Mexico beat

Latin Beat Magazine, May, 2003 by Rudy Mangual

Pepe Aguilar, the son of legendary Mexican charros Antonio Aguilar and Flor Silvestre, was thrust into the family business as a child when he rode a pony during a Madison Square Garden equestrian show in New York City. Since then, he has earned one Grammy, released 22 albums, and collaborated with the cream of Mexico's music industry and the Latin American music world in general.

Born on August 7, in Zacatecas, México, Pepe grew up on the road, traveling throughout the Americas and abroad with his performing family. As a teen, he composed songs for groups such as Guarachín y Guarachón and by 1987 recorded with his own first rock group, composing most of its repertoire.

By 1989, the young Aguilar had gained wider popularity through his interpretations of the hit songs Son Las Dos De La Mañana and Pídele Al Cielo, as well as his songs with mariachi, Recuérdame Bonito, Qué Bueno, and ¡Ay María! A decade later (1998), Aguilar reinvented himself artistically and released the mega-hit Por Mujeres Como Tú, achieving international fame along with millions of record sales.

Today, Aguilar continues to prevail as one of the leading exponents of Mexican music through his compositions and performances. His latest release, Y Tenerte Otra Vez, for Univision Records, follows the same path as his previous work with just the necessary ingredients to shape a modish production. The compositions are rich with strings and chorus and daring arrangements that fuse elements of Mexican music with pop, rock and jazz forms. On the traditional side, there are plenty of traditional rancheras and romantic ranchera ballads, in line with the image that Aguilar has been cultivating for several years. A good example of a ranchera ballad is the first promotional release track from this production, Me Falta Valor, composed by Teodoro Bello.

Homenaje a Chalino Sánchez (Homage to Chalino Sánchez, Univision) placed Jessie Morales on the Regional Mexican map after selling an impressive 200,000 units. Morales' popularity rapidly prompted a follow-up tribute album, Recordando a Chalino Sánchez Vol. 2 (Remembering Chalino Sánchez, Vol. 2) released on January 28, 2003. The new album promises to keep "El Original De La Sierra"--as he is referred to by his followers--at the top of charts for a good while. Jessie Morales is only 20 years old and was born in Los Angeles, California. This Volume 2 is a compilation of eleven norteño tracks that stand out primarily due to the unique sound of the accordion and Morales' vocal talents. The production includes romantic norteño ballads, up-tempo compositions and heavy-duty "corridos," the trademark of the music of Chalino Sánchez.

Fronted by the sexy-bombshell vocalist Alicia Villarreal (Universal), the group Limite is back and ready for the world with the same conviction and hunger of their dramatic debut recording back in 1995, at which time they enjoyed as many as three consecutive hit songs in the Mexican hit parades. The group's refreshing cumbia-pop sound continues to gain new fans via their latest release, Soy Asi, produced by A.B. Quintanilla and his posse in Corpus Christi (The Kumbia Kings). Completing the group is Gerardo Padilla on accordion, Sergio Ponce on guitar, Carlos Ramírez on percussion, Johnny Cantú on drums, and Frank García on bass. The track single and video, Ay Papacito, has been enjoying airplay since October, 2002. In its relatively short career, Limite has already sold over seven million units throughout Mexico and the U.S.A.

Classical vocalist/composer/educator and opera singer Juanita Ulloa joined forces with Mariachi Voz De América and Mariachi Internacional to produce a lifetime dream project she named Juanita, Mujeres y Mariachi (Juanita, Women and Mariachi, Ulloa Prods.). Mujeres y Mariachi is a crossover mariachi/opera project which presents traditional Mariachi music with new themes, representing a fresh female perspective in the music as well as in the vocal interpretations of the style. Ulloa explains in the excellent liner notes of this CD that several of the mid-1900's top mariachi singers were opera singers first, like herself, who turned to Mexican popular music and the mariachi world to make a better living. Heading the list of singers are Jorge Negrete, Pedro Infante and Miguel Aceves Mejía. The CD features original mariachi compositions by Ulloa as well as the classics Malagueña Salerosa by Elpidio Ramírez, Mil Besos by Emma Elena Valdelamar, and El Crucifijo de Piedra by Hermanos Cantoral.