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October 2007
Can We Survive
Number Four? Las Vegas….Back Again! Part 1
I
could not believe I was on my way to Las Vegas for the Fourth National
Tejano Music Convention. We were driving out of New Mexico and into
Arizona. We drove all night out of Alice, Texas. This trip was very
special. My two youngest sons came with me. They wanted to witness
Tejano Music history from a front row seat. The trip was long. Very
long but we were determined to make the sacrifice.
This
trip was also very special being that I had my friend and business
partner Santos Aluiso from Freeport, Texas. Joe Gonzales (aka Pepper),
Rudy Flores (drummer w/Pio Trevino and Emilio Guerrero), Joe another
friend from Freeport who grew up in Kingsville, Texas. After many
hours of driving we came across one of the most magnificent sites
ever…The Hoover Dam.
It
was indeed one of the most incredibly, most beautiful, structure made
by man that I had ever seen. I had seen it in movies but never up
close and personal. We stopped for about 30 minutes to take pictures
and just enjoy the view. It was just before sundown. The orange
sunlight gave the mountain cliffs a certain glow that only added to
the beauty of the mountains. The calm, quiet, water was just beautiful
to watch. I would recommend that anyone, who has not seen the Hoover
Dam, to please stop and enjoy the view.
Once
past the Hoover Dam I saw one of my most favorites marquee sign,
“Buffet 8.99”. What a sight for sore eyes. Then we saw the lights of
Las Vegas. Absolutely magnificent! More beautiful than from the air.
Paradise in the middle of the desert. We quickly made our way to one
another’s hotel and settled for the night. The first person that I saw
was Mr. David Chavez and his lovely wife Mrs. Sarah Chavez. I was not
really surprised because these two are all over the place makes sure
all of the ‘I’s are dotted and all the ‘T’s are crossed. After 20
something hours of driving I was ready to hit the sack. I met up with
Tejano R.o.o.t.s. Board Member Joe ‘Mr. Monday night’ Lozano. It was
now lights out……..
It
is now Friday and it is a mad dash to the fanfare so we could set up
our museum displays. I was very surprised and happy that we had Tejano
R.o.o.t.s. Board Members there in Vegas. Joe Lozano, Herbie Lopez,
Linda Escobar, Rey Rodriquez, Javier Villanueva, and myself. We
quickly set up and we were ready for the world. We saw many familiar
faces that it seemed like one great big family reunion. Veronica Y
Avance was there. A group from Arizona named Myzterio. Los
Enmascarados were also in the house. Jesse Serrata also had a booth.
Los Tex-Maniacs, Joe Posada, Sunny Ozuna, just to name a few folks.
The whole atmosphere was that of family and friends. Those that
finished setting up their booths quickly went and offered a helping
hand to another. It warmed my heart to be treated as family by even
strangers.
One
of the first groups to entertain the crowd at fanfare was the group
from Arizona...MyZterio. This band started it all with a loud BANG
singing ‘TUSH’ a classic hit by ZZ TOP. They had an excellent brass
section and great over-all sound. The guitarist was really good. They
also sang some classic Tejano hits. The crowd just loved them. They
also played some very good cumbias and the crowd quickly got into a
dancing mood. I can’t even begin to describe the quality of music that
I was hearing. Solid horn section, good vocals, solid bass, and extra
ordinary lead guitar. The crowd was dancing up a storm. I was very
impressed with the cumbia/salsa combination. . Arizona should be
really proud of MyZterio. I can’t wait to hear more from Arizona
musicians.
After
MyZterio we were treated to some south Texas conjunto. Los
Enmascarados from Kingsville, Texas. The name says it all. They
actually wore wrestling masks adding to the mystery of who they are.
The leader (accordion) goes by the name of AC. They played some very
good conjunto sounds that pleased the crowd. AC jokingly stated to the
crowd that once the crowd heard their music they would realize that
they were NOT wrestlers. Very good conjunto playing. If Conjunto is
your cup-of-tea then you will not be disappointed.
It
is closing time for that day and we are off to get ready for the
‘icing on the cake’. I have a confession to make. I did not get to see
all of the acts because this time around I was going back and forth
promoting the Tejano R.o.o.t.s. museum and its events. I also took
more time to meet many of the new friends I had made through out the
years. I was totally exhausted but guess what? It was …SHOW TIME!
Tony
Casillas, Dallas Cowboys fame, introduced a band that I was really
eager to see live…Los Lobos. Man what a beginning. They started with a
song that had most of the musicians playing acoustic guitars ala the
Gypsy Kings. What a marvelous sound. The crowd was enjoying every
minute. It was not Tejano but more of the type of strumming that you
would hear in a Trio or Mariachi. The song was very good. These guys
know there music. The next song was a cumbia but it had a unique sound
maybe L.A. influenced I don’t know but I liked it. They had a
gentleman playing a soprano sax and he was very good. The next song
was a ‘bolero’ type of rhythm. They did a requinte on a very nice
acoustic guitar that was flat, hollowed body, with a triangle hole in
the middle. Absolutely beautiful sound. We were treated to another
unique style of cumbia and it was a treat to hear the bass saxophone.
