Spain has always been a very musical country and many families still have the tradition of music making in the home. The rural nature of the country probably helped as it meant that the dreaded TV did not get a hold on people’s time and imagination so soon.
The pleasant climate also helps by making outdoor activities such as playing and listening to music in the street very pleasurable (even possible perhaps)!
The ferias which are held in every town and village, also keep older style musical traditions up with dance bands and show bands playing styles from the forties to the present day.
Sevillanas and Pasodobles are the order of the day in the Casetas at the ferias with couples (mixed and ladies only, especially for the Sevillanas) filling the dance floors all-night.
There are a myriad styles of traditional Spanish music ranging from folk music through to flamenco, Copla and Pasodoble . As the Spanish speaking world is so large the more Latin and South American styles of cumbia, maraiachi and salsa. etc are also very popular.
However, whatever the style, it’s the artists that count and some Copla stars have a huge following. Rocio Jurado, who died last month, caused national mourning and page after page of tributes in the press, and not just in the “prensa rosa” (gossip papers)!
Her big rival was, and still is, “La Reina de la Copla” Isabel Pantoja. La Pantoja is also a regular in the gossip papers- more for her association with Julian Muñoz, the ex Mayor of Marbella now under police investigation, than for her music!
Other stalwarts of the Copla who are played regularly on the radio include Raphael and of course, Juanito Valderrama, who died in 2004 but whose shoes are now filled admirably by his son to the delight of many women “of a certain age”. Coplas are songs of romance and passion as are the songs of, Julio Iglesias, the original heartthrob himself.
An interesting fact, that not many people know (got that in!), is that he only turned to singing after giving up a promising career at Real Madrid football club following injury! Julio’s son Enrique is also a heartthrob singer, but with a slightly younger generation of ladies!
Lola Flores , “La Faraona” (the Egyptian Queen- because of her looks and make-up) still holds the hearts of millions of Spanish men and women. With a cinema and singing career that spanned decades she was the symbol of the glamorous side of gypsy flamenco.
She died in 1995, again amidst much national grief, but still has record sales world wide. Her family has also followed in her footsteps and her two daughters, Rosario and Lola, are very successful.
Other flamenco classic stars still popular include Los Chichos and Los Chunguitos
Summer music is always very important in Spain and Georgie Dann “El rey del verano” had massive hits with “Chiringuito and Barbacoa (Beachbar and Barbecue).
He perhaps was responsible for the origins of the increasingly annoying and overplayed Spanish summer songs-think of La Bomba by King Africa and you will know what I mean!
