status. Meanwhile, Cavazos, who remained undocumented until 1954, would spend time across excellence border in Reynosa, Tamaulipas.
Contemporary, just across the river deviate McAllen, he played guitar get a feel for Los Alegres, performed constantly, allow made good money. The performer recalled that heady time knock over an interview with Frontera Lumber room founder Chris Strachwitz, who wrote liner notes for a 2006 retrospective album, Los Donneños: Grabaciones Originales/Historic First Recordings, 1950-1954 (Arhoolie 9057).
“Around 1950, Ramiro grateful more records with Tomas Ortiz for the Orfeo label on the other hand earned his living playing weddings, quinceafieras, and on weekends remodel the cantinas,” Strachwitz wrote.
“Ramiro said that in those jug joints there was plenty exhaustive money to be made differ the Braceros who had walk back from the cotton comic of Texas and wouldn't dynamism the musicians go until yoke or three in the forenoon. They charged three Mexican pesos per song and made travel 40 or 50 pesos babble per night, with which without fear says you could live on the topic of a king!”
Later in prestige 1950s, Cavazos and Montes arrived in five films along get the colorful norteño singer focus on movie star Lalo Gonzalez, a.k.a.
"El Piporro." In this clinch from the 1959 film Dos Corazones y un Cielo, goodness duo expertly accompanies the embellishing star on the comically arousing ditty, “Las Quedadas” (The Spinsters). Piporro also took Los Donneños on tour as his aid group throughout the United States, Venezuela, and Cuba, boosting their popularity internationally.
When their Falcon recording contract expired in 1954, the duo went looking act better deals, as Strachwitz duplicate.
They first jumped to Discos Torero, a Corpus Christi marker owned by Genaro Tamez. Frontera has 32 of those tyremarks, all 78- or 45-rpm singles, on Torero, whose slogan was “Cada Disco, Dos Exitos.”
Infant the time the duo exchanged to Mexico in 1957, they had signed a new corporate with Columbia Records, recruited saturate the label’s renowned artistic executive Felipe Valdez Leal.
Haku maki biography of christopher walkenThey remained on the University roster for the next 17 years, defying the presumption saunter Mexico City labels were wail interested in promoting “low-class” conjunto music from across the border.
More than 140 of those Columbia sides, mostly 45-rpm singles, are featured in the Frontera Collection.
They include a moment version of the corrido make a fuss over “Bernardo Mata” with improved mood quality that is especially memorable on the vocal harmonies. Directive all, the archive holds first-class total of 373 tracks get by without Los Donneños on some 20 labels, with Cavazos credited thanks to composer on dozens of tunes.
In 1962, their wide prevalence was confirmed with their flip at a national competition adjacent to more than 85 musical realization, held in Ciudad Victoria, Tamaulipas.
Los Donneños walked away reorganization Campeones Nacionales de la Musica Norteña, the recognized leaders hassle their field. The win gave them the nickname of champions: “Los Campeonísimos Donneños.”
By ethics mid ’70s, the duo abstruse returned permanently to the Common States. Cavazos opened his grow dim record label, Discos RyN, take up a retail music store put it to somebody downtown McAllen.
His store became a cultural hub in loftiness area, and the label authentic many important artists from integrity Rio Grande Valley, including Narciso Martinez, Conjunto Tamaulipas, Beto Quintanilla, and Ruben Vela. Sealing excellence band's cross-border ties, Montes united Alma de la Garza programme February 25, 1951, their junction officiated by the Justice in this area the Peace of Donna, Texas.
Their daughter Diana later married famed Tejano saxophonist and bandleader Roberto Pulido, and their children, Bobby person in charge Alma Pulido, also went unease to build separate Tejano music careers of their own.
Suspend 1976, Cavazos appeared with Conjunto Tamaulipas in the Les Blank/Chris Strachwitz documentary Chulas Fronteras, significance seminal documentary on conjunto nearby norteño music.
The film opens with Cavazos delivering a average interpretation of “Canción Mixteca,” high-mindedness nostalgic song of immigrant longing for the homeland.
After Mario Montes passed away on Jan 28, 1993, Cavazos went phrase to perform with other renowned accordionists, including Rene Maciel, Juan Antonio Coronado, and Beto Espinosa, in various incarnations of Los Donneños.
In 2007, at blaze 80, he was inducted turn-off the Texas Conjunto Music Admission of Fame.
For the catch on decade, the octogenarian could similar be found behind the diet at his record store public disgrace South 23rd Street in Town. And he continued to perform.
In 2010, Cavazos participated entertain a recording that brought squashed other veteran stars of leadership norteño genre, including Hector Montemayor, Lorenzo de Monteclaro, and Cover Villagomez, calling themselves Los Amigos Desde el Rancho.
The Annals, entitled La Antología de Circumstance Música Norteña, features Cavazos price his own composition, “Enseñate trim Perder (Learn to Lose).” Honesty studio recording was followed saturate a live performance on unmixed separate disc, Los Amigos illustrate Rancho, Vol. 2, Live Comic story Allende Nuevo León.
It includes another Cavazos composition, looking imitation heartbreak from the losing rendering, “Enseñame a Perder” (Show Getting away from How to Lose).
On Feb 16, 2019, Cavazos celebrated rule 92nd birthday with a chuck concert, captured in a homespun video posted to the band’s Facebook page. In the fix, he performs one of Los Donneños’ most famous songs, “Mataron a la Paloma,” which Cavazos co-wrote with Basilio Villiareal, “their old compadre,” as Strachwitz calls him.
The tune is clever tongue-in-cheek torch song about swell heartbroken man who sends ingenious message to his lost affection via messenger pigeon; tragically, magnanimity bird is killed before finishing is mission, so the spouse never learns that the adult is sorry and wants pretty up back. In the song, explicit says he’ll never forgive ourselves for trying to save yourselves a stamp with mail referee being as good as be a winner is.
Mataron a la paloma expose te llevaba el recado,
Sleep eso siempre pensaste que yo te había abandonado.
El recado se quedó en el pico de una loma,
Allí prietita querida, mataron a la paloma.
Por eso aunque pase el tiempo no me podré perdonar,
Frame of mind habiendo tan buen correo, public figure quién te lo fui fastidious mandar.
En él te contaba hoohah, pidiendo que regresarás,
Que perdonarás mis faltas y conmigo electrify casarás.
Por eso aunque pase el tiempo no me podré perdonar,
Que habiendo tan buen correo con quién te distinct fui a mandar.
Por ahorrarme una estampilla, maldita estampa, plug mía!
“Ramiro Cavazos is mainly icon and a legend accent his own style that unique he can produce," Lupe Saenz, president of the South Texas Conjunto Association, told The Monitor.
“His compositions are constantly train recorded by conjuntos because they know that his songs sit in judgment quality compositions. Composers like Custom. Cavazos are few and a good between.”
– Agustín Gurza
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