Q & A with Jay Perez

San Antonio's Jay Perez returns to the Valley, for an event that will celebrate his twenty-plus year career in Tejano music. The award-winning vocalist took a few minutes out of his busy schedule to talk to me about his career and the future of the genre.

Eduardo Martinez: What can the fans expect to hear on Saturday night?

Jay Perez: What we like to do is we normally throw in the new stuff (first), that we've been promoting for the past year. Then we'll do some old school songs that launched off my career with the Latin Breed, off to (my stint) with David Lee Garza y Los Musicales and then (go) up-to-date. That's pretty much it.

EM: What did you take away from your time with Latin Breed?

JP: It was pretty much a free education when I was with the Latin Breed. They were much older than I was when I joined them. The singers that they had, both of them prior to me getting into the band, turned out to be some of my greatest mentors — Adalberto Gallegos, Jimmy Edwards. Of course the caliber of musicians that were on that stage — the horn players, the keyboard player, the guitar player, the drummer, the bass player — were all just monsters. These guys were at the top of their game, ahead of everybody at the time. They were just unbelievable. That was my time to learn, from people who knew.

EM: In 1993, you released your first solo album, "Te Llevo En Mi". What are the key differences in your style from then to now?

JP: It hasn't really changed much, man. I don't like to change my formula too much, because people are familiar with the first album that I recorded on my own. It just carried on from there. The style, the chord progressions, the melodies, the songs that I write, and the songwriters that have given me hits over the years, we have pretty much kept it the same way.

You don't really want to change much of your music and confuse the people. You really don't want to do that. But what you do want to do is give them a variety of things. I can sing country, R&B, a little bit of mariachi, not that much but I've tried it in the past, and of course my Tejano music. With all that, we've kept that same style, formula, and flavor over the years. It's worked asta la fecha (to date).

EM: How important has producer Gilbert Velasquez been to your career?

JP: He's another mentor of mine. The little genius behind the board, that's what I call him. He has done it all. I've learned a lot from him. A lot of the ideas, concepts have come from Gilbert. I'm not giving him all the credit but I'm giving him the majority of the credit. He's an icon in this business. Very well respected, not only as a musician, but as a producer, arranger and engineer as well. I'm still recording with him.

EM: Looking at the modern-day Tejano scene, what do you think should be done to ensure the future of the genre?

JP: I think that the new artists that are coming up and making a lot of noise, in a good way, have to step up their game. I think that if they lose track and lose focus of what the people are asking for, this industry is going to go down.

I think that the new generation has got everything in the palm of their hands to keep this industry going, to keep Tejano music alive. It's up to them. Dedication and the love for music is number one. They should realize that.

Over the years, I've won so many awards. I've earned my position in this industry because I've been dedicated to what I do. Our writing has always been up to par. Now the younger generation that is coming up right now, has to think along those lines and look at the musicians that have been doing this for years. Ruben Ramos, Little Joe, the Emilio's, the Ram's, the Shelly's, the Stephanie's, the Elida's. They have to look at those musicians and think to themselves, "If they are still around doing what they're doing, still very successful at what they're doing, what's keeping us from doing the same thing?" If they think along those lines, this industry can only grow bigger.

EM: Thank you for your time, good luck on Saturday.

JP: Thank you brother.

Time: 9:00 PM to 1:00 AM.
Date: 10/12
Cost: $15.00 presale, $20.00 at the door.
Phone Number: 956-460-5401
Location: Weslaco Catholic War Veterans Hall.

Rumel Fuentes and his Chican@ Music.

Rumel Fuentes.

Sadly, most people have never heard of that name before. A passionate activist for Mexican-American rights, this Eagle Pass native used music to speak out on a variety of issues that affected the barrios.

I first came across Fuentes in the documentary Chulas Fronteras. His brief, animated appearance featured him performing the song Chicano (a Doug Sahm tune that Fuentes improved upon) with the norteño group Los Pinguinos Del Norte. Searching for what else he's done led me to his lone release — "Rumel Fuentes - Corridos of The Chicano Movement".

This album was released in 2009, twenty-three years after Fuentes had passed away at the age of 46. These songs had been stored away since 1972. The sound and content of them are very much of that time period.

This was a time when we had Colegio Jacinto Treviño, a Chican@ college, in Mercedes and San Juan. We also had "El Papel Del Valle", a local Chican@ newspaper that used the UFW emblem as its logo. It's history that doesn't get much exposure. Fuentes was able to experience a portion of that history and preserve it through these wonderful recordings.

The opening track is Soy Tu Hermano, a spirited rally cry to fight for one's rights. One of the memorable lyrics of this song is: "Si sangre mi hermano, yo tambien sangro, la herida es igual." ("If my brother bleeds, I also bleed, the wound is the same.")

The song that resonated with me the most is Corrido De Pharr, Texas. In this heart-breaking ballad, Fuentes covers a series of issues (police brutality; city corruption) in Pharr that led to a protest on February 6, 1971. The clash between the police and the protesters reached its boiling point when an innocent bystander, Alfonso Laredo Flores, was shot in the head by Robert Johnson, a sheriff deputy. In a news-report of the incident found on YouTube, it's mentioned that witnesses saw Johnson aiming directly at Flores. Flores was taken to the Valley Baptist Hospital in Harlingen, but he didn't survive the head wound. He was 20 years old.

This powerful, passionate corrido is a piece of media that I push to anyone who is interested in Valley history. Here is a brief excerpt of the lyrics, along with the transcriptions. From the liner notes:

"Una protesta calmada (A quiet protest)
en contra los policías,(against the police,)
la gente los denunciaba (the people denounced them)
por cosas que se sabían. (for things that were known.)

Mataron a Poncho Flores, (They killed Pocho Flores,)
fue un policía de Pharr; (it was a policeman in Pharr;)
a un hombre empistolado (a man who wears a gun)
no se le puede confiar. (you cannot trust.)"

I grew up a few blocks from where this injustice took place, so it's something that I think about quite often. Especially when I'm walking near the abandoned Ramos barbershop, on the corner of Bell Ave. and Cage Blvd. I can't walk through that site without thinking of what happened there 42 years ago.

The album also contains two versions of the song Mexico-Americano, a warm song about the melding of two cultures ("Dos culturas, tengo yo."; "Two cultures, I have."). The second version, the last track of this 13-track CD, is a live recording of Fuentes and Los Pinguinos Del Norte. I dig it a lot, it feels rough but alive. Also, adding an accordion is always an improvement!

The other songs cover a wide range of topics, from the walkout at Crystal City to the short-lived Raza Unida political party. One catchy huapango is also worth mentioning. With it's fast-pace tempo, Huapango Los Trabajos details the life of a migrant worker. I'm surprised that no one has covered it yet.

This collection is a treat for anyone that is curious about a part of history that has been obscure for far too long.

You can find a copy of "Rumel Fuentes - Corridos of The Chicano Movement" at Arhoolie.com. The physical copy comes with excellent liner notes. For Facebook users, this album is available for free streaming on Spotify.

El Gallito Madrugador

On August 10th, Rio Grande Valley radio pioneer Jesus "Chuy" De Leon celebrated his 89th birthday. His family spent the day with him at the San Juan Nursing Home. 

Chuy, at this advanced age, has some issues with his memory.

"I think he enjoyed it, he recognized (us)," said Juan De Leon, 63, about seeing his father on his birthday. "Pero hay veces que no conoce (There are times when he doesn't recognize us), y hay veces que si (and there are times when he does)."

Born in Harlingen in 1924, but raised in Donna, Chuy found work at Weslaco's KRGV studios in 1941. As a teenager, he studied the craft of radio broadcasting under Benjamin Cuellar. According to STCA president Lupe Saenz, Chuy spent a brief stint away from the microphone, as he completed his mandatory military service.

Chuy returned to the Valley and KRGV in 1945. Two years later, on December 23, 1947, Chuy married Donna-native Julia Prado. Together they had four children; two boys and two girls. Julia passed away earlier this year, on July 12th at the age of 84.

Chuy caught his big break when he got the attention of Martin Rosales in 1955.

"At that time, Martin Rosales started working at KGBT as the program director, and he heard about my dad," Juan said. "The (KRGV) show was getting a bit popular so he offered my dad a show at KGBT and my dad took it at 4 o'clock in the morning. That's where Martin coined the name 'El Gallito Madrugador' (The Early Morning Roster)."

"El Gallito Madrugador" would often schedule guests for live performances, Saenz said. Musicians that appeared on Chuy's program include Ruben Vela, Gilberto Perez, Baldemar Huerta (Freddy Fender) and Pedro Ayala.

"He opened the door for a lot of conjuntos," Juan said about his father, who was also a local dance promoter in the Valley. "It was part of the job."

According to Juan, one of his father's most memorable moments took place in 1967. As Hurricane Beulah was set to hit the Valley, Chuy and a man that Juan identifies as "Mr. Vela" took off to La Feria, where the KGBT radio tower was at. While all the other radio stations were off the air, Chuy spent the night there covering the category five hurricane.

"He was the lone voice during Hurricane Beulah in 1967, " Juan said. "(He was) getting all the information from New Orleans and broadcasting it por todo el Valle (for all the Valley)."

Throughout his radio broadcasting career, Chuy found work not only at KRGV (Weslaco) and KGBT (Harlingen), but also at KXEX (Fresno, California), KIRT (Mission), KSOX (Raymondville) and KIWW (McAllen). After five decades of broadcasting, he bid farewell to the airwaves in the late 1980's. The fans got to say goodbye to him during a retirement ceremony at La Villa Real in McAllen. In 2008, he was inducted into the Texas Conjunto Hall of Fame in San Benito.

I asked Juan, "How would you like people to remember your dad?"

"As a humble man, he served his people, his community," Juan said. "That's how I would like for him to be remembered. But most of all, as a loving caring father."

He notes that his father still has moments where glimpses of his past resurface. He shares a scene that his nephew witnessed recently at the San Juan Nursing Home.

"Somebody gave him a microphone and for about 15 minutes he was his old self," Juan said, as he described his father's Spanish-language radio DJ style. "He didn't catch it on video, it would have been great."

Silent film of MAYO march.

Silent home movie with footage of a memorial march organized by MAYO in Pharr, following the death of innocent bystander Alfonso Flores, at the hands of Robert Johnson.