Louie Ortega
| Texas Tornados | |
|---|---|
| Genres | Tejano, country rock |
| Years active | 1989-current |
| Labels | Bismeaux |
| Associated acts | Sir Douglas Quintet, Los Super Seven |
| Website | http://www.thetexastornados.com |
| Members |
Augie Meyers Flaco Jiménez Shawn Sahm Louie Ortega Ernie Durawa Speedy Sparks |
| Past members |
Freddy Fender (deceased) Doug Sahm (deceased) |
Texas Tornados is a Tejano band. Its music is a fusion of rock, country and various Mexican styles.
The initial combination of musicians of the Texas Tornados happened almost by chance at a concert performance of mutual acquaintances. After Freddy Fender, Flaco Jiménez, Augie Meyers, and Doug Sahm performed in front of a San Francisco audience, they all knew the genuine bond they felt in their music could probably be taken to another level. After they initially performed as the Tex-Mex Revue, they took the title Texas Tornados, after Sahm's song "Texas Tornado", from the album of the same name.
Another account of the group's birth says they formed when record company executives looking to cash in on regional music sales approached Sahm and Meyers around 1990, and they brought in longtime friends and collaborators Fender and Jiménez. Sahm had released albums under the name Texas Tornados as early as the 1970s, some featuring Fender or Meyers. Jiménez and Meyers played on Sahm's Atlantic Records debut in 1971. As Fender once said, "You've heard of New Kids on the Block? We're the Old Guys in the Street."
Individually, this quartet has had major success:
The band's 1990 debut was recorded in both English and Spanish versions. The Texas Tornados were asked to perform all over the world, such as at the presidential inauguration of Bill Clinton and the Montreux Jazz Festival, and made regular appearances at Farm Aid and the Houston Livestock and Rodeo Show. They won a Grammy award in 1990 for Best Mexican/American Performance. Their 1996 single "A Little Bit Is Better Than Nada" accompanied the opening credits of the golf movie Tin Cup, which was released the same year, and is included in the official soundtrack.
Among their other albums is Live From the Limo, the last album to be recorded with the original lineup, as Sahm died in 1999, the year of its release. Fender, who had health problems in later years, died in 2006. Their 2005 Live from Austin album was a recording of a 1990 performance on the TV series Austin City Limits.
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Wikipedia