Feliz cumpleaños to Cali Carranza!

Feliz cumpleaños to the late Cali Carranza. He passed away in 2012, he would have turned 62 years old today. He was part of the St. Anne's Church choir, which is a block away from where I live. He used to be involved with the church's Jamaica festivals for many years.

Johnny Canales

Johnny Canales in Corpus Christi.

On Sundays in the Rio Grande Valley, before the football broadcasts, the barbacoa, and church, "The Johnny Canales Show" would be airing in millions of homes all across South Texas and beyond. The top stars in Tejano, conjunto and norteño music would make their weekly appearances, sharing their latest songs. Canales would then interview them, code-switching between Spanish and English. For that one hour, fans would enjoy some quality Sunday morning music, and the distinct humor that was on display.

In 2015, Canales is still providing a platform for old and new artists alike. I asked him if we can start from the beginning.

"Well that's about 80 years ago..." Canales jokes. "Let's see if I can remember some parts."

Canales was born to Esteban Canales and Maria Hinojosa in General Treviño, Nuevo León, Mexico. He was the 6th child in a family that would eventually include 10 children. When I asked for his birthday, he joked his way around the question, not wanting to reveal his age. He came to the U.S. when he was 40 days old and settled in Robstown, TX with his family.

"We lived in the barrio, with no hot water," Canales said. "We used to take a bath with a hose, cold water only."

At the age of 6, Canales began accompanying his father to parties, cantinas and gatherings throughout his home area.

"We used to sing for 25 cents, 50 cents a song," Canales remembers.

His father taught him how to play the guitar when he turned 10 years old. They would go out together, with Canales on the guitar, and his father playing fiddle.

"Trying to make a living," Canales said. "We grew up like the average South Texas family — picking cotton, working on the fields."

Canales became involved with a Tejano orquesta featuring Albelardo Chavarria when he was 15 years old. Shortly thereafter, he went on the air as a DJ for a local radio station.

During the Vietnam war, he was drafted by the U.S. Army and sent to the 3rd infantry division in Germany. He spent 2 ½ years there before being honorably discharged. When he returned to South Texas, he launched off Johnny Canales y su Orquesta.

"We played everywhere," Canales said. "Texas, California, New Mexico, Michigan, Chicago, Florida. I did that for about 7 years."

Canales points to "El Corrido de Augustine Ramirez" and "Ni el Oro Ni Las Piedras de Colores" as his biggest hits.

He decided to get off the road, since it was "mucha frega" ("too much hassle"), and go back to the radio studio. He was working at KCCT Radio Jalapeño in Corpus Christi when he received an offer to do something different.

"A beer company approached me, asking if it I wanted to do a 30-minute television show, locally in Corpus Christi," Canales said. "They would sponsor it, so I started at half-an-hour in 1983-84. I did my first show on Channel 6, NBC in Corpus Christi. The show did real good so in about 6 months, they gave me the whole hour."

"The Johnny Canales Show" featured the best Tejano, conjunto and norteño musicians of the era. The highlight of his program was usually when Canales would interview his guests. He had so many ways to make you laugh — witty banter, puns, broad humor, Spanglish jokes, amusing observations, obscure references and lighthearted teasing.

In 1985, Selena Quintanilla made her first appearance on his program at the KVEO-TV studios in Brownsville.

"That's where Johnny Canales became known all over the Hispanic world," said Canales of that location.

On that episode, Selena y Los Dinos performed and lip-synced to Ruben Armando’s "Oh Mama", a song she had just released in her album The New Girl In Town earlier that year. The lip-syncing was done for audio-quality purposes, and every recording artist that made an appearance there would do the same.

"I saw a little spark in her, she had something that just certain people got," Canales said.

After they finished the tune, Canales interviewed his first time guests. In Spanish, Canales asked her about the paint-job on the white jumpsuits they were all wearing. Selena responded in English. Canales, teasing her, asked, "Y la gente que los esta escuchando en Mexico?" ("And for the people that are listening to us in Mexico?")

Selena, confused, answered, "Los pintaron?"

They both burst out laughing about her "Pocha Spanish".

"She told me, ‘You know what, I’m going to learn how to speak Spanish,’" Canales said. "10 years later, when she was almost 23 years old, I interviewed her, in what now is called the Selena Auditorium in Corpus. Interview was totally in Spanish. That’s why I think she was big, because everything she wanted to do, she would do it."

In 1988, Univision contacted Canales about broadcasting his program on their network. Canales, who already had his show on 25 different markets, jumped on board.

"I was very excited," Canales said. "That was national and international. Univision went into South America, Central America, the United States and Mexico. So that's where I started again."

Jaime y Los Chamacos was one act that appeared regularly in the 1980's and 1990's.

"It was amazing what Johnny Canales did for all the Tejano, norteño and conjunto musicians," Jaime De Anda said. "He's gotten people to watch us from across the world, from all over the United States, that didn't know about us. But through TV, he helped us get the exposure we needed. That's what got us recognized all over the United States, across the country, and Mexico."

Some other acts that got early exposure on this platform were La Sombra, Elida y Avante, Bobby Pulido, Intocable, Duelo, and Emilio Navaira.

"I never say that I made anybody, because they made themselves," Canales said. "But I think we had something to do to get them where they are right now."

In 1996, he made the move from Univision to Telemundo, where he stuck around until 2005.

The show hit the road, going far beyond South Texas. He traveled all over the United States and even had tapings in Monterrey, Nuevo León.

"In one year, I put a million miles on American Airlines!" Canales claimed.

Canales took a break for about 4 years after some health concerns before returning with El Show de Johnny y Nora Canales in 2012.

"I felt there is a need for this," Canales stated as his reason for returning. "It's like musicians, the guys that get out for a while but they can't stay out because they love it. They come back and play. We can't live without it."

Canales and his wife Nora are now approaching their 20th wedding anniversary. The pair married one another on March 31, 1995.

"20 years, they went by fast," Nora said. "It feels very, very awesome. I think that like with every marriage, we make it work. We love each other every day. We support each other."

How does she feel working alongside her husband?

"That's a blessing," Nora said. "At first, I was very nervous. It's not easy being a co-host. But he's a wonderful husband, and now co-hosting with him, it's an amazing experience because he is beyond the best."

The current incarnation of the show is syndicated throughout several markets. Some of the cities where the show can be seen include Laredo, Corpus Christi, Houston, San Antonio, Austin, Lubbock, Midland, Odessa, Amarillo, and San Angelo. They are currently working on getting the program back on the air in the Rio Grande Valley.

Canales was recently one of the featured guests at HESTEC 2014 at the University of Texas-Pan American in Edinburg. It was a vintage Canales performance. After a set by Ruben Ramos, Canales and Nora interviewed NASA astronaut Jeannete J. Epps. She said she was born in Syracuse, New York, and Johnny replied, "Is that near La Grulla?" Later he told her, "Back in the day, only Wally Gonzalez could fly." He concluded the interview by recommending that she take tamales and chorizo into outer-space.

The married couple will be hosting a line-up at the Texas Onion Fest in Weslaco that will showcase Mario Aleman, Grupo Mixxto, Veronique Medrano, Lucky Joe, Desatados, Tr3n, Roble, and Intrusso de Nuevo Leon. It starts at 5 PM at the Weslaco City Park.

"I want to invite all my friends, from all over the Valley to come over," Canales said.

When Canales isn't working, he enjoys spending time with his daughters Seleste and Miroslava. He says he might have to do a book one day to get his complete life story out to the world. He has no plans of putting down the microphone anytime soon.

"Thank you everybody," Canales said. "When I thank my fans and friends that I have made throughout my career, I thank them also for supporting our music, musicians y grupos. Because if you don't support the groups, they will end. Se los acaba todo (Everything will be finished). You got it, take it away! And that's it!"

"Big Squeeze" Showcase Recap

Post-event jam session.

This past Saturday morning, Texas Folklife opened their 2015 "Big Squeeze" season at La Joya High School. The first round of this statewide accordion competition for players under 21 includes seven showcases, held throughout Texas. 

"Being an arts administrator, there is lots to do," Texas Folklife Executive Director Cristina Balli said. "Paperwork, fundraising, budgeting, and we get stressed out. When we finally got in the car to drive down here, I thought, 'Tomorrow I'm going to listen to good music all day long.' And that felt great." 

The musicians are divided into three separate categories — Polka (German, Czech and Polish music), Zydeco (Cajun, Creole and Zydeco music) and Conjunto (Norteño, Tejano and Conjunto music). Nine finalists, three per division, will be announced on April 3 on www.texasfolklife.org. Those finalists will then compete in Austin on April 25, with a champion being crowned per category. 

The following La Joya High School students entered the contest: Roel Sandoval, 16; Elvis Covarrubias, 17; Armando Gonzalez, 15; Raul Resendez, 14; Marco Ramos, 18. 

The five students performed a variety of pieces that included "Acordeones De Oro", "El Sube y Baja", "La Curva", "La Repetida", "El Circo", and a few huapangos. 

"This time around we didn't have as big a turnout of contestants," Balli said of this showcase, as the previous year's event featured eight participants. "We were actually competing with ACT testing. There were far more students that wanted to compete."

Hopefuls that still want to be included can do so by sending in their recordings via email or mail to Texas Folklife, no later than March 30. 

After the auditions were done, Tejano and conjunto icon Carlos Guzmán was introduced to the audience.  

"I'm very excited to be a part of this function," Guzmán said. "I've recorded over 400 songs in my career, in different genres. I try to integrate the accordion on most of my recordings. I've been so blessed because I get recognized everywhere because there is a little sound of the accordion on the accompaniment (of my songs)."

Guzmán was the special guest for the annual La Joya ISD Spring Conjunto Festival, which took place later in the day at the La Joya ISD Performing Arts Center. 

An impromptu jam session broke out to close off this morning gathering. When the students collaborated on "Palabra de Hombre", a tololoche (upright bass) made an appearance. It was a nice surprise for fans of traditional border music. 

"I've seen these kids jam all the time," Balli said. "They are great musicians. All you have to do is prod them a little bit, and encourage them. We had a little bit of extra time, so that's why I said, 'Come on guys, lets jam.'" 

Balli also asked the first ever "Big Squeeze" champion Juan Longoria, Jr. to perform. He played a waltz, polka, and schottische (aka chotiz). Conjunto event regulars Amelia and Raul Martinez started dancing during his brief set. 

I asked Longoria about his "Big Squeeze" experience in 2007.

"You're excited, but you're also nervous," Longoria said about how he felt when he tried out. "I felt good about it (afterwards). I did mess up but it was just the nerves kicking in."

The former champion had some advice for the performers that will attempt to walk away with a "Big Squeeze" title in 2015. 

"Play with passion," Longoria said. "Play with originality as well. Play as clean as you can. Have a stage presence, look comfortable. Enjoy what you're doing and have fun with it." 

The next showcase stops are in Houston on February 15 and 28, Los Fresnos on March 7, Corpus Christi on March 8, Dallas on March 21, and San Antonio on March 27. Balli tells me that this isn't just a competition, but also a way to bring all these talented young musicians together. It's a great learning experience for all those who are involved in the "Big Squeeze" program. 

"I always just love hearing these kids," Balli said. "We see them repeat, we see them graduate, we see the new ones come in, we remember things about them, they get to know us, and we get to know them." 

Heriberto Rodríguez and his "Big Squeeze" win in 2009‏

Heriberto Rodriguez

Heriberto Rodríguez was a freshman attending Edcouch-Elsa High School when he participated for the 2nd annual "Big Squeeze" showdown in 2008.

"It was nerve-wrecking," Rodríguez said about his semi-finals appearance. "It was one of my first times performing in front of people."

While out in the spotlight, with his button diatonic accordion strapped on, he saw his family out there in the audience. The judges in front of him were accordionist David Farias and bajo-sexto player Max Baca of Los Texmaniacs.

Rodríguez began playing the redova "El Porrón" and the polka "Idalia".

"That first year was a little rough," Rodríguez said. "My mechanics were very frigid, very stiff. I didn't really move a lot, I was just playing, looking at my fingers. Just trying to concentrate on my playing and not really entertaining the people."

Despite what Rodríguez thought about his self-admitted flaws, the judges were impressed, and advanced him to the finals that year.

"David Farias came up to me right after that," Rodríguez said. "He said, 'I really like your style of playing, it's very clean.' He told me that I needed to loosen up a little more. Enjoy the music, feel the music. I just kept that in mind."

Rodríguez feels that it was the challenging nature of his pieces that sent him to the finals, at the Miller Outdoor Theatre in Houston.

"There was even way more people," Rodríguez said. "I was even more nervous that time around. I just remember playing my stuff, bowing and moving on."

Later that night, Johnny Ramirez of Houston was announced as the winner.

"I wasn't too disappointed," Rodríguez said. "Obviously I was sad, but I told (then Texas Folklife executive director) Nancy Bless that I am going to come back next year and hopefully win it all."

The following year he sent a recording for his audition that was produced at the home studio of his teacher and mentor Benny Layton. The two tracks were "Maria Bonita" and a potpourri of polkas that included "Viva Seguin", "Atotonilco", "La Piedrera" and "Dolly".

After his audition was reviewed, he was called up and returned to Austin for the semi-finals. From there, only two Rio Grande Valley natives advanced to the finals in Houston — Rodríguez and Gloria Jean Cantu.

To the observers at the Miller Outdoor Theatre in 2009, Rodríguez looked like a totally different performer.

"It was a big difference," Rodríguez said, compared to his first year. "I had more fun performing. I had a whole year to prepare for this again. I worked on my dancing skills while I was playing. I was smiling, giving the crowd something to feed off of."

Towards the middle of his potpourri, a loose screw caused a leak in the accordion's air flow. Rodríguez was forced to improvise on the spot. He signaled to the rest of the band, and rushed towards the final pasada (run) of his medley.

"That had never happened to me before," Rodríguez said. "I was so mad, I looked at Mr. Layton, and I said, 'I can't believe that happened. I'm so mad at this accordion!' (laughs) He's like, 'It's okay, don't worry about it. I'm glad you finished the song off, you just didn't run off stage or make it obvious.'"

Even though Layton was trying his best to cheer him up, Rodríguez couldn't help but feel disappointed at that moment.

"My performance is ruined," Rodríguez said. "I'm not going to win, I came all the way over here for nothing. That's what was going through my head."

When the award ceremony came up, Rodríguez says his heart was racing. Rodríguez points out that Cantu, his fellow Valley accordionist, did a great job that night.

The winner was going to be announced next.

"'And our grand champion...'," Rodríguez remembers of that moment. "'Heriberto Rodríguez!' Wow, I can't believe I won. It was a heartwarming experience, one of the best experiences I've ever had.

With that win, Rodríguez became the second Valley native to be crowned "Big Squeeze" champion. The first was Juan Longoria, Jr. at the inaugural "Big Squeeze" competition in 2007. The third locally produced title holder was Peter Anzaldua in 2012.

The 2015 "Big Squeeze" season will officially start on Saturday morning at La Joya High School. A "Showcase" will be held where local accordionists who are 21 years of age or younger are welcomed to audition, so they could have their opportunity to advance to the finals of the "Conjunto" category, which was created last year. As someone who has participated in two "Big Squeeze" seasons, what advice does Rodríguez have for young accordionists who will be performing this year?

"Honestly there is nothing to be nervous about," Rodríguez said. "Practice, practice, practice. That's the biggest thing. Get those songs down and enjoy the music. In the words of David Farias, 'Feel the music.' And just have fun out there. I can say that after this competition, it made me a more confident person and musician."

What: Texas Folklife's "Big Squeeze" Showcase and annual La Joya ISD Spring Conjunto Festival. Bands include La Joya High School Conjunto "Los Diamantes", J.V. Conjunto "Acordeones de Oro", Palmview High School Conjunto "La Tradicion & the Silver Bullet Band". and Juarez Lincoln High School Conjunto "Sol".
Time: 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM for the showcase and 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM for the festival.
Date: 2/7
Cost: Free for the showcase, $6.00 per person for the festival.
Phone Number: 956-580-5160
Location: La Joya High School, 604 North Coyote Avenue in La Joya, Texas.