Monthly Archives: May 2011
Internet Radio Personality Is On a Quest
“My quest is to revive Tejano music and bring Tejano entertainment to California, Mel Anthony Duran said during an interview at the Tejano Conjunto Festival.
If the name doesn’t ring a bell, it’s because his on-the-air monniker is MadDawg.
“M.A.D. are my initials and I got ‘dawg’ because everyone says, ‘cómo eres perro en las tamboras.’
His admiration and respect for its artists is so deep that his analogy of Tejano musicians is that “they are ‘artists’ who sculpture something from out of nothing. You sign it and then people buy your work of art – being the music.”
Yes, MadDawg may have been born in Oxnard, California and raised in Pomona, but he loves Tejano music and he wants this genre known to mainstream American and he realizes that all they need is exposure.
“These artists have so much talent and it’s time for them to have their big day. I can’t believe it’s 2011 and Tejano music has never had a day in the limelight,” the 48-year-old radio jock said.
“I mean they can do it all and do it well – from country and western, rhythm and blues to boleros, soul, rancheras and cumbias and I’m talking about one artist.
“Jay Pérez can do it. Now try to get any member of Los Tigres Del Norte” to sing ‘Me and Mrs. Jones’ or ‘Suavecito.’ That’s how versatile a Tejano vocalist is.”
What few people know is that MadDawg is a drummer. So he can relate to musicians. But it was not until September 3, 2010 that he officially became a disc jockey for Dave “Biondi” Pierce’s Houston-based BNet Radio.
Flashing back to his childhood, MadDawg and his best friends Richard “Rick” Larez and Larry Tarin plus other neighborhood kids attended Alcott Elementary School, minutes from the home of Ritchie Valens.
Here, they were required to learn how to play an instrument by the fifth grade. Then the threesome formed The Blue Flame. When Rick’s father, Butch Larez of Los Tiburones, saw how serious they were, he took their band under his wing.
“Rick’s dad gave me a copy of Little Joe’s ‘Para La Gente’ double-eagle album and, at seven; I learned to play ‘Las Nubes.’ Then, after two years, we formed The Starlighters, a neighborhood garage band.
“As we grew up The Starlighters had the opportunity to open for Little Joe at the Chris Davis Supper Club in Rialto, California. Meanwhile, I played with a bunch of other bands. I recorded with Together Band, another Tejano Band. Over the years they opened for Tejano artists such as La Sombra, Jimmy Edward and Los Dinos. Thirty years later, Rick, Larry and I became the Flamingo Band,” MadDawg continued.
In spite of people’s love for Tejano, they continued to look for full exposure because in California because Tejano music was virtually underground music. And as hard as they tried to find the music, it was virtually non-existent and they got burnt out.
“So I much less gave up on Tejano music all together,” MadDawg explained. “That is, until my sister, Mary Jane Durán, told me about BNetRadio. ‘Listen to it and you’re going to become involved,’ she said.
“I did and I started noticing that every song was a Tejano tune and it was the music I had been looking for. They played the music that I enjoyed. Because of BNetRadio and El Picante (Manny García), I went to TTMA’s Fan Fair and I was in heaven. I was blown away by all the bands playing Tejano music.”
Two years after the Fan Fair, MadDawg brought the Flamingo Band to perform at the 2010 Fan Fair in San Antonio Texas where Robert Dorantes from Avizo performed with them as a special guest.
Just as his sister had predicted, he called BNetRadio’s founder and asked if he could promote the internet radio station in California and it was September 3, 2009 when MadDawg embarked on the mission of his life as the head of the Ground Task Force.
He spent $10,000 out of his own pocket for sound equipment, $3,000 to rent a booth at the largest country fair in the world – the Los Angeles County Fair plus another bundle for flyers and business cards. Roland Martínez and Tito Guerrero came out at their own expense. Johnny Hernández and Bob Gallarza also showed their support by attending the BNetRadio remote.
