Patio Andaluz Reunion Stirs Memories

By Ramón Hernández

 This year’s Second Annual Patio Andaluz concert was a trip down memory lane for the hundreds of San Antonio oldies music fans who attended the event at the Guadalupe Plaza.

Couples danced under a starlit night that provided a romantic evening of nostalgia for those over 55; and a lesson in what it was like for their parents and grandparents for those under 35, as the Tribute Band and Larry Lange backed up singer after singer.

The Tribute Band includes Chente Montes, Rudy Palacios and Little Henry Parrilla, three former Sunliners and the latter a star in his own right. Ralph Cortes, a former lead singer with Latin Breed, and Roland Martínez make up the rest of the band.

Former San Antonio Mayor Henry Cisneros and his wife Councilwoman Alice Cisneros were lost in the ‘50s and ‘60s as they danced to the music, sat out a few numbers and made a trip to a table where Cisneros purchased a stack of CDs by Jimmy Edward and other vocalists.

Wal Mart’s Robert Romo and César Chávez March leader Jaimé Martínez also did a mean step or two with their respective wives.

In addition to the aforementioned who took turns singing lead vocals, Ernie Garibay of Cats Don’t Sleep paid tribute to his brother Randy and Joe Jama sang his autobiographical “My Life.” Later he and Joanna Ramírez sang “Never Gonna Give You Up.” Incidentally, Ramirez just recorded the Jama penned song in duet with Lange in what she described as a northern soul song.

One of the highlights of the evening came when (Francisco) Rico Del Barrio, a Dimas Garza protégé sporting a black and white zoot suit took the stage and sang four tunes made famous by his mentor. Lange and Danny Muraida sang backup vocals as Rico breezed revived old and bittersweet memories with his rendition of “Love Me,” “I Want to Be Loved” (written by Garza), “Don’t Leave Me Baby” and “You’ve Succeeded.” The latter, which Garza wrote and recorded as Dimas III, is a hard-to-find vintage single on the Clown label.

If Muraida looked familiar, it’s because he used to be part of the Sunglows and also the Sequins vocal group. It was truly a magical night as local musical historical figures from the days of La Gloria, the Tourist Club, Arthur Murrays and of course El Patio Andaluz resurfaced to delight their golden age fans.

Tejano music pioneers Jimmy Edward and Rudy Tee of the Reno Bops closed out the night as the event’s headliners. It was awesome listening to Edward effortlessly belting out some of his greatest hits in his trademark powerful voice.

Then the living legend that recently had heart bypass surgery on five coronary arteries dazzled the crowd with his fancy footwork. All the while his fans kept yelling out for his signature tune. Five songs later, Rudy Tee got to the heart of the matter and flashbacked to the past as he closed his set with a tune originally made popular by Etta James in 1960 -- “All I Could Do Was Cry.”

Most of the San Antonio Marching Band musicians and even members of other groups such as Víctor Montes, who played guitar with The Commands when they recorded “No Time For You” with Sam Peeples on lead vocals was on hand to cheer on all the performers. And if you missed this West Side Sound concert, there’s always next year when Lange and Grady Pinkerton will wow you with blast of the past rare golden oldies like “Corpus Christi Rock” and Freddy Fender’s “The Magic of Love.”