They even added a vihuela to the music. I was in a heavenly
environment just listening to these very talented individuals. Each
member did their own contribution to the music and they did it
together like a very, top of the line, well oiled machine. Cesar
worked the crowd with his great lead guitar. David Hidalgo’s vocals
were great. He even added some accordion to the music. Now this did
not make the music Tejano but it added a very different, great
tasting, spice to the music. Steve Berlin was very good on the
saxophones. All of the band members played multiple instruments. This
was better than I had anticipated. I didn’t notice the huge 50 foot
monitors on each side of the stage until after their performance.
Cesar
then started playing a little honky tonk, highway rock, and off they
went with ‘Let’s go Little darling’. This brought cheers from the
crowd and a sing-a-long participation from the crowd. They quickly
went into a kind of reggae beat and then a little cumbia style of
rhythm with some excellent fire breathing lead guitar. I just couldn’t
get enough from these artists. This was the first act that I saw. Then
Cesar announced that they were bringing on stage a guest artist. He
described the artist as one of his heroes growing up. Then they went
into “Talk to Me’ and Mr. Entertainment himself, Sunny Ozuna, came
onto the stage. The crowd went into another mad frenzy. Sunny was
great as usual. Always a pleasure to watch him in action. I had to
step out for a little bit and I missed most of the rest of Sunny. Then
I heard the Tex-Maniacs duo of Max Baca and David Farias. They went
into ‘La Bamba’ with their own unique brand of electricity to the
music. Mixed with Los Lobos, this had me thinking to myself, “I am not
worthy!” Folks you just had to be there to appreciate every minute of
the music. I am not sure what they finished with being that I was
asked to take some pictures outside with some friends. No people the
music, by Los Lobos, was not Tejano but their style and musicianship
was a perfect beginning. They could have been the only band playing
that night and the people would have been very well satisfied. An
excellent performance by Los Lobos and their special guest. Sunny
Ozuna…YOU ARE THE MAN. TEX-MANIACS>>>YOU GUYS REALLY ROCK…Tejano
Style.
The
lights came on and there was an announcement that a couple was about
to say their marriage vows on the dance floor. I thought that was
really cool and why not. This is Vegas.
This
next band was introduced and it was Los Desperadoz. These ‘young
bucks’ brought with them their own unique style of ‘Urban Conjunto’.
They didn’t do it with a Tejano Whisper but with a loud bang. Their
rendition of ‘Quiero Que Sepas’ was really great and I noticed some
three part harmony. I saw that they brought with them an ‘Ace in their
pocket’. Mr. Johnny Martinez himself. This gave the group an added
flavor to their vocals. We were then treated to a song titled ‘Tus
Manas’ a song written by my cousin Cha Cha Jimenez. I first heard this
song by my good friend Shaggy Garcia Y Recuerdos. Mike and Lee were
really impressive along with the rest of the group. Mike honored us
with a polka and then treated the crowd with a very good cumbia. The
crowd by the stage was eating every sweet tasting morsel of ‘tejano’
and were even licking their fingers afterwards. The dance floor you
ask? It was totally out of this world. Lots of beautiful people doing
it Tejano Style. You would think that the people were competing in a
‘Dancing with the Stars’ competition. By this time Los Desperadoz
finished their set.
The
rest of my night was spent going in and out of the place. I really
wish that I would have had more time to see the rest of the acts. The
crowd by the stage was of a wide generation gap. There were some in
their teens to couples in their 60’s and 70’s. This gave legitimacy to
the statement that Tejano Music is NOT DEAD and that there is still a
market for our unique genre.
The
last act that I got to see a part of left me in total complete awe.
Bob Gallarza along with Jimmy Edward. The opening bars of the set
proved to me why Bob and his band set him apart from all of the rest.
Yes people…tears ran down my face. Call me a cry baby I DON”T CARE.
These men in Mr. Gallarza’s orchestra are the best of the best. I am
sure they are hand picked by Mr. Gallarza himself. When Jimmy took the
stage …WOW. My words cannot give justice to their performance. I have
seen these two before. They just keep getting better and better. The
orchestra was professional to the max. Their weapons of choice
polished to a high sheet. MI GENTE….YOU JUST HAVE TO SEE THEM LIVE.
Their rendition of ‘MI Mundo Feliz’ was absolutely beautiful.
This
was a great ending for me and I am sorry that I missed the rest. It
was off to some great food to regain some of the energy lost. Tomorrow
was another day. I will tell you all about in part two…
Can We Survive Number Four? Las Vegas....Back
Again! Part 2 |
