Juan Gabriel

Did we seriously never have a thread for him? Crazy.

Huge loss. Had been dipping back into his oeuvre after the v.pleasant surprise of him popping up on that Latin CCR tribute album:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqnfoRXKgLs

One of those singers I grew up listening to -- more my grandmother's taste than my mom, who's a '60s girl -- but didn't start paying attention to until way too recently. As a songwriter-producer-scion he's Mexico's Smokey.

I was aware of him, obviously, though Vicente Fernandez was always my guy for mariachi/ranchero stuff. I found the Gabriel live performances I saw on Telemundo funny (but always in a laughing-with way), but also clearly the work of a major talent. I need to dig into the catalog. He was supposed to be coming to the East Coast in the fall - had a Barclays Center show scheduled for October 9, and I think there was going to be a Newark date, too, which I might have checked out.

Jonathan Bogart's Twitter has been a good English-language roundup of bits & pieces today.

http://bilboslaptop.blogspot.co.nz/search/label/juan%20gabriel

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcEhiIOM2Kc

saw him live at the Universal Amphitheater I think circa '89/'90. His music meant so much to me back then, especially the mariachi stuff - "con todo y mi tristeza." I think it's kind of shitty to post the "here he is falling offstage" video when we're freshly mourning a massive icon of Mexican music but maybe that's just me.

There are a lot of fan videos from Friday night's final concert in L.A. on YouTube.

Gustavo Arellano had some good initial thoughts yesterday on Twitter and has a beauty of a piece out today:

http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-arellano-juan-gabriel-20160829-snap-story.html

Juan Gabriel’s songs smashed the staid Mexican music industry. He seamlessly glided across genres — ranchera, banda, tropical music, pop — and even combined them. He’d sneak in the conjunto norteño accordions of his beloved Juarez during mariachi songs, predating by decades the current trend in Mexican regional music of putting tubas and squeezeboxes together. His lyrics forsook the fatalism of ranchera for the promise of love. He sang for survivors, for people who threw themselves to the world and fell, only to get up again in the hope that true love would come one day to save them.

“Con tu Amor” put it best:, “Gracias a ti/no ciento tristezas/ni dolor/Hoy soy muy feliz” ("Thanks to you/I don't feel sadness/nor pain/Today, I'm very happy").

But JuanGa’s truest legacy is not his music, it’s what he represented: Personal freedom. Although he refused to answer questions about his sexuality, he was the one celebrity Mexico allowed to live as even somewhat gay. Juan Gabriel fought back the haters with his smile and sharp tongue, never apologizing for who he was. And that pride created an opening for young gay men and women to find courage — perhaps even come out. That’s not all. Women living under the tyranny of machismo found that the only time they could go out on the town was for one of his concerts, their husbands not bothering to attend because what straight man admitted to liking JuanGa?

Eventually, however, even the machos caught up to JuanGa’s genius. On Facebook, guys are openly admitted to weeping about Juan Gabriel’s death, speaking of him in the same breath as Vicente Fernandez, the ur-hombre of Mexican music who nevertheless recorded many JuanGa hits. He himself tweeted out: "How the passing of Juan Gabriel weighs on me. A great artist and an excellent human being.”

Wonderful read.

I never paid much attention but he was absolutely huge while I was growing up. Undeniable talent as a songwriter and performer. RIP :(

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUjM2V6x7aM

Also of note:

http://remezcla.com/lists/music/juan-gabriel-social-media-tribute/

Carla Morrison's tribute will get ya.

En Diciembre del 2011 tuve la fortuna de ser llamada a participar en un dueto con Juan Gabriel… yo obviamente no me lo creía… hasta que aterrice en Cancun en su casa y lo vi muy agusto en su cocina, platicando y comiendo y diciéndome chistes.. de las experiencias mas bizarras que he tenido y hermosas.. ya que no podia creer lo bizarro que era estar a tan poca edad de mi carrera, en casa de Juan Gabriel… una leyenda viviente!!.. y hermosa porque aprendi tanto de el, de su musica y manera de componer y de su vida.. ver su casa, su estudio, la gente que lo rodeaba.. el mar que lo esperaba todas las noches, porque le encantaba darse su tiempo a solas en el mar.. su vida.. sus risas y sus chistes.. sus comentarios hacia mi voz y como me decía que le encantaba y le parecía tan espiritual.. me decía cosas hermosas de mi voz.. años después porfin se publicaron los discos duo.. el señor Juan Gabriel me mandaba derrepente emails muy chistosos, con chistes o enlaces de videos que le gustaban.. luego nos volvimos a ver cuando en el 2012 me invito al Auditorio Nacional a cantar nuestro dueto, aunque en realidad grabe 3 porque quería seguirme escuchando con sus canciones, tan bello el…. siempre fue un sueno estar alrededor de el.. siempre el tan risueno, lindo y divo, cuantas risas y momentos lindos! De hecho yo hice un cover de “Yo no naci para amar” en una de mis presentaciones hace años.. me duele el corazón.. me duele que ya no este, pero seguro ahora descanza en paz, y seguro sigue riéndose de todo lo BIEN que la paso en su vida, descanse en paz señor Alberto, usted siempre fue el Rey de las canciones mas bellas de nuestro Mexico.

My mom's favorite until Marc Anthony came along. Growing up it was Juan Gabriel, Roberto Carlos via mom and Gardel and the great tango singers/orchestras via dad. It's a huge loss to an entire generation of Latinos. RIP.

A review of the final show in LA, written before he passed:

http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/latin/7487867/juan-gabriel-ultimate-showman-los-angeles-forum-mexxico-es-todo-tour

I just love this detail. But I protest -- only four?

Gabriel walked the runway that led to the square stage where his band was spread out and also where four thrones were stationed for his majesty.

Finally for now, this is happening in forty minutes:

http://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2016/08/29/491821430/remembering-juan-gabriel-with-nprs-felix-contreras-adrian-florido-and-eyder-pera

This afternoon, Alt-Latino's Felix Contreras, Code Switch's Adrian Florido and NPR correspondent Eyder Peralta will sit down to talk about Gabriel's influence: his music, his culture and the complicated relationship he had with his fans over the course of his career. You can watch their conversation here on Facebook Live at 3pm EST this afternoon.

I know he's not that well-known outside latin countries but he was huge in Mexico. If there's mariachi/banda/ranchero playing in your party you will likely hear at least one song by him. There's hundreds of cover versions of his songs and it doesn't matter if you listen to metal or electronica or hip hop or rock everyone in mexico knows by heart at least one of his songs.

Don't know what artist to compare him to elsewhere but this is in Mexico the equivalent to have Elton John die in the UK or Dylan in the US.

Elton is the referent that keeps coming up.

cept that Americans also more likely to know Elton songs, not Dylan.

There's hundreds of cover versions of his songs and it doesn't matter if you listen to metal or electronica or hip hop or rock everyone in mexico knows by heart at least one of his songs

The first time I ever heard his name was in 1990/91, when I heard the cover of "Querida" that's at the end of Maldita Vecindad's album El Circo.

A guest on the BBC this morning was talking about which Juan Gabriel songs are usually played at Mexican weddings, and which ones at funerals, etc.

colleague went to his last show

the venue was apparently almost empty when the it started. i guess he is very punctual, so it started right at 8pm, but the venue didn't fill up til 9

heard some of his tunes here and there (over 15 years ago), only know the classics (amor eterno, querida, etc) and had a cursory knowledge of him

i've not read any info on his death, but he hadn't shown signs of any illness, right? it was all pretty sudden

xp

yes apparently a lot of people play amor eterno at funerals (my colleague has informed me of this)

Also from Gustavo, 20 of his best:

http://www.ocweekly.com/music/juan-gabriel-mexican-music-legend-passes-away-here-are-his-20-best-songs-7467166

Those two Gustavo Arellano pieces are great (esp highlighting the covers/reworkings), as is Carla's tribute. Hadn't seen the Kumbia Kings rework of "No Tengo Dinero" with the kids in the video, awww.

Going to be gauche and link Alfred's obit: https://humanizingthevacuum.wordpress.com/2016/08/28/juan-gabriel-rip/

Kinda curious if TSJ will run an equiv to their Bowie/Prince RIP roundups ...

Thanks!

As for TSJ, discussiono are happening.

Nice personal take here:

https://mividavegan.wordpress.com/2016/08/30/recuerdos-de-juan-gabriel/

Those are excellent posts. He did have a somewhat interesting life, the rags to riches story. Oddly enough a telenovela about him was aired this year and it ended the same day he died. Haven't watched it but my mother and my grandmother loved it - this probably means it's not that good but it's an option to learn about his life... We were just talking about the series an hour before his death hit the news. Here's the promo:

http://youtu.be/XKw793ApYb0

http://jonathanbogart.tumblr.com/post/149982946585/juan-gabriel-1950-2016