Mexico is a country full of very intelligent, very creative people open to new styles.” Rock ‘n’ roll and jazz weren’t ours either, but I think music has no boundaries and nor should it. “The music is from the United States and we’re presenting it to the Mexican people. We have a great culture and I think it’s not difficult to absorb something that doesn’t belong to us. “It’s taken us many years to earn the affection of the Mexican people and I’m sure it won’t be long before more people here start listening to country music.
Here people tend to listen to norteño, corridos, mariachi… but now there isn’t a party anywhere in Mexico where they don’t play ‘No Rompas Mas…’ or ‘Payaso de Rodeo.’ That for us is better than any award – it’s what we appreciate most. “Country music didn’t really exist in Mexico 20 years ago and we were the ones who introduced it. Unfortunately, the way the music industry is now there isn’t much support for newer bands, so we try to share our knowledge and experience. “All of these groups started out, to a greater or lesser extent, as fans of Caballo Dorado,” observes the 50-year-old musician, a former bull rider, “and we’re very grateful for that because it helps us enjoy a more fulfilling career. Two of the newer purveyors of Mexican country music are 8 Segundos and Forasteros Country Band, from Ciudad Juarez and Hermosillo respectively, and representatives from both camps have spoken highly of Caballo Dorado, the band that has done more than anyone to popularise country music south of the border.
With all the experience we have, we are happy to give help and advice.”
We have tried to help out newer country groups with songs, production, etc. “Little by little country music has become more popular and there are more acts taking it to new generations. It was a difficult and lonely struggle, but afterwards many other groups followed in our footsteps. We had been promoting country music in Spanish all over Mexico, Latin America and to our countrymen living in the United States. “Miraculously, we went to play in Monterrey and it was there that a record company gave us a chance. We finish off the year in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco.”ĭiscussing the popularity of country music in his homeland and commenting on how things have changed since Caballo Dorado embarked on their cultural voyage of discovery all those years ago, the singer and fiddle player muses, “I think its popularity has grown… In August next year we’ll celebrate our 30th anniversary, but it took many years of knocking on doors before we were able to record an album. After that we’re going to the United States and then Coahuila and then to the State of Mexico and Puebla. “Tomorrow we’re off to Villahermosa, Tabasco. “We’ve also been doing concerts all over the country and were recently in Zacatecas and Saltillo and then in Hermosillo two days ago. “Well earlier this year we released a new album called Somos Heroes (We are Heroes), the 18th CD of our nearly 30-year career,” he replies, coming to me from Chihuahua, Chihuahua. I began by asking Lalo what he and his cohorts have been up to of late. That song is “No Romas Mas Mi Pobre Corazon” – “ Achy Breaky Heart” in Spanish – and if you’ve ever been to a wedding, birthday party, Christening, etc. The song remains an insanely popular line dancing anthem – instantly familiar to millions of partygoers all over Mexico – that even today is a guaranteed dancefloor-filler whenever and wherever it’s played. After a few years spent ‘finding their feet’ musically and struggling to secure a record deal, the band – who are still together with their original lineup intact – put out their debut album Carretera 54 in 1994.Īlongside some solid self-written material on that first official release was a cover version of an ubiquitous classic that would quickly elevate the then-largely unknown quintet to superstar status. Eduardo Gameros, better known as “Lalo,” formed Caballo Dorado with his brothers Gustavo and Gerardo and with their friends Freddy and Jorge Navarro (also brothers) in Chihuahua in 1986.
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