Los Pavos Reales – Early Hits CD 410

Description

CD 410

A collection of some of Los Pavos Reales’ early recordings made for the IDEAL label of San Benito, Texas in addition to the very first recordings made by the Torres-Garcia brothers before Los Pavos Reales came into existence.

#1 – 16 by LOS PAVOS REALES:
Salvador Torres Garcia – accordion & vocals; Eduardo (Eddie) “Lalo” Torres Garcia – bajo sexto, accordion amp; vocals;
Personnel of conjunto varies but includes: Lupe Enriquez – bajo sexto; Big Red Ojeda – bass; Larry Torres Garcia – drums; and Carlos Miranda – vocals.
Recorded between 1962 and 1964.

#17 – 24: by Los HERMANOS TORRES – GARCIA:
Salvador Torres Garcia – accordion & vocals; Pedro Torres Garcia – guitar & vocals; Jesus “Jesse” Medina Garcia – bajo sexto & vocals; Nieves Garcia – bass.
Recorded ca. 1949.

Los Pavos Reales
1.La Huella De Mis Besos ‚ (ranchera) (2:25)
2.Tomando Y Fumando ‚ (ranchera) (2:35)
3.Vamos A La Parranda ‚ (ranchera) (2:20)
4.Alejamiento Y Regreso ‚ (ranchera) (2:49)
5.Prisionero De Tus Brazos ‚ (ranchera) (2:38)
6.Preso ‚ (bolero-guaracha) (2:32)
7.Salon Ideal ‚ (polka) (2:36)
8.Noche Tras Noche ‚ (ranchera) (2:45)
9.Tú Eres Mi Placer ‚ (ranchera) (2:45)
10.Te Hice Quererme ‚ (ranchera) (2:35)
11.Libertad Y Olvido ‚ (ranchera) (2:21)
12.La Última Canción ‚ (ranchera) (2:30)
13.Te Recuerdo Mi Canción ‚ (ranchera) (2:10)
14.Corrido Al Rancho ‚ (corrido) (2:40)
15.Dinero Y Amores ‚ (ranchera) (2:35)
16.Adios Dolores ‚ (balada) (2:39)
Los Hermanos Torres-García
17.La Pajarita ‚ (Polka) (2:20)
18.Flor De Las Flores ‚ (Canción) (2:37)
19.El Patio ‚ (Polka) (2:31)
20.El Corrido De Seguin ‚ (Corrido) (2:55)
21.Viva New Braunfels ‚ (Polka) (2:23)
22.Dime Josefina ‚ (Canción) (2:29)
23.La Chulita ‚ (Polka) (2:23)
24.Guerita Míz ‚ (Canción) (2:46)

REVIEWS

“These rancheras, polkas, and corridos feature the smooth vocals and accordion/bajo sexto chemistry of brothers Eddie and Salvador Torres Garcia, leaders of the popular conjunto Los Pavos Reales. The arrangements are polished, the musicianship is top shelf, the songs are good, and the recordings are excellent. You can’t hope for a better reflection of the contemporary conjunto sound of the early 1960s, when 16 of these tracks were made for the Ideal label. Eight more cuts recorded in the late 1940s by an earlier lineup of the family conjunto are included. Those recordings are a little rougher, but the music takes no prisoners.”

(Tom Smith — Record Roundup)

“Whenever I visit San Antonio, there are two musicians I absolutely must see. The first is Steve Jordan, the extraordinary accordionist. The other is also an accordionist, but an even better singer, Eddie `Lalo’ Torres. I first heard Torres sing at the Conjunto Festival some years back. He was being inducted into the Hall of Fame along with his brother Salvador (in absentia), the other Peacock (Pavo Real).

I was stunned by that voice, a clear and ringing vibrato, with a well placed touch of gravel or little tearful catch. The grit of Ramon Ayala and the smoothness of Isidro López. Since that first exposure it has been my intention to draw attention to Lalo every chance I get. Not that those chances are frequent outside San Antonio. KEDA, a.k.a.: Kayda, the jalapeno radio, is the station for hardcore conjunto. When the head jock, Guero Polkas, does the spots Lalo’s name expands to `liiiive and in person, Eddie Lalo HE’S EVERYWHERE ! HE’S EVERYWHERE! Torres.’ Torres plays so much around San Antonio no wonder he never gets away. Lalo has made lots of recordings both as a Pavo Real and, for almost two decades, under his own name. Distribution outside the established conjunto circuit, however, has been nonexistent. Now with Arhoolie’s re-releasing the old stuff, anybody with a taste for soulful singing can indulge in his early work. With sufficient enthusiasm, maybe Strachwitz might even commission some new work.

Thirty years separates those early Pavo Real cuts from today, but after hearing one line, it is unmistakably Lalo. The voice hasn’t changed a bit, his style is already mature on these cuts. `La Ultima Cancion’ defines the Lalo Torres ranchera, 30 years ago or today. Lalo’s emotion-filled voice is well-suited to boleros (`Preso’ is gorgeous, but unfortunately unique in this collection).

The vals ranchera, `Libertad y Olvido’ with its trio on the chorus, is the kind of lush arrangement he still aims for in performance in San Antonio. With the excitement of Lalo’s solo work, it is easy to overlook the duets, but that would be a mistake. The duets were cutting edge for the time. Tricky arrangements were a trademark, just clever enough to set the brothers apart, but not enough to alarm the dancers. `Adios Dolores’ is listed as a public domain ballad, but listen to the treatment.

It was 1964 or so, and the Beatles were hot. Paul McCartney could slip right into this arrangement. The last seven tunes are from los Hermanos Torres-Garcia, the family band that Salvador founded in the ’40s when he was something approaching a child prodigy on the accordion – if these cuts really date from 1949 (Lalo would have been 10 at the time).

Comparing the smooth singing of the ’60s recordings with these, Salvador can sing hillbilly if he wants to. In the remarkable intro to `El Patio,’ first bajo sexto plays a line, then repeats with guitar playing in parallel. It sounds like `Lead Belly plays polka!’ For those who have developed a taste for conjunto strictly through recordings, this collection is essential. It offers the extremes of vocal styles along with first-class accordion playing. Lalo demonstrates the vocal subtleties. His older brothers sang in the earlier style of Mexican country harmony, perhaps the conjunto equivalent of the Carter Family or the Delmore Brothers. Salvador Torres-Garcia is the master of both styles.”

(Mary Armstrong — SingOut!)