Just The Greatest Band From East L.A.

Sounds Good!

I love the band Los Lobos. Love them. The two times I’ve been to mainland America in the last decade I’ve searched and searched in hope of a Los Lobos gig somewhere within a 5-10 hour drive of where I’ve been staying. But no luck. And so I’ve probably missed my chance to ever see them. One of the great live bands. I know this from the footage, the repertoire and the couple of times I’ve had someone tell me that they have seen Los Lobos. I’ve then hung from every single word that follows.

Yesterday I was reviewing a couple of albums on RNZ – something I do once a month or so. One of the albums was the latest from Los Lobos, a covers record, a tribute to the city of Los Angeles. Their home. Their base. I’ve already written a review of the new album too. It was released last week – and I was up early in the morning to celebrate its arrival. Party of one. Party for one. I cranked that album at 5am. And played it on a loop until it was time to leave the house at around 8 o’clock. It’s been back on, most days since. A return to form after a couple of slightly lesser records.

When I was talking on the radio about Los Lobos I took the opportunity to point out that the band’s contribution to the movie La Bamba – including their famous cover of the title song – was likely a millstone of sorts. Good form of the band to just keep treating it like a milestone, to dutifully trot out the cover at most shows.

A friend of mine was gobsmacked when I mentioned a killer new Los Lobos album about a decade ago. He was incredulous. “That band from La Bamba? I thought they were a novelty act…”

Let’s just say, after my three-hour presentation – with full PowerPoint and a break for mini sandwiches – he thought differently…

Los Lobos (“The Wolves”) formed in 1973. Since then there’s never been a significant break-up, no need for a reunion – no line-up change either. Well, a couple of members slipped out and a couple new ones slid into place, but it’s been basically the same band for over 40 years. Remarkable.

And what a range of music. Tex-Mex, rock’n’roll, country, folk, western swing, bar-room blues – and that’s sometimes all in the same song, often across any of the albums. They are masters at covering tunes – from traditional Latina music to the staples from Disney movies, from garage band jams to classic rock songs and all points between. Absolute masters.

And yet I still reckon not enough people know about Los Lobos and the band’s enduring legacy, their amazing attitude – play music, serve the songs, plenty of great musicianship but no showing off.

I’ve loved this band since I was a kid.

And as an adult, at times it’s been a near-obsession. Collecting as many of the band’s records as I can find. Still desperate to find a copy of Kiko on vinyl. Their best? Well, probably. Some days it feels like not just their best record but the very best set of songs by anyone. Such a world, such a mood. And though Kiko has so far evaded me, I did get to buy a copy of their debut – Los Lobos del Este de Los Angeles or Just Another Band from East L.A. from a record store in Los Angeles. I had just minutes to spend and it was the first thing I looked for. It felt like discovering presents at the foot of the bed on Christmas Day all over again.

When I was researching for a book I wrote last decade, called On Song – I spoke with the musician and producer Mitchell Froom. He had produced the first few Crowded House albums. And that’s why I was talking to him. He’s now back in the fold, even performing on stage as part of the new version of the band. When I spoke to him back then he was sure no one would care. So he was happy to chat about a few other things of interest to me. He had been married to Suzanne Vega and helped her to realise two of her very best records. He had produced Dave Dobbyn and Tim Finn and worked with Randy Newman, Bonnie Raitt, Maria McKee, Marshall Crenshaw, Roy Orbison and a few other absolute legends. He was the producer for Los Lobos’ Kiko album. And he had been a member of Lobos-offshoot, the side-project Latin Playboys. He told me that was the greatest experience he’d had playing music.

I had one really dumb – but fair – question. Why?

He told me that the sole reason for it being the greatest musical experience of his life was because he got to share the stage with David Hidalgo.

Shortly after this phone call I wrote about Hidalgo for my series The Best Guitarist In The World.

Hidalgo is a master musician. He took a side-job in recent years on the road playing fiddle for Bob Dylan. In the 1980s Los Lobos decided they needed an accordion player. That’s become quite a crucial part of their sound. So Hidalgo picked up the instrument on the spot, learned from scratch. Added it to his repertoire.

How like Los Lobos to just secretly contain one of the world’s greatest guitarists. How like him to sometimes spend more time on stage with a squeezebox or any other instrument than the six-string that he can really make sing.

So today I celebrate Los Lobos – by jamming your inbox full of clips of the band and not only that a giant playlist below. My Los Lobos Sampler contains 70 songs! All this and I haven’t included any tracks from one of the band’s best records, Tin Can Trust. (It’s not on Spotify).

That means there’s even more Los Lobos for you out there. More to discover. More to find. More to hear.

I truly believe they’re one of the best and most unique bands of the last (nearly) 50 years. Of course I’ve only been listening to them for 35 years. But ever since I first heard them, I was sold on their mercurial sound.

Now, if you’re not up for any more Los Lobos today. I of course have you covered with the 24th edition of A Little Something For The Weekend, which is just 20 tracks in total. So please enjoy that instead (or as well).