Beto Villa – Father Of Orquesta Tejana – Vol 1

This collection brings you some of the first recordings by Beto Villa's Orchestra produced for the south Texas IDEAL label between 1948 and 1954 by Armando Marroquin. All selections are instrumentals featuring Beto Villa's alto saxophone and represent the wide variety of then popular dances.
In choosing the selections we have tried to emphasize Mr. Villa's beautiful alto sax work on waltzes and polkas but also included other regional and Latin dances which were gaining popularity in the 1950s. The one huapango is performed in the old Tamaulipas tradition with two clarinets taking the lead.

Track Listing:
1. Southern Select - 2:57   2. Salvador - 3:00   3. Tequila Es Mala Yerba - 2:30   4. Rosita - 2:15   5. Rio Grande - 2:36   6. Morir Soñando - 3:12   7. La Picona - 2:44   8. Angelina - 2:51   9. El Sapo - 2:52  10. Rosalia - 2:57   11. Rancho Grande - 3:03   12. Nereidas - 3:13   13. Maria Elena - 3:03   14. San Buena Ventura - 2:22   15. El Suby - 2:32

Reviews:

1. Sing Out! - Gary von Tersch 
“Tejano music pioneer and alto sax virtuoso Beto Villa was the earliest nationally successful Latino bandleader with his unique blend of American swing-era jazz instrumentation and traditional, cantina-oriented Mexican ranchera music that, over the years, had been cleverly updated and popularized by various conjunto, mariachi and norteño combos.”