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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Flaco Jiménez has long shone as one of the brightest |
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stars in the Texas music firmament; and |
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WHEREAS, Born in San Antonio in 1939 as Leonardo Jiménez, the |
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acclaimed Tejano accordionist, vocalist, and songwriter grew up in |
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a musical family; he began playing the bajo sexto at the age of |
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seven and often took the stage with his father, conjunto |
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trailblazer Santiago Jiménez Sr.; gravitating to the accordion, he |
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formed a band, Los Caporales, when he was 15; the group quickly won |
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a following with its recordings on a local label as well as weekly |
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appearances on a television variety show; his joyous, expressive |
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style, incorporating elements and influences from zydeco, blues, |
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rock and roll, and country, had made him a Texas legend by the early |
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1960s; and |
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WHEREAS, Mr. Jiménez reached an even wider audience through |
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collaborations with Doug Sahm and Ry Cooder, leading to national |
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distribution for his own records; in 1988, his accordion skills |
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helped propel Dwight Yoakam's duet with Buck Owens, "Streets of |
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Bakersfield," to the top of the country chart; he went on to tour |
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with Mr. Yoakam and join forces with Mr. Sahm in a supergroup, the |
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Texas Tornados; after being signed to a major-label solo deal, |
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Mr. Jiménez released albums with guest turns by the likes of Linda |
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Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris, Los Lobos, and Mavericks frontman Raul |
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Malo, and he played on the 1994 Rolling Stones album Voodoo Lounge; |
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the following year, the Mavericks scored a massive country hit, |
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"All You Ever Do Is Bring Me Down," fueled by Mr. Jiménez on |
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accordion; in 1998, he teamed up with Joe Ely and members of Los |
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Lobos in the aptly named Los Super Seven; and |
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WHEREAS, Over the course of a remarkable career spanning |
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eight decades, Mr. Jiménez has garnered worldwide fame and myriad |
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accolades, among them five Grammy Awards, a Grammy Lifetime |
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Achievement Award, and a National Endowment for the Arts National |
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Heritage Fellowship; he was named a Texas State Musician, and he has |
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been inducted into the National Hispanic Hall of Fame and the New |
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York City International Latin Music Hall of Fame; and |
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WHEREAS, Popularizing Tex-Mex and conjunto music globally |
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while developing his own eclectic sound, Flaco Jiménez has |
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delighted countless fans and influenced innumerable other artists |
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in the Lone Star State and beyond; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 89th Texas |
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Legislature hereby honor Leonardo "Flaco" Jiménez for his |
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exceptional contributions to Texas music and extend to him sincere |
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best wishes for continued happiness; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for Mr. Jiménez as an expression of high regard by the |
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Texas House of Representatives. |