On April 16th, 1971, in the small town of Lake Jackson, Texas, an angel was born. Her name was Selena Quintanilla. This angel, who was tragically taken from us at the young age of twenty-three, was a Latina superstar before JLo or Shakira or Ricky Martin. Her voice, full of love and joy and heartbreak, continues to capture the hearts of millions of fans around the world, Latinos and non-Latinos alike. So today, we celebrate what would have been her forty-second birthday by counting down her ten best songs. Feliz cumpleaños, Selena!

More »

José Alfredo Jiménez: The King of Ranchera, but Not #1!

See Also:
*The 20 Greatest Songs of Vicente Fernández: The Complete List
Trying to explain what música ranchera is to non-Mexicans reminds me of the apocryphal quote attributed to--take your pick--Louis Armstrong or Duke Ellington, when someone asked what jazz is. Ranchera isn't so much a genre as it is a sentido--a way of life, of viewing the world in all its melancholy, grandiose beauty.

It's no surprise, then, that ranchera is considered the quintessential Mexican music genre in a land with a dizzying variety of music. Ranchera embodies everything that Mexicans think of themselves when at their best--macho, romantic, backed by mariachi, dressed in splendid outfits, and stubbornly stuck in a myth of a bucolic Mexico that never truly existed. There is no corollary for it in American song--it ain't country music, it ain't Tin Pan Alley, it ain't even Western swing. It's ranchera, damnit, and here's a listicle for ustedes who don't habla to learn of the titans and for wabs to debate forever.

Criteria for this list: not just vocal ability, but whether you wrote your own songs, whether you were a pioneer or followed in the footsteps of titans, and my own biases (which will become apparent soon). One procedural note: I limited this list to artists who primarily sang rancheras throughout their career. I didn't include people who excelled at the genre, like Juan Gabriel, because I'm saving them for another list. Go ahead and hate--this is my list haha.

And now...música, maestro!
More »

More »

Javier Solís: CLASS

See also:

*The 20 Greatest Ranchera Singers of All Time, No. 20-11
*The 20 Greatest Songs of Vicente Fernández: The Complete List


There is room for much debate for who make the bottom rung of the 20 greatest ranchera singers of all time. But the top? Not even close. Anyone who argues about the inclusion of any of the nine men (and one woman) on this list deserves immediate deportation. The trick of the matter, though, is in the placement of said people--THAT is subject to mucho interpretation, and that is the minefield upon which I set to travel to in five, four...

More »

Pepe Aguilar: CLASS...

See also:

*The 20 Greatest Songs of Vicente Fernández: The Complete List

Trying to explain what música ranchera is to non-Mexicans reminds me of the apocryphal quote attributed to--take your pick--Louis Armstrong or Duke Ellington, when someone asked what jazz is. Ranchera isn't so much a genre as it is a sentido--a way of life, of viewing the world in all its melancholy, grandiose beauty.

It's no surprise, then, that ranchera is considered the quintessential Mexican music genre in a land with a dizzying variety of music. Ranchera embodies everything that Mexicans think of themselves when at their best--macho, romantic, backed by mariachi, dressed in splendid outfits, and stubbornly stuck in a myth of a bucolic Mexico that never truly existed. There is no corollary for it in American song--it ain't country music, it ain't Tin Pan Alley, it ain't even Western swing. It's ranchera, damnit, and here's a listicle for ustedes who don't habla to learn of the titans and for wabs to debate forever.

Criteria for this list: not just vocal ability, but whether you wrote your own songs, whether you were a pioneer or followed in the footsteps of titans, and my own biases (which will become apparent soon). One procedural note: I limited this list to artists who primarily sang rancheras throughout their career. I didn't include people who excelled at the genre, like Juan Gabriel, because I'm saving them for another list. Go ahead and hate--this is my list haha.

And now...música, maestro!
More »

More »

And the list continues! Here will be all the obvious ones: "El Rey," "Volver, Volver," all the songs that turn usually taciturn Mexican men into wusses deserving of being grilled on Leykis 101. Enjoy, and NOW you can start hating, fanboys!

See Also:
*The 20 Greatest Vicente Fernandez Songs of All Time, Nos. 20-11

More »

Vicente Fernández's Facebook page--yes, he has one

El Rey, at Rest

Don't pay attention to the prophecies of St. Malachy: The world isn't ending because the next pope's name will be Petrus Romanus; it's ending because Vicente Fernández is retiring. The most Mexican Mexican of all time is ending his public performances this year, and his farewell tour is swinging through Los Angeles next week (hopefully, he'll sneak in a Honda Center appearance before the man everyone knows as Chente finally calls it a career). And even if you don't know Spanish, you MUST catch one of his live shows, as he's the best performer since James Brown, getting drunk live and walking around the stage in his splendid charro outfit with a pistol in his holster--YEAH!

The ranchera legend is one of two Mexicans gabachos know as a Mexican archetype of manhood (Ramón Ayala and his tejana, chubby cheeks and Mexi-mullet is the other): his bushy eyebrows, bushier hair, bushiest mustache, gargantuan sombrero, and a larynx so testoster-rific it reduces every man who listens to a weeping wuss. A titan of Mexican music, Chente's songs are not just standards, but required insights into the Mexican psyche. Fans can no longer separate the artist from the myth, meaning that they can't truly appreciate his career while howling through the tears at the umpteenth rendition of "Volver, Volver." And, really, he's worthy of the hype.

So to put Chente in his proper place, behold not just a Top 10 list, but a Top 20--yes, the man deserves that much. And before the fanboys start howling about my choices--remember that his Top 10 is to come TOMORROW. Save the hate for then, but do chime in!
More »

Humberto Howard

Bubbles yes, deportations no!

The debate over immigration in the United States is too often mired in doublespeak and the vitriol of xenophobia. As musicians, La Santa Cecilia chose a humanizing and harmonizing tone for their new single "El Hielo (ICE)." The Los Angeles-based Latin Grammy-nominated band tackles the issue head on with verse vignettes lyrically telling the story of Eva, a domestic worker, Jose, a jardinero, and Martha, an undocumented student aspiring to higher education.
More »

Elena de la Cruz

Ramon Ayala

It came as no surprise that on Friday night, a plebeian crowd congregated at the House of Blues in Anaheim to unwind, get inebriated, and sing along to the tunes of Ramón Ayala, the King of the Accordion. Historically, musica norteña/conjunto norteño--combining strings, percussion and the accordion--has been the sound of Mexico's working class, the common folk, especially men. In generations past, it was played exclusively at bars in the motherland, as men drowned their sorrows of love lost, or from juke boxes in SanTana cantinas, as immigrants reflected on their mortality. And although the venues and generations have changed, it is evident the timeless themes of Ayala's songs resonate for his fans just the same.

More »