EDUARDO VIÑUELA
1. Los Brincos, “Flamenco”
From: Los Brincos. Novola, LP, 1964, 33⅓ rpm.
Fernando Arbex: drums, percussion, vocals; Antonio Morales: guitar, vocals; Juan Pardo: rhythm guitar, vocals; Manuel Gonzales: bass, vocals.
Los Brincos was the first, self titled album of the band. It is a paradigmatic example of Spanish beat: it includes twelve songs both in Spanish and English, and became a commercial success that converted Los Brincos in the most popular Spanish band in the mid-sixties. “Flamenco” was the first single of the album and it is a significant case of the “Spanishation” of beat music.
2. Carmen Sevilla, “Flamenca ye ye”
From: Flamenca ye ye / Typical Spanish. Philips 360 059 PF, 1965, 45 rpm.
Orchestrated by Augusto Algueró.
This is a song from a commercial aired on Televisión Española to promote Philips electrical appliances. It is an example of the use of beat music in advertising in order to reinforce the modern connotations of technology during the rise of consumer society in Spain. It is worth noting that side B is entitled “Typical Spanish”.
3. Los Bravos, “Just Holding On”
From: Medalla de oro. Columbia MO 485, 1968, 45 rpm.
This single was included in the soundtrack of Dame un poco de amor, one of the films starred by Los Bravos. The video is part of the television programme El irreal Madrid, directed by the Rumanian director Valerio Lazarov, and it is an example of the audiovisual language of Lazarov in his numerous music productions.
4. Maruja Garrido, “Es mi hombre”
From: Es Mi Hombre ‘Mon Homme’ / Esperare. EMI-Odeon J 006-20.600 M, 1970, 45 rpm.
This song is a cover of “It’s My Man”, popularized by Bessie Smith, a new version of performed in a Catalan rumba style. The music video, directed by Valerio Lazarov, shows several modern urban spaces of Barcelona where Maruja Garrido and Salvador Dalí perform the song. The video is an extract from the television programme A la española aired on Televisión Española in 1971; it included some other covers of famous songs, such as “America” (from West Side Story) and “In the Ghetto”, all of them translated into Spanish and adapted to the Spanish musical taste.
5. Marisol “Porompompero (versión 2001)”
From: 360º en torno a… Zafiro AMS 276, 1972, 33⅓ rpm.
This was one of the most popular songs in the sixties, even internationally. In this video Marisol performs a futuristic version pretending to sing the song in English and Chinese. The video is an extract from the television programme 360º en torno a… aired on Televisión Española in 1971. Each chapter of the programme was devoted to a famous Spanish singer that performed several songs of his/her repertoire; some of them, such as this “Porompompero (versión 2001)”, were significantly adapted.
6. Los Chichos, “Te vas me dejas”
From: Te vas, me dejas. Philips 60 29 250, 1974, 45 rpm.
This video is an extract of the television programme Señoras y señores, broadcasted every Saturday night on Televisión Española in 1974. Directed by Valerio Lazarov, it is an example of the prolific use of chroma-key technics in television performances during the 1970s.
7. ABBA, “Waterloo”
From: Waterloo. Polar Music POLS 252, 1974, 33⅓ rpm.
Another extract from the television programme Señoras y señores (Televisión Española, 1974). The dancers are the then very famous Ballet Zoom, that used to take part in all Lazarov’s productions during the 1970s. It is an example of a common practice in Televisión Española in those years, when international artists had to perform a playback in the studio if they wanted to appear in the programme. At that time music videos were rare in Spanish television.
8. Vulpes, “Me gusta ser una zorra”
From: Me gusta ser una zorra. Dos rombos DOS 002, 1983, 45 rpm.
Loles Vázquez “Anarkoma Zorrita:” guitar; Mamen “Evelyn Zorrita:” vocals; Begoña “Ruth Zorrita:” bass; Lupe Vázquez “Pigüy Zorrita:” drums.
The song is a cover of The Stooges’ “I Wanna Be Your Dog” by the female Basque punk band Vulpes. This music video, recorded and broadcasted by Televisión Española in 1983, cause outrage among right wing parties and media that considered its content inappropriate for the public television. The music programme that broadcasted the video (Caja de ritmos) was closed down several weeks later.
9. Massiel, “La, la, la”
From: La, la, la. Novola NOX-65, 1968, 45 rpm.
Massiel: vocals.
This is the video of Massiel’s performance at the Royal Albert Hall during the Eurovision Song Contest in 1968. It was the first time that Spain won that contest, and this turned Massiel into a kind of national heroine and catapulted her to fame. Franco’s regime used Massiel’s triumph as a sign of the relevance of Spain in the international context.
10. Karina, “En un mundo nuevo”
From: En un mundo nuevo. Hispavox H 696, 1971, 45 rpm.
Karina: voice.
The Eurovision Song Contest became a big event in Spain since Massiel’s triumph in 1968. Thus, being the national participant meant the beginning of a successful carrier. Televisión Española produced the programme Pasaporte a Dublín (1971), where singers competed to take part in the contest. Karina, the winner, promoted her song “En un mundo nuevo” in European televisions with this music video, in which Spanish tradition and modernity are explicitly represented.
11. Rosa López (Operación triunfo), “Europe’s Living a Celebration”
From: Europe’s Living a Celebration. BMG 74321 939682, 2002, compact disc.
Rosa López: voice.
Thirty years after Pasaporte a Dublin (1971) Televisión Española used the same structure and formula for a new programme, Operación triunfo, a talent show where several singers competed to become the Spanish participant in the Eurovision Song Contest. This is the video of Rosa’s song, the winner who performed in Eurovision 2002 accompanied by some of the finalists of Operación triunfo.
12. Beth, “Dime”
From: Dime. Vale Music VLCDSG 1330-5, 2003, compact disc.
Beth: voice.
The second edition of Operación triunfo (2003) meant another success for Televisión Española. Beth was the winner which therefore participated in the Eurovision Song Contest with the song “Dime.” In the music video appear several famous Gaudí buildings that served to promote Barcelona as a modern and touristic place only a few months before the beginning of the Universal Forum of Cultures (2004).