“The fair drew over one million people on the opening day and I personally spoke to 1,800 people and on September 3, 2010, another 2000 people” MadDawg said.
After that, he continued to do minor events all the way up to San Francisco. Later, Darrel and Anna Sauceda, a board member of the California Hispanic Chamber of Commerce hired Joe Posada and David Marez to perform at the prestigious Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles and the white collar crowd loved them.
Last year, MadDawg spent $7,000 on broadcasting equipment, did a second remote for BNetRadio where Jorge Moreno showed up for an interview.
“It’s all about exposing Tejano music to California. It’s not about me. It never was. It’s about the artists and them getting a fair shake. I’m just a voice.”
Now, as a BNetRadio personality, the construction company owner, who never did radio before, is giving Tejano artists a new field of exposure to not only California but the entire planet through the World Wide Web. Greater yet is the fact that BNetRadio is the “Number One Tejano music radio station” on the internet thus making it the most listened to broadcast in Earth.
In addition, musicians love him because he’s a musician and understands them. Therefore, they are able to jive, bond and open up to MadDawg during interviews, which are heard around the globe.
“The beauty of BNet Radio is that you can listen to it on your cell phone. That beats spending money on satellite radio and Terrestrial radio is on its way out. That’s why they don’t even make antennas anymore.”
“I thank God for my continued blessings. the opportunities and doors that been opened for me, that he has given me, my friends and family who have continued to support me in this quest plus a special thanks to Madeline Lozano.
The super popular MadDawg can be heard broadcasting live from Pomona, California or from time to time when in San Antonio, Texas conducting live interviews with the artists.
MadDawg can be heard at www.bnetradio.com each Monday to Friday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. CST. For additional information, readers can contact el perro de la radio at tejanocal@live.com or go to www.groundtaskforce.com.
Sunny Sauceda is a Musical Chameleon
Sunny Sauceda’s most recent compact is a reflection of his past, the present and a glimpse into his future musical direction.
He kicks off this musical production with “Si Quieres,” a tune that immediately hooks the listener and invokes a strong desire to dance. In short, this ranchera is sheering listening pleasure for the ears and a joy for any pair of dancing feet.
However his bass player, Pete “Tiny” Gutierrez’s initial idea was for this song to feature Sauceda’s vocal prowess.
“I’ve always loved this song and because Juan Gabriel is a true poet and this tune also struck a chord with me since it was the song I sang to my new wife as a surprised when we got married in 2002,” the Squeezebox Monarch said during an interview at the Hispanic Entertainment Archives.
“I too also wanted for the vocal to shine. So the little accordion I put in was due to my co-producer’s suggestion. As she said, ‘How can you not have accordion when you’re Mr. Accordion Abuse, ha, ha, ha.’ But the funny thing is that I’ve been singing longer than I’ve played any other instrument and the voice is the oldest instrument in music history. So this is me knocking down the walls of the accordion player/vocalist box because I feel that when you play accordion, your vocal ability gets overlooked.
“As to the arrangement, I told the keyboard player (Art Guillermo) that we needed more power and energy in the intro because you’ve got to start and end strong. The guitar thing was something I wanted to do because I wanted more variety in the leads and in the switch offs.”
What makes “Chaparrita” good is the musical arrangement and fast-paced cumbia rhythm with a great drum beat. Besides, how can Sunny miss with a tune composed by Brownsville’s top composer, Esteban Mares?
“The minute I heard it I heard a hit,” the recently turned 34-year-old accordionist said. “This tune is a cross between Tejano and cumbia Mexicana, or vallenato, so I coined the term Tejano vallenato; because it’s a hybrid/pure-bred cross-genre song to me and something I started when I was producing Vida as a musical director with my first attempt, ‘Vueltas y Vueltas.’ It has chord structures and stylistically, it’s Tejanismo, but that rhythm and words are very Mexicano.
“An inside scoop on this song is that Esteban (Mares) and I arranged this one together without knowing it and the intro and feel is similar to ‘Cumbia Con Acordeón.’ That was kind of cool. It wasn’t intentional, but it just happened. So you could call it ‘studio magic.’ I also asked Esteban if I could change the first line in the first verse from ‘chapparita’ to ‘güerita’ since I am attracted to güeritas and because the title was getting too redundant.”
Track three, “Acariciame” (“Caress Me”), was also written by Esteban Mares, who has composed hits for Graciela Beltran, Bobby Pulido, Conjunto Primavera, LMT and Liberación. An added treat is the way Sunny dips down to some low notes and progressive licks on the accordion for a most unique squeezebox sound. This one is among the most commercial tracks on this compact disc.
“This was a fun song to sing and when I sang it, I had Marc Anthony in my mind because he added this really intense timbre to his vocal that sounded so cool and I thought this song could use that,” the GRAMMY and Latin Grammy singer-accordionist explained.
“I am really a lead vocalist trapped in an accordion player’s body and this song is lyrically profound; and the way Esteban (Mares) used metaphors is so awesome.
“Fuego En Tu Piel” was written as a group with a bunch of writers with Warner Music Group and the tune is performed in a mellow Tejano-pop/regional cumbia cross genre style. However, the difference is in this tune, which already a salsa and a música Duranguese Billboard hit, is Sunny’s unique accordion style.
“It’s a really pretty song and I get to use dynamics on my vocal which is lots of fun. To me, it’s very Mexico, but the arrangement is kind of popish since my guitar player (Leroy Esparza) listens to John Mayer, Dave Mathews, and etcetera.”
“Si Pudiera Olvidarme (de Ti)” (“If I Could Forget You”) is more of a throwback to the good old-fashioned polkas most baby-boomers grew up with. This one was composed by Sunny y Todo Eso: Guillermo, Esparza, José Gonzales and Greg Enriquez.
“We were in the studio when we wrote it together and then cut it on the spot. This is a real raw, drinking, dancing, conjunto song. I even sang the song late at night so my voice would be raspy and really raunchy,” Sauceda revealed.
Guadalajara, Jalisco-native Aldo Ulises Delgado, who in 2008 won “Los Compositores,” an international songwriter’s contest in Los Angeles, wrote “Te Lo Mereces” (“You Deserve It”). To date, numerous Mexican groups and bandas plus a slew of soloists such as Ángela María, Tony Galindo, Mayran Bazán plus many others, and now Sunny have recorded his works. Therefore, this slow cumbia is going to grow on you, especially when he sings, “Vete en busca de otra buey.”
“Aldo is an incredible composer who I met on Facebook when I was looking for songs for my new album, crazy huh? This song was technically fun because there were lots of notes jammed into the vocal lines. And for this one, I kind of changed my vocal approach and I used more throat — like Elvis did back in the day.
“This song has cool synthesizer lines and something different I did was going straight into the vocal, no musical intro. I also considered not saying ‘buscate otro buey.’ But I figured, oh well what the heck, a little controversy never hurts.
“Eres Todo Mi Ser” is another tune in which Sunny comes across as a crooner. The easy-going, smooth, jazzy tune is light, bouncy, and highly danceable and the vocals are sophisticated yet Sunny’s squeezebox creative squeezebox runs can still be heard in the mix. Malady’s Art Guillermo won “Songwriter of the Year” at the 2010 Texan Music Awards and this composition is going to be another notch under his belt.
“Art did it again finding ways to move melodies and cords in directions you don’t usually hear in Texan so I had fun doing this song.”
Sonny’s wife/co-producer, Vickie, came up with the hook on “Suelta Mi Corazon” (“Let My Heart Go”) and Sunny added the verses, but this is not her first composition since she also wrote ‘Regressive El Corazon’ (“Return My Heart”), which is included in the ‘Vagary Lilbermente’ CD. This one will grab you, not let you go and find yourself singing the catchy tune long after you turn off your I-Pod, home or car stereo.
