Brown-eyed soul
Encyclopedia
Brown-eyed soul is a subgenre of soul music
or rhythm and blues
created in the United States
mainly by Latino in Southern California
during the 1960s, continuing through to the early 1980s. The genre of soul music occasionally draws from Latin
, and often contains rock music
influences. Brown-eyed soul is a term used to describe rhythm and blues
and soul music performed by Latin-Americans, as opposed to the term blue-eyed soul
, which refers to soul music performed by non-hispanic white artists.
soul. Early brown-eyed soul artists owed little to traditional Latin and rarely performed in Spanish
.
Ritchie Valens
, one of the original pioneers of brown-eyed soul music, also became one of the first brown-eyed soul artists to bring traditional Latin music and rock and roll influences into the genre. Latino groups on the East and West Coast also drew from the funk
-influenced Philadelphia soul, or "Philly" soul. The West Coast Latin rock
scene continued to influence brown-eyed soul artists as well.
Inspired by Ritchie Valens, 1960s and 1970s bands such as Cannibal & the Headhunters
("Land of a Thousand Dances
") and Thee Midniters
played brown-eyed R&B music with a rebellious rock and roll
edge. Many of these artists drew from the frat rock and garage rock
scenes. However, the large Hispanic population on the West Coast began gradually moving away from energetic R&B to romantic soul, and the results were "some of the sweetest soul music heard during the late '60s and '70s." Despite the movement to smoother soul, War
, Malo
, El Chicano
, and other brown-eyed soul bands of the 1970s continued to create soul more influenced by funk, rock, and Latin folk music. Funk-influenced brown-eyed soul anthems continued to breach the charts during the mid-1970s (e.g. Bloodstone's "Natural High"), but the genre began to waver during the 1980s.
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
or rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
created in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
mainly by Latino in Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
during the 1960s, continuing through to the early 1980s. The genre of soul music occasionally draws from Latin
Latin American music
Latin American music, found within Central and South America, is a series of musical styles and genres that mixes influences from Spanish, African and indigenous sources, that has recently become very famous in the US.-Argentina:...
, and often contains rock music
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
influences. Brown-eyed soul is a term used to describe rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
and soul music performed by Latin-Americans, as opposed to the term blue-eyed soul
Blue-eyed soul
Blue-eyed soul is a media term that was used to describe rhythm and blues and soul music performed by white artists, with a strong pop music influence. The term was first used in the mid-1960s to describe white artists who performed soul and R&B that was similar to the music of the Motown and...
, which refers to soul music performed by non-hispanic white artists.
History
Brown-eyed soul emerged from the 1950s simultaneously on the East Coast United States, in the Hispanic communities, and on the West Coast, in the much larger Hispanic communities. Chicago soul and Motown hits were crowd favorites at dances and clubs during the late 1950s and early 1960s. Latino artists began to draw inspiration from the Motown hits, and as a result, brown-eyed soul began sounding very similar to African AmericanAfrican American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
soul. Early brown-eyed soul artists owed little to traditional Latin and rarely performed in Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
.
Ritchie Valens
Ritchie Valens
Ritchie Valens was a Mexican-American singer, songwriter and guitarist....
, one of the original pioneers of brown-eyed soul music, also became one of the first brown-eyed soul artists to bring traditional Latin music and rock and roll influences into the genre. Latino groups on the East and West Coast also drew from the funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
-influenced Philadelphia soul, or "Philly" soul. The West Coast Latin rock
Chicano rock
Chicano rock is rock music performed by Mexican American groups or music with themes derived from Chicano culture. Chicano Rock, to a great extent, does not refer to any single style or approach. Some of these groups do not sing in Spanish at all, or use many specifically Latin instruments or sounds...
scene continued to influence brown-eyed soul artists as well.
Inspired by Ritchie Valens, 1960s and 1970s bands such as Cannibal & the Headhunters
Cannibal & the Headhunters
Cannibal & The Headhunters were an American band originating from East Los Angeles, that was known for being one of the first Mexican-American groups to have a national hit record, "Land of a Thousand Dances", recorded on the Rampart label...
("Land of a Thousand Dances
Land of a Thousand Dances
"Land of a Thousand Dances" is a song written and first recorded by Chris Kenner in 1962. The song is famous for its "na na na na na" hook, which was added by Cannibal & the Headhunters in their version of the song in 1965, whose version peaked at number thirty...
") and Thee Midniters
Thee Midniters
Thee Midniters were an American group, amongst the first Chicano rock bands to have a major hit in the United States. Also they were and one of the best known acts to come out of East Los Angeles in the 1960s, with a cover of "Land of a Thousand Dances", and the instrumental track, "Whittier...
played brown-eyed R&B music with a rebellious rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
edge. Many of these artists drew from the frat rock and garage rock
Garage rock
Garage rock is a raw form of rock and roll that was first popular in the United States and Canada from about 1963 to 1967. During the 1960s, it was not recognized as a separate music genre and had no specific name...
scenes. However, the large Hispanic population on the West Coast began gradually moving away from energetic R&B to romantic soul, and the results were "some of the sweetest soul music heard during the late '60s and '70s." Despite the movement to smoother soul, War
War (band)
War is an American funk band from California, known for the hit songs "Low Rider", "Spill the Wine", "The Cisco Kid" and "Why Can't We Be Friends?". Formed in 1969, War was a musical crossover band which fused elements of rock, funk, jazz, Latin, rhythm and blues, and reggae...
, Malo
Malo
Malo was an American Latin-tinged rock and roll group. The San Francisco-based ensemble was led by Arcelio Garcia and Jorge Santana, the brother of Latin-rock guitarist, Carlos Santana....
, El Chicano
El Chicano
El Chicano is an American chicano rock and brown-eyed soul group from Los Angeles, California, whose style incorporates various modern music genres including rock, funk, soul, blues, jazz, and salsa...
, and other brown-eyed soul bands of the 1970s continued to create soul more influenced by funk, rock, and Latin folk music. Funk-influenced brown-eyed soul anthems continued to breach the charts during the mid-1970s (e.g. Bloodstone's "Natural High"), but the genre began to waver during the 1980s.
Notable brown-eyed soul artists
- The BlendellsThe BlendellsThe Blendells were a 1960s Mexican American brown-eyed soul group from East Los Angeles, California. They garnered success in 1964 with their Latin-tinged cover of Stevie Wonder's "La La La La La." During the brief time they were together, they performed at venues such as the famous Shrine Auditorium...
- Selena Quintanilla
- BloodstoneBloodstone (band)Bloodstone is a former American R&B, soul, and funk group, most popular in the 1970s and early 1980s. The band charted thirteen songs between 1973 and 1984.-Biography:...
- Cannibal & the HeadhuntersCannibal & the HeadhuntersCannibal & The Headhunters were an American band originating from East Los Angeles, that was known for being one of the first Mexican-American groups to have a national hit record, "Land of a Thousand Dances", recorded on the Rampart label...
- El ChicanoEl ChicanoEl Chicano is an American chicano rock and brown-eyed soul group from Los Angeles, California, whose style incorporates various modern music genres including rock, funk, soul, blues, jazz, and salsa...
- Malika AyaneMalika AyaneMalika Ayane is an Italian singer.-Career:Ayane was born in Milan, Italy, the daughter of a Moroccan father and an Italian mother...
- Jennifer LopezJennifer LopezