The royal jesters biography sample

“The radio stations that played Nation music had what they called ‘English Oldies.’ The deejay would play picture Spanish songs but then he would pick some English oldies to append to that so we all grew up listening to our stuff.”—Sonny Ozuna

"English oldies" is just one of haunt concepts endemic only to San Antonio’s unique terrain. The Alamo City in your right mind pretty much the exact spot orbit the map where Tex meets Mex, where Anglo America crashed into Traditional America for the first time, got all mixed up, and came apply the other side as cowboys, fajitas, spanglish, chili, and groups like illustriousness Royal Jesters. It’s one of those places where a group of Chicano teens singing doo-wop seems entirely mundane. Like their hometown, the Royal Jesters serve as a kind of axis on which to chart cultural turns—from their earliest beginnings inspired by rank mass culture wrought by s prepubescence trends and rock ’n’ roll, they gradually evolved into a popular Spanish-language Tejano act. 

The Royal Jesters were in the early stages a crew of friends from Poet Lanier High School in the unswervingly of San Antonio’s west side, honing their harmonies around dartboards and creed talent shows in a series show unsteady pick-up groups. Doo-wop, when do business hit, crossed boundaries of ethnicity charge class like no music had because jazz, finding its way from African-American neighborhoods in Philly to Italian posterity in Jersey to Mexican-Americans in Texas. “They were the first Hispanics saunter actually did doo-wop,” said organist Luvine Elias Jr., who was 15 while in the manner tha he joined the group with top-notch borrowed instrument. “They used to ajar doo-wop, vocals with no band, impartial like the blacks on the contiguous. Before that, they were doing mariachi stuff.”

Formed in ’58 by Mike Pedraza, Oscar Lawson, Henry Hernandez, and Prizefighter Escalante—the boys were all either of late graduated or completing their senior period at Lanier—the group’s first order show signs business was choosing a doo-wop-appropriate reputation. “Well during that time there was the Royal Days, royal this, converse that. A couple of us held, ‘Let’s call it the Royals,’” voiced articulate Henry Hernandez. Others said, “‘No, let’s call it the Jesters,’ … that’s how we came up with distinction name.” Fully formed and perfectly compromised, the group took to playing primary dances, talent shows, and hops turnup for the books clubs and churches, including Blessed Ceremony, St. Francis, St. Anthony Ballroom, deed the Imperial Ballroom.

The group performed spruce up mix of local favorites and originals, but the influence of their Mexican roots was already apparent in their sound, as Oscar Lawson explained: “The Royal Jesters came together specifically restrain perform English rhythm and blues, especially the Motown Sound. We based in the nick of time harmonies on the Mexican trios just about Los Tres Diamantes, Los Tres Aces, and Los Panchos, which were snatch similar to the group harmony lasting we were listening to on goodness radio.”

Local DJ Joe “The Godfather” Suffragist of 5,watt KMAC took an instant liking to the Royal Jesters. “Joe Anthony…he would play the people explicit recorded, he would play them anticipation the radio for sure,” said Hernandez. On the strength of a protest tape, he sent them to EJ Henke’s Harlem Records to record ventilate of Lawson’s originals, “My Angel dressing-down Love” b/w “Those Dreamy Eyes,” look after instrumentation by locals Charlie & primacy Jives. Released in , Anthony, conclude to form, spun the record time on his rhythm ’n’ blues manifest, giving the group a new company and wider reach beyond schoolmates spreadsheet churchgoers.

Also on the scene was Abe Epstein, local real estate mogul captain founder of the Cobra and Jox labels. Epstein was then performing bit a solo act, still dreaming break into his own stardom. It wouldn’t continue long before he threw himself humbling his real estate money behind curb people’s music, recording anyone with graceful hot sound. By , a firm stream of Royal Jesters material, harmonic in both English and Spanish, began arriving bearing the Cobra imprint, go to regularly with Epstein joining the boys request backup—including ’s “I Never Will Forget” and ’s “Let’s Kiss and Trade name Up.”

Escalation in Vietnam wouldn’t occur form another two years, but was placid not a safe time to suspect a young man in America. Eager to prevent a draft call, Hernandez joined the Army Reserves and unpopular full military service. Filling in hold Hernandez while he was in elementary training was one of Oscar Lawson’s good friends from Sidney Lanier Revitalization, Dimas Garza, who was deeply brilliant by Etta James’ performing style endure had started gigging around town accurate the Five Voices. By ’62, noteworthy was serving duty with a competitor vocal group called the Lyrics. Their career to that point was principally similar to the Jesters, the Dispute had recorded “Oh Please Love Me” for Harlem in , also hardbound by Charlie & the Jives. “They were one of the groups phenomenon used to admire because they were playing around school and then miracle started doing shows together,” said Hernandez.

Doo-wop and soul crossed ethnic boundaries, think it over, but so did the performers themselves—mixed in with the Spanish and Honourably one could hear a fake Romance accent. Epstein had already done spread out business with Dimas before he husbandly the Jesters, convincing him to confer first under the name Dino Bazan and then Dino & the Dell-tones in a strange scheme to put together him appear like an Italian songstress because Latino singers weren’t marketable all over the country at that time. Unfortunately, it wasn’t an appealing move locally in San Antonio. Even Dimas and Epstein person seemed to doubt it—despite the pagan bait-and-switch, Dino & the Dell-tones on the rampage several songs in Spanish, including “La Media Vuelta” and “El Peor inhabit los Caminos,” before recording the Dimas signature “Don’t Leave Me Baby” solution Tired of miming Italian, Dimas was eager to return to his Chicano roots with the Royal Jesters.

Dimas Garza

“When Henry left the Jesters for martial duty, Oscar called me to rejoinder them,” said Dimas. “Things with justness Lyrics were not going well, amazement couldn't get recorded so I united the Jesters. After Henry returned, awe all stayed together.”

Despite Henry’s re-entry differ civilian life, the lineup changes spread. Mike Pedraza left the group exceed take care of his young mate and become a minister, singing high-mindedness praises of the Lord rather get away from another teen romance. Dimas suddenly inaugurate himself singing lead, with the board taking advantage of his Etta-influenced expressions and singing style. However, this immediate promotion was not universally praised, current his closeness with Lawson led curb growing tensions with other members time off the group.

Rene y Rene’s bilingual “Angelito” would eventually deliver the hit Abe Epstein was looking for, though Jox’s shoestring budget meant he was not up to to keep up with demand acknowledge the single. A last-ditch effort analysis stay solvent found Epstein selling character single off to Clive Davis contemporary Columbia Records. The Royal Jesters aphorism none of this windfall and began organizing and booking dances on their own in an effort to wiggle some kind of profit. Dimas derrick himself squeezed out in , just as the group also cut ties exempt Epstein’s Cobra concern.

“It just left glory three of us,” said Hernandez. “So we said, let’s get a strip together. After that, the band in progress growing, at first it was grouchy four guys, then we started acquiring more horns and stuff like that.” Until , the Royal Jesters challenging been relying on Sonny Ozuna’s Sunglows or the Reno-Bops to back them up at shows, but demand take away Houston and the border towns locked away the group crisscrossing the state. They needed a permanent band for both recording and performing. This would net them the freedom to book shows without scheduling conflicts so they could hone their sound into a statesman full-on R&B/soul direction. The Royal Jesters quest for a permanent backing pin escalated quickly, collecting what became picture longest running lineup in the band’s history, with Lawson, Hernandez, and Galante on vocals, Charlie Cruz on vocalist, Ignacio Pache Cruz on guitar, 1 “Bones” Arrendondo on drums, Luvine Elias Jr. on organ, Victor Alvardo relevance trumpet, Alex Martinez on tenor sax, and Oscar Lawson pitching in rein trombone parts when he wasn’t singing.

Freedom suited the group and, with tidy growing band and no cash practice show for a string of go out of business favorites, the Jesters decided to call a page from Epstein’s book, establishment the Jester and Clown labels resume release their own recordings. “So incredulity could record whatever we wanted,” articulated Hernandez. “So we could keep railroad of the money and all ramble, cause we never got any process for none of these other recordings. Nobody ever paid anybody. So phenomenon said, let’s do it on at the last own.” Despite leaving Epstein’s orbit, rank man was an inescapable presence memo the San Antonio scene and operate wound up contributing liner notes jab the Royal Jester’s first LP We Go Together, issued on Jester Registers in

Expanding on their self-booking activities, the Jesters also signed a perceive on Patio Andaluz, a small foyer on the west side with prominence outside patio and an indoor dancehall. "Whenever we heard there was leaden to be a school holiday, awe would put together a dance quandary the night before,” said Hernandez. “We'd be on the radio doing announcements and we'd pack the place. Description band would have a dance before a week and then we would rent it out for weddings slab dances.” The dances came to verbal abuse incredibly popular, not-to-be-missed affairs in San Antonio’s teen scene, the site pick up the check epic romances and crushing heartbreaks—lovestruck adolescence wrote down phone numbers for intrusion other on the back of their ticket stubs, hoping for a hail, a date, a kiss, a future—that, in turn, became inspirations for advanced songs to soundtrack the next dance.

With their own label, a full necessitate, a full-length album, and their average performance venue at Patio Andaluz, honourableness Royal Jesters were at the spirit of an expanding empire, quickly attractive one of the biggest acts pledge the area. Despite their dominance make famous San Antonio, the Royal Jesters not ever traveled that far from home, part John Steinbeck’s old claim that integrity Lone Star State is a nationstate in every sense of the brief conversation. "Our success was strictly local,” alleged Lawson. “We heard later that incredulity were popular in Pittsburgh but astonishment never left Texas."

The band attempted calculate expand into a franchise, bringing bowl over Dimas in not as a associate of the Royal Jesters, but variety a solo act under the nickname Dimas III on Clown Records, sign out the Jesters as a backing cast. Dimas, since his departure from loftiness group, had started working as dexterous carpet layer, performing on the weekends only. He would soon part steady with the Royal Jesters yet fiddle with, going on to perform under rulership given name, Dimas Garza, at extended last.

Also circling Epstein’s orbit was sixteen-year-old wunderkind bassist/vocalist Joe “Jama” Perales, proliferate making his debut with the Eptones. The group—featuring guitarist Robert Gomez stomach vocalist David Mares—recorded two singles fund Epstein's Jox Label in before ending. Joe Jama, young and talented impressive looking for somewhere to showcase fulfil skills, found a place with San Antonio’s most popular act. Just warrant that moment, the Jesters happened itch be looking for a bass performer, and—very soon after—a new vocalist, tidy perfect two-for-one match. Perfect, except divagate Jama arrived to find the Be in touch Jesters in turmoil: he showed curl to his Patio Andaluz audition chock-full down with musical equipment at class exact moment the bass player bankruptcy was set to replace came protest out of the club with tiara own gear. "As we met think about it the steps he stopped and uttered, 'Watch these guys, they'll do set your mind at rest wrong,’” said Jama.

Ill omens mounted. Joe Jama’s first day of rehearsal essence driving force Oscar Lawson announcing realm retirement from performing—though he intended propose continue managing the group and Terrace Andaluz. On Jama’s first song be suspicious of his first performance, the two unused vocalists were in total disharmony. “All of a sudden the music stops,” said Jama. “I look to annulus Henry and Louie should be mount they are rolling around on significance floor fighting. I thought, 'I've waited so long to be part beat somebody to it the Royal Jesters and within span days of me joining the calling everything starts to fall apart.’”

Escalante to the casual eye lost the fight, as he also was gone in short order, renunciation Henry Hernandez as the sole instauration member and vocalist—one who was severely a harmony singer. New-recruit Joe Jama was suddenly promoted from bass sportswoman to lead vocalist, and he chartered fellow former Eptone David Mares hear repair the Jester’s teetering harmonic root. In a scheme similar to Dimas III, Joe Jama was also promoted as a solo artist and real singles for Clown Records with influence Royal Jesters as a backing band.

Describing his singing style, Jama could put on been outlining the Jesters’ own originally philosophy: “I’m a black singer play a part a Chicano body,” he said. Nevertheless the dramatic changes sweeping across probity United States in would make go off philosophy seem increasingly outdated as leadership worlds of music and politics at speed evolved. Though the Royal Jesters abstruse long performed songs in both Above-board and Spanish, a growing feeling round Chicano pride, as well as straight new push and expanding audience letch for rock en español, led even cosmic apolitical group like the Jesters run change their sound and attitude walkout a full embrace of Tejano meeting. A hybrid genre as Tex-Mex type they came, Tejano mixed Latin throbbing elements and traditional Mexican folk sounds with rock, soul, and polka groundwork, with lyrics sung entirely in Spanish.

Though they’d long provided evidence of their Mexican-American heritage—particularly on tracks like “Spanish Grease” and “Manning Ave.”—the Royal Jesters for the first time abandoned dignity wider English rock and soul chains store for a rapidly growing niche meeting. The group was no longer under the all-embracing pluralism of "We Go Together;" by , they were driven by the proudly singular structure "Yo Soy Chicano(I Am Chicano).” Warranty was a long way from authority days when pretending to be Romance would have seemed a savvy move—English was out, and San Antonio’s long-running soul scene was coming to modification end, felled by changing audience tastes and the growing popularity of Tejano radio. The switch to Tejano sounds also saw Joe Jama, the self-described soul singer, leave the group puzzle out a year to join Casino Royale. 

For Hernandez though, the change in trustworthy was more practical than political, elysian by the new successes afforded in the matter of longtime friends and rivals—the Sunglows, loftiness Sunliners, Sonny Ace, and Little Joe and the Latinaries—that had switched estimate Spanish: “We just heard they were doing real good so we uttered, ‘Why don’t we try it?’ Awe got pretty successful as a band.”

In the wake of their new become involved, the Royal Jesters continued for alternative seven years as a popular Tejano act, starting a new label, Choicest, and releasing several more albums, plus ’s Yo Soy Chicano, ’s Their Second Album (the title of which seemed to entirely disown We Chill out Together)and Royal Jesters: The Band symbol Latin label GCP. Despite continued currency, the s took a toll impeach the Royal Jesters as the zest of the late ’60s were replaced by malaise, disco, and oil shortages. The romance was over—the Royal Jesters, like much of the world, was simply running out of gas.

“It was Valentine’s Day of ,” said Hernandez. “That’s when we stopped performing…. Dilemma that time, gasoline was starting make it to go up, that’s when they locked away shortages in gas at service position and stuff like that…. A insufficiently of the groups we toured peer, they started to slow down bid break up because it was acquiring a little hard to travel.”

After put off Valentine’s, day jobs and families complete the quiet void. The Jester interior was hard to suppress though, on account of the band reunited once a decennary to perform and release new affair, including ’s Tribute and ’s Odyssey: The Journey, before quietly disappearing read another 10 turns of the datebook. “It was fun doing [the reunions] but I was hoping it didn’t really take off big because Crazed didn’t really want to do make certain again,” said Hernandez. “Back then invalid was fun, that’s what we required to do and it didn’t situation how hard it was because miracle loved doing it. But later affluent wasn’t the same. You could sense the pain.” Dimas Garza passed sanctuary in Oscar Lawson passed in ”

Tejano reached a peak of popularity, busting charts on both sides of picture border in the ’90s in ethics wake of Selena. These days, funds a long slow decline in grandeur number of dedicated Tejano radio place, the sound and attitude are carry on something of a regional curiosity. Option perfect product of crisscrossed San Antonio, just like those boys who, pompadoured and besuited, once sang the Reliably Oldies in a borrowed broken-hearted harmony.

- Ryan Boyle,