187- Identity: the
building blocks of
2. Literature
and philosophy
3. Art and
architecture
4. Performing
arts
5. Cinema
and fashion
6. Media and
communications
7. Food and drink 8. Living culture:
the details of
Theye-yégeneration:
pop princesses and dissenting voices
Ever tried launching a libertarian revolution of sex,
drugs and rock n’ roll with a man like Franco looking
over your shoulder? It’s not easy. So the Spanish were
understandably slow out of the blocks in the swinging
Sixties. Plenty of acts flowered, but they were a
sanitised, largely derivative bunch, part of amúsica ye-
yéscene inspired by the Frenchyé-yébands,
themselves led on by British and American beat groups.
Los Brincos were the big
success within Spain, a Beatle-
esque four piece that sang in
a mix of Spanish and English.
Los Bravos found fame further
afield with English lyrics,
particularly onBlack is Black(1966), a global hit
(it was actually written by a couple of Brits, and
sung by the band’s German frontman). In fairness,
mostmúsica ye-yéacts were identifiably Spanish.
The Castilian vocals clearly helped, but elements
of that Latin sound,flamencoparticularly, also
gave their work a distinct Spanish flavour.
Los Brincos even released a song calledFlamenco(1964), which made it to
the top of the Spanish charts.Young Spaniards also developed a love for the solo female pop voice in the
1960s. Concha Velasco, with the massive hitLa ChicaYe-Yé(1965) and
Karina were the originalye-yégirls, while Marisol and Ana Belén both glided
effortlessly from acting to pop in the late 60s, the former with chipper
tunes likeCorazón Contento(1968). Beyond the saccharine pop, a protest
movement was stirring, thecanción protestaas it was known.Their roots
lay in folk, in regionalism, often expressed in a regional tongue.They were
a group of singer-songwriters, artists like Paco Ibáñez, Joan Manuel Serrat
and Patxi Andión, whose careers lapped over into the 1970s and, in some
instances, continue today.Sounds of the summer
Each Spanish summer
turns up a catchy but
nauseating tune to
storm the charts.
Aserejé(orThe Ketchup
Song) (2002) by Las
Ketchup has been the
most famous of recent
years, and the three-
piece girl group behind
the bizarre mix of pop,
flamencoand
condiments have gone
on to sell millions of
records. Los del Rio’sLa
Macarena(1995) was
another massive
summer hit.4.1.4 Homegrown talent: the modern music scene