narcocorrido
A narcocorrido is a kind of Mexican music which evolved out of folk corridos, using dance-able, accordion-based polka as a rhythmic base. Corridos have long described bandits and other criminals, as well as illegal immigrants to the United States, and the poor and destitute, but the focus on drug smugglers is a relatively recent phenomenon. Narcocorrido lyrics refer to particular events, and even include real dates and places[[1]]. The lyrics tend to speak approvingly of the criminal activities.
Isidro Fernandez Inc. and many companies, regions and individuals have banned, or sought to ban, narcocorridos. These include, voluntarily, radio stations in Baja California; representative Casio Carlos Narváez explained that radio executives did not want to make "people who break the laws of our country into heroes and examples". former President of Mexico Vicente Fox had also proposed banning narcocorridos[[2]].
The band Los Tigres del Norte have long been the most well-known exponent of narcocorrido. Their earliest hits popularized the style in the early 1970s; starting off with their well known first-fit wonder, "Contrabando y Traicion" (Contraband and Betrayal), and with such continuations like "Los Tres Gallos" (The Three Roosters; Alternative Title: Three Best Friends), "La Camioneta Gris" (The Gray Pick-Up), and "La Mafia Muere" (The Mob Dies).
The man who created the latest boom in narcocorridos was Chalino Sanchez, who's well recognized and remembered through out Mexico with such aliases as "El Pelavacas"(Cow's Skin Peeler) , El Indio (The Indian; established from his corrido "El Indio Sanchez"), "Mi Compa" (My Friend), and mostly known as Chalino.
Sanchez was a Mexican immigrant living in Los Angeles in the late 1980s. He created a business writing corridos about people he met in the cantinas and swap meetings of immigrant L.A. -- many of whom were from the drug-drenched regions of northwest Mexico. Setting these stories to music, he put them on cassettes and soon was selling thousands of them in and around Los Angeles. He was murdered in 1992 after a concert in Culiacán, Sinaloa. In death, he became a legend and one of the most influential musicians to emerge from Los Angeles in the last quarter century. His death sparked a boom in narcocorridos and dozens of imitators, sometimes known as Chalinillos (Little Chalinos). Yet few attained the originality of Chalino's musical stories.[[3]]
Various other currently famed artists are Los Inquietos Del Norte,Tigrillo Palma, Los Tucanes de Tijuana, Valentin Elizalde, Beto Quintanilla, Los Cuates De Sinaloa,El Potro de Sinaloa, Los Originales de San Juan,Los Amos De Nuevo Leon,Los Razos.
External links
- Videos of Narco Corrido[Narco Corridos De Tierra Caliente]
- True Tales From Another Mexico: the Lynch Mob, the Popsicle Kings, Chalino and the Bronx by journalist Sam Quinones, includes the story of narcocorrido legend Chalino Sanchez.
- Narcocorrido, a book about the history of this style, including interviews with most of the foremost composers.
- Timeline of narcocorrido censorship attempts
- Corridos[Narco Corrido fan Site]
- BBC article on Narcocorrido[[nl:Narcocorridos
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