Guadalajara (song)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Guadalajara" is a well-known mariachi song written and composed by Pepe Guízar in 1937.[1][2] Guízar wrote the song in honor of his hometown, the city of the same name and state capital of the Mexican state of Jalisco.
The song was first popularized by Lucha Reyes, a Mexican singer who was born in Guadalajara and is often regarded as the "mother of ranchera music".[2]
In the 1940s, Mexican singer Irma Vila recorded the song and sang it in the musical film Canta y no llores... (1949).[3] Her rendition was later remastered and released in the compilation album Irma Vila, La Reina del Falsete: Todos sus éxitos.
In 1950, Mexican singer Flor Silvestre recorded the song for Columbia Records; her version also became a success and was included in several compilation albums, including Canciones mexicanas, vol. 1,[4] Fandango ranchero, and Flor Silvestre canta sus éxitos (1964).
There have been many notable non-Mexican interpreters of this song. Demetrio González, a Spanish-born singer of Mexican music, performed the song in the film Los cinco halcones (1962).[5][6] One of the most popular interpretations outside of Mexico was that of Elvis Presley in the final scene of the film Fun in Acapulco (1963).[7] Other popular renditions were performed by Nat King Cole[8] on his album More Cole Español (1962),[9], Percy Faith on Viva the Music of Mexico (1958),[10], Desi Arnaz on The Best of Desi Arnaz: The Mambo King, and Spanish-American bandleader Xavier Cugat. Cugat recorded countless albums and appeared in numerous motion pictures in the 1930s and 1940s. He both recorded and performed "Guadalajara" in several movies with his lead singer Lina Romay, the most notable being Week-End at the Waldorf, released in 1945.
Among other notable Mexican interpreters are Rafael Jorge Negrete,[11] Esquivel and His Orchestra and Vicente Fernández.
