Lalo Guerrero
Tribute Concert: John Anson Ford Amphitheater
October 4, 2003
by Mark Guerrero
On October 4, 2003, there was a tribute concert to my dad,
Lalo Guerrero, at the John Anson Ford Amphitheater in Hollywood,
produced by Rodri Entertainment for the benefit of the Mariachi
USA Foundation. The John Anson Ford Amphitheater is
a beautiful 1241 seat outdoor amphitheater. The lineup
included Lalo Guerrero, Mark Guerrero & Radio Aztlán,
Trio Los Panchos, Liz Torrez, Richard Montoya (of the comedy
group Culture Clash), Edward James Olmos, Maria Elena Gaitan
(Chola con Cello), Diana Ortelli, Mi Tierra Dance Company,
and Maureen & Mariachi Oro Angelino. The event was
hosted by my brother, Dan Guerrero.
The idea was to have the various
artists perform songs written by my dad. I opened the show
singing four of my dad’s songs, “Los Chucos Suaves,”
“Me Gusta El Cha Cha Cha,” “Muy Sabroso
Blues,” and “Tin Marin De Do Pingue,” accompanied
by my band, Radio Aztlán. The set went extremely well
and we got an excellent response from the audience.
The members of my band for this concert included Bobby Dominguez,
drums; Leo Valenzuela, bass; Frank Josephs, keyboard; Al Lopez,
sax, flute, and clarinet; Aaron Guerrero Routtenberg, congas
and timbales; and yours truly on guitar and lead vocals.
Mexican actress Diana Ortelli performed next as Reynalda of
“La Minifalda de Reynalda.” Diana came out
in a sexy miniskirt, complimented by a green wig and accompanied
by the Mi Tierra Dance Company. They danced to my dad’s
recording, which has both norteña and rock & roll sections.
The audience enjoyed the performance, which was well done
with the humor the song requires. My band and I
returned to back up comedian Liz Torrez on “There’s
No Tortillas,” which she did in an operatic style.
The lyrics, which are sung to the melody of “It’s
Now Or Never,” begin with:
“I love tortillas and I love them dearly
You’ll never know dear just how sincerely
I love the corn ones y tambien de harina
Oh how I dread to eat with bread, believe me
There’s no tortillas, there’s only bread
There’s no tortillas, and I feel so sad
My grief I cannot hide, there’s no tortillas for my
refrieds”
During the musical interlude, Liz tossed corn tortillas into
the audience, frisbee style, to the amusement of the people
in the audience as well as on stage. Soon tortillas
were good naturedly being tossed back onto the stage by some
audience members. To say the least the number loosened
up the Hollywood audience. We then backed comedian Richard
Montoya on “No Chicanos on TV.” However, before
the song, Richard did about five minutes of hilarious, irreverent
stand up. One of his biggest laughs came when he warned
the audience not to throw tortillas at him because he was
from East L.A. and would kick their ass. He went on
to perform “No Chicanos on TV” effectively with
his unique comic style. The song begins with the lyric:
“I think that I shall never see
Any Chicanos on TV
It seems as though we don’t exist
And we’re not ever even missed
And yet we buy and buy their wares
But no Chicanos anywhere”
Mi Tierra Dance Company followed with a great dance number,
“Remembering Zoot Suit.” They danced with
the style and spirit of the era depicted in the Luis Valdez
play and movie “Zoot Suit,” which featured songs
written and recorded in the period by Lalo
Guerrero.
After an intermission, the legendary
Trio Los Panchos performed several songs, including my dad’s
classic, “Nunca Jamas,” first recorded by the
original Trio Los Panchos in the mid-50s. The current
trio sounds every bit as magnificent as the original group.
Their tenor vocals in perfect harmony, along with their superb
guitar work was absolutely world-class. They had performed
at the same theater the previous week and stayed in town to
participate in the tribute. At this point chairs around
circular tables with table cloths were put on the stage,
nightclub style. Edward Olmos, Liz Torrez, Richard Montoya,
my brother, and other performers sat around them, while my
band and I, along with the mariachi, sat around the steps
at the back of the stage. My dad came out and sat center
stage and performed his great song “Barrio Viejo,”
accompanied by his guitar and Maria Elena Gaitan on cello.
The cello effectively added emotion to an already beautiful
and emotional song. My dad then did an unplanned solo
number called “El Carnalito,” which advises Chicano
youth to stay away from drugs and gangs. My band and I returned
to perform my tribute song to my dad, “The Ballad of
Lalo Guerrero.” It’s a song I wrote back
in 1992 and first performed solo the same year at a tribute
to my dad at the McCallum Theater in Palm Desert, CA.
This time I sang the song with the backing of my band and
was very happy with the results. It was particularly
emotional for me since my dad was sitting a few feet away
from me while I sang the song. We then backed up my
dad on his corrido of Chicano pride, “El Chicano.”
This finale was done with the entire cast on stage, many dancing
to the polka beat. When the song was over, the energy
on the stage and in the audience was such that I spontaneously
went into a reprise of “Los Chucos Suaves” and
the party continued. The audience and performers had
a great time on this special night.
Notables in attendance included legendary
guitarist and record producer, Ry Cooder; Mexican rock en
Español band, Maldita Vecindad; and Alex Hassilev of the legendary
folk group, the Limeliters.
Lalo & Mark with Maldita Vecindad
(left to right- Roco, Aldo, Sax, Mark Guerrero,
Lalo Guerrero, Javier Sosa, Daniel Infanzon, Jesus
Mendez, and Pato)
"Los Chucos Suaves" words
and music by Lalo Guerrero
"The Ballad of Lalo Guerrero" words
and music by Mark Guerrero
