Search - Ben Tavera King :: Rio Grande Romeos

A man and a guitar have always made a potent "love" combination in Mexican and Mexican American culture. Perhaps the most striking use of that potency came from the singing movie stars in the golden era of Mexican cinema, dating back to the 1920s with Tito Guizar's classic "En El Rancho Grande." Whether sitting in a cantina or astride a horse, the man with a guitar giving voice to his love won hearts by the millions on bothsides of the Rio Grande. These "Romeos of the Rio Grande" -- such as Pedro Infante, Jose Alfredo Jimenez, Los Panchos - and the tunes they made famous still make hearts swoon. On this release, such songs as "Por Ella, "Los Laureles" and "Sabor A Mi" are lovingly re-created as instrumentals on the nylon-string guitar, backed by bass, button accordion, marimba and percussion.