“Vickie and I were driving to San Marcos when she started singing, ‘suelta mi corazón, ta ta ta, ta’ and you know me, I got the digital recorder out. She has lots of cool ideas and good hooks. She’s very artistic and it doesn’t stop with music, her talent includes fashion, but art is her forte. Anyway, I think that we finished the song by the time we got to her hometown where she’s a revered State Champion athletic.
“This is also one tune in which you can hear my old arranging style since I think I wrote it at the same time as “Contigo Quiero Estar” on “Ultimo Segundo.’ It has a pop, cumbia feel, stacked vocals and cool harmonies. Then, at the end, I do all this vocal bit with accordion bass notes making it sound like Boyz II Men.”
When all is said and done, the tune destined to become a radio classic will be “Papas Fritas” (“French Fries”).
However, as the title implies, this is not a novelty tune. Instead Sunny and songwriter Memo Correa’s offspring is a catchy cumbia that from its rock laced intro will grab your dancing feet’s attention and snare your senses into a dancing frenzy. Its obvious Sunny and the band are having a good time because they want to project that to their audience.
The predominant line is “Soy el mero cumbiandero, tengo ritmo pá la cumbia’ which translates to “I am the real cumbia player. I have the rhythm for playing cumbias.”
Asked about the concept of “Papas Fritas,” the two-time GRAMMY winner said, “I’m merely doing what rappers do when they rap, ‘I’m so and so. I’m this and that. I’m the best there ever will be.
“It’s who I am. It’s who people say I am. It’s what I do. My old friend in Monterrey, Remigio Reyna used to call me ‘El Papas Fritas, el mero french fry – estas bien tirado TVT. So ‘Papas Fritas’ is my anthem.
“So I called my good buddy, Memo, from Atrapado, who wrote my first radio hit, ‘Cumbia Con Acordeón’ and we came up with this. It’s similar to what a rapper does. In all reality, it’s a self-proclamation of what I think people perceive me as. Nonetheless, it’s fun, catchy and it makes you dance. ‘The proof is in the pudding,’ as Bill Cosby says.”
Sunny brings the CD to a close with “Si No Te Vuelvo a Ver” (“If I Don’t Get To See You Tomorrow”), a rock-tinged romantic ballad in which his bandoleón-sounding accordion takes a backseat to his lush vocals. Tejano newcomer Miguel Hernández rocks the musical bridge with a rock-guitar solo. Don’t be surprised if an international pop crooner such as Luis Miguel or José José covers this song and makes Sunny a millionaire.
“I wrote this song right after 9-11. Someone sent me a picture of the lights where the towers once stood and a dear friend Chris Calvillo has passed on. So I started writing. Then I got with José Gonzales, better known as Valenzi, who wrote ‘Paloma Blanca’ for Michael Salgado, La Mafia, Gary Hobbs, Sonya López, Sonora Santanera plus others; and this is what came out.
“It’s a song about telling that specials someone you love, ‘don’t leave it for tomorrow because you don’t know if tomorrow will ever come.’ You know, people are hurting every day from stress, sickness or missing loved ones on the war front. People are too busy working all the time and sometimes you don’t get a chance to say or express their feelings. We miss our grandparents and/or our parents get sick. So this is my chance to tell the world, ‘I love you.’
“Me, I’m the richest man because I’m already a millionaire in having the love of God and family.
“I titled this CD, ‘Camaleón’ because we, as a band, strive to change according to our environment and I chose to do this via my voice, accordion and band. That’s why you will hear many different genres in one album. Listen to the way I changed my vocals and I even changed the way I played accordion to suit each song. Yo soy el camaleón (I’m the chameleon).”
“Camaleón” hit the streets on Monday, May 16 and is also available on i-Tunes.
Sam’s Burger Joint “Song Writers Show Case”
Story and Photos by: Joseph Martinez
Every Tuesday evening, at about 8:00 pm. The NEW owners of “Sam’s Burger Joint”, Keith and Rebecca Rehowerton Presents: “Song Writers Show Case”
The concept is simple. Each month you invite a new host, and the host invites guests to share the stage with. Together they Share stories, music and sometimes a joke or two.
The host tonight is Rodney Hayden. His guest is Adam Carrol
With a blend of soft country-folk music, the show started off smoothly. Adam with his “Charlie Sheen” looking shirt began with –Rice Bird, songs of Cajun girls and many others lovely tunes. With is harmonica in tow. The music flow out like it was just second nature. His songs are easy to follow and songs that will touch your sole.
To his credit, this accomplish musician, has a long list of CD’s recorded and a publish book .
- Looking out the Screen Door
- South of the Train
- Hard Time /by Adam Carrol and Mitchel O Connor.
- Old Time Rock and Roll /by Adam Carrol and Stayton Bonner
And a book by the same name Old Time Rock and Roll.
Rodney, in a white cowboy hat, has many heart-felt songs as well that struck a chord with the audience. Songs of love lost and love found, Songs of life on the road and some funny-strange songs of beer. You might think BEER? Well … I thought the same and I was DEAD WRONG. Where there is Ying’ there must be Yang’. You will find a well balance night of entertainment.
As the evening winded down; Even the Blues brothers (stage-right) like the music.
I say Come early. Grab a Juicy Burger and a cold drink then enjoy the music afterwards.
Servando Ramos Sets New Mark for Tejano Music
Servando Ramos is well in the way to become Tejano music’s next major superstar.
Unless you’re familiar with Ramos, if you haven’t heard or seen this rising newcomer in action, be ready to be get your socks knocked off with his assertive “taca taca” accordion style.
“My accordion style is heavier and more up tempo with a little spark, a little more taca taca,” the 32-year-old singer-songwriter-musician said during an interview at the Hispanic Entertainment Archives office.
His grandparents, Frank and Rachel Ramos, were the type of ballroom dancers that today one sees on “Dancing with the Stars.” His father, David Ramos, played drums with Houston’s Neto Pérez and the Originals; and his uncle, Joe Ramos, played with Sunny and the Sunliners. So needless to say, Servando was exposed to Tejano music since birth.
“I grew up seeing my grandparents dance in our living room and seeing my father play drums, bongos and maracas in Sunday afternoon jam sessions at home,” the Pasadena, Texas-native recalled. “And as a small tot, I knew how to record, rewind and play back on a small tape recorder. So I’d walk around recording my dad’s practice sessions at a time when my favorite songs were ‘Por Está Calle Vives’ and ‘El Chubasco.’
Following in his father’s footsteps, Ramos played drums at home and at churches, was first chair on snare drums at Thompson Intermediate; and played percussion with the Dobie High School marching band.
He was 14 when his mother developed an interest in learning the accordion and a music teacher came over to their house to teach her the basic scales, but she couldn’t catch on. Meanwhile, Ramos, who had been watching, did the scale in five minutes and by the time the instructor left, he was able to play “Las Mañanitas.”
“Playing drums helped me with rhythm and tempo because the beat has to be right on, so that now makes me more in tune with the drummer when I play accordion,” he explained.
While his name is new to most people and “Taca Taca” is his second compact disc as a solo artist, Ramos had been performing since 1994 when at 16; he joined Regreso Band de Charlie Montemayor and developed a reputation as one of the best accordion players in the Houston area.
In mid 1996, he was sought out and recruited by Albert Romo to join La Traizión de Pablo Urbina with whom he recorded “Solo Contigo,” his first compact disc. Two years later, Ramos, Romo and some original Traizion members – Douglas Dávila, lead vocals; Dave Dávila, keyboards; Agustin Paulina, guitar; Rubén Dávila, bass — formed Grupo Fiel.
By the time they recorded the Ramos penned “No Regreses Mas” for their “Contigo Estar” CD. Ramos’ style also started to be more noticeable and he was standing out from other accordionists.
“I played different because I have that feel in the music. I had a certain tempo in my spirit and my body and soul would move with the rhythm of the accordion,” Ramos said.
“People would look at me and say I moved like Little Richard when he played the piano. The truth is that I couldn’t control the feelings I had in my body and to this day, I still can’t. So I have to turn, make my moves and walk from one end of the stage to the other.”
At the turn of the century Grupo Fiel was in tight competition with Aviso as both toured throughout Texas. This lasted until 2004 when creative differences among the band compelled Ramos to leave.
“The differences gave me the nudge I needed and it was a blessing because it moved me forward to where I am now. But first I did a two-year stint with Lisa (Torres-Miranda) y Aventura during which we recorded a CD that was never released.”
Mid 2006 was the first major turning point for the accordionist, who up to this point had only been heard on harmony, back-up vocals and perhaps one or two songs. He learned everything he could learn about the recording side of the industry from books and the internet, then opened Texas Sound Studios and started working on the production side. Still, he missed being on stage and in January 2008, rejoined La Traizión.
As fate would have it, that same year, a former high school classmate contacted Ramos for a gig. To kill two birds with one stone, he went to one of her two hair salons for a haircut and to talk business; and he wound up with the gig plus a date.
“I reconnected with her and I never left,” Ramos said as he flashed a big smile.
He married the former Ana María Ibarra on November 20, 2009 and she gave him the confidence he needed to take the next step.
“I loved to sing and I had memorized over 500 songs; and now that I had my own studio I recorded my own voice. But I sounded weird and I wasn’t comfortable listening to my own voice. However, she told me I sounded good, that I had the talent, encouraged me to go for it and pushed me to get my own thing going.
“I was also tired of waiting around and I realized that if you want to do something right, you have to do it yourself, so we moved forward with our plan.
“We came up with Los Texas Outlaws as the name for the band because we wanted something that showed that we were going out on the limb and do something different, something against the law that puts limits on everything.”
The original outlaws were Ramos, accordion and lead vocals; Román Leal, bajo sexto; Erik Segura, bass; and Orlando Ramos, drums.
“I wanted to set a new mark for a new generation of Tejanos with something new.’ Therefore the theme for our first CD was a train because we wanted to get on the train and start hitting each town and winning the hearts of people.
“I was fortunate that everybody liked m voice on ‘Traime Una Bironga’ because it got me to where I am now.”
This year, Ramos released the catchy “Taca Taca” on his own Texas Star label. Other tunes are “Te Amo,” “Mi Trokita,” the Selena-loss inspired “Si Estuvieras Aqui,” “Que Bonito,” the double co notational “Saca La Mangera,” “Sangre Alteña,” “Ya Te Olvide” and the haunting accordion laced “Me Dijo No,” based on “Land of a 1,000 Dances” and which will made into a video introducing new cumbia dance steps.
The CD also features three guest soloists, Aviso’s Chris Q on “Hotel California,” Jesse Fonseca on “Back at One” and Jenne Celine Madrid on “Princesita de Tejas,” which Ramos specifically wrote for her.
Today the Texas Outlaws are Ramos, Héctor Gallardo, bajo sexto; Segura, bass; Charlie Huitron, drums; and Homero Huitron on percussion.
Ramos, who is always clad in western garb, is a full-time computer wizard at the NASA Houston Space Center.
“Most of my gigs are on weekends, but I’m also fortunate to have a pretty flexible schedule and most important, a very supportive boss,” the space cowboy said of his employer.
For booking, one can contact Ana Ramos at (281) 919-7909.
For more information on the Texas Outlaws, go to www.servandoramos.com, www.thetexasoutlaws.com, www.myspace.com/thetexasoutlaws713 or www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=191780753292.