|
To see to the latest version of
this article and my website
click here
Carmencristina Moreno: Chicana Lady of Song
by Mark
Guerrero
Carmencristina Moreno is one of the best
Mexican-American female vocalists of all time. Her voice
and singing ability rivals singers the caliber of Joan
Baez and Linda Ronstadt. She’s also a fine songwriter
and accompanies herself brilliantly on acoustic guitar.
She has achieved many things in her career, but like
most Chicano musical artists, has not received the
commercial success and mainstream attention she
deserves.
Carmencristina comes from a rich musical heritage.
Her parents, Luis M. and Carmen A. Moreno, known as El
Dueto de Los Moreno, enjoyed a long and successful
career. Her Mexican-born father was a singer-songwriter,
who wrote many rancheras that became standards, and her
mother was blessed with a beautiful voice. They toured
extensively in the Southwest, recorded with the great
mariachi, Mariachi Vargas de Tecatitlán, and performed
with the legendary Mexican ranchera singer, Lucha Reyes.
El Dueto de Los Moreno recorded for several major labels
and were radio stars.
Carmencristina was born in East Los Angeles and grew
up in Fresno, California and Jalisco, Mexico, becoming
linguistically and musically bilingual. She was
influenced by the various Mexican/Latin musical styles,
i.e., ranchera, salsa, Tejano, and Veracruz, as well as
by the music of the Beatles, Bob Dylan and Joni
Mitchell. She has recorded for Epic, Capitol and
Boardwalk Records both in English and Spanish. In 1976,
she was the first Mexican-American to represent the
United States in the prestigious OTI Festival in
Acapulco, where she performed her composition, “Sangre
Antigua.” She later recorded that song and another of
her songs, “El Corrido de Dolores Huerta” on a United
Farm Worker’s Union fund-raising album entitled, “Si Se
Puede,” accompanied by Los Lobos.
Ms. Moreno’s acting credits are many, including
roles in films, such as, “Hickey & Boggs,” with Robert
Culp and Bill Cosby, “Master Gunfighter,” with Tom
Laughlin and “Deal of the Century,” with Chevy Chase.
She’s done dramatic television shows, such as, “Knots
Landing,” and “Baby Boom,” (with Kate Jackson), as well
as variety shows, such as, the “Joey Bishop Show” and
the “Virginia Graham Show.” She participated in
Moctezuma Esparza’s docu-show, “Celebration,” hosted by
Ricardo Montalban for ABC-TV, and starred in her own
half-hour one-woman show for PBS’s “Ahora” series.
Carmencristina also wrote the soundtrack for Sylvia
Morales’ docu-film “Bread and Roses.”
In 1992, Carmencristina participated in a
star-studded tribute to my dad, Lalo Guerrero, at the
McCallum Theater in Palm Desert, California. Sharing the
bill with yours truly, Daniel Valdez, Cheech Marin, Paul
Rodriguez, Don Tosti, Little Joe and Culture Clash, she
proceeded to “bring down the house” with a passionate
version of my dad’s “Cancion Mexicana,” accompanied by
Mariachi Sol de Mexico de Jose Hernandez. She did the
same thing a couple of years later at UCLA, backed by
Los Camperos de Nati Cano, at a show entitled, “Cancion
Mexicana: The Music of Lalo Guerrero,” which I attended.
In 1993, she participated in the Smithsonian
Institution’s “Festival of American Folklife,” (themed
“Borderlands”) in Washington D.C. Later, she did six
follow-up workshops held in several border cities.
My family and Carmencristina’s go way back.
It was
her father who showed my dad’s song, “Cancion Mexicana”
to Lucha Reyes, who later recorded it and the rest is
history. I first met Carmencristina around 1970 under
completely separate circumstances. I was recording with
a record producer by the name of Tommy Coe, who was
friends with J.R. Shanklin, also a record producer.
J.R.
had met Carmencristina when he saw her perform at the
Smokehouse Restaurant in Burbank. He recognized her
talent and, apparently, more because they eventually
married and had a son together. So at the time, we were
working and hanging out with the same crowd. I had no
idea when we first met that our parents had known each
other, but was very impressed with her great voice and
talent. In the mid-eighties, my dad and I went to
Bakersfield to attend a birthday celebration for Cesar
Chavez at the convention center and Carmencristina was
performing. My dad, who was very impressed, invited her
to sub for him at his gig in Rancho Mirage, California.
She took the job and wound up moving to nearby Palm
Springs, where she lived for many years. When I moved to
the same city in 1990, I got to see more of her and know
her better. She’s a strong woman who has endured the
trials and tribulations of the music industry, and life
in general, with her dignity and sense of humor in tact.
Several years ago, after raising her three sons, she
returned to live in Fresno, where she remains musically
very active.
Currently Carmencristina Moreno has a CD out, which
she produced herself, entitled, “Train from
Tenochtitlán.”
It contains 12 of her compositions, all in English, but
in a musical framework that is very Mexican. Two of my
favorite songs on the album are “Vaquero,” a tribute to
the cowboy of the Americas, and “Lady Tex Mex,” which is
done with a bajo sexto and accordion, giving it the
authentic conjunto sound. There’s also a song called
“Lorena,” which deals with the Lorena Bobbit incident.
It doesn’t condone “the act,” but tells the story from
the point of view of the physical and cultural abuse she
suffered. Another standout track is “Dollar a Song,”
which tells the story of when Carmencristina would sing
with her parents in country bars for a dollar a song.
The album is well recorded, with excellent musicians,
and her voice is as great as ever. If you would like to
have this CD, you can order it on her website,
www.carmencristina.com.
Update
Two songs written by Carmencristina Moreno are being
used in the theatrical production "Cesar and
Ruben," written by Ed Begley Jr. and starring
Edward James Olmos. It's a play about Farm Worker
organizer, Cesar Chavez, and slain journalist, Ruben
Salazar. The play, which opened March 14, 2003 in Los
Angeles, also features music by Joni Mitchell, David
Crosby, Santana, Ruben Blades, Peter Gabriel, Enrique
Iglesias, Control Machete, and Los Pinguos.
In September of 2003, Carmen Moreno received the
nation's highest folk-arts honor, the National Endowment
for the Arts National Heritage Fellowship. She
received the award, which includes a $20,000 prize,
at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., and performed in a
separate concert that in the past has been attended by
U.S. presidents. My dad, Lalo Guerrero, won the
same award in 1991. This is an honor
Carmencristina richly deserves.
Carmencristina Moreno has a great new CD out called
"Lovers & Legends," which she describes as
"ballads of heroes, bandits, causes, and
lovers." Her voice is as great as ever and
her songwriting continues to evolve to new
heights. Some of the highlights of the album are
"The Battle of Cinco de Mayo," which
chronicles the history of the legendary event in Mexican
history; "You'll Always Have Sabor a Mi," an
English language version of the classic Mexican bolero;
a sexy, bluesy song called "Working Man's
Woman;" the beautiful and jazzy "Ellen's
Song;" a cover of Jack Hanna's "Ballad of
Joaquin Murrieta;" and a beautiful Spanish/English
version of "America O' Bella/America the
Beautiful." This and other Carmencristina
Moreno CDs are available on her website, www.carmencristina.com.
Real
Audio Sound Byte
Real
Player Required- Download it here,
if needed
Dollar a Song
Carmencristina
Moreno 1999
Contact me at: info@markguerrero.net
Previous page
||
Go to next article
Return to articles index page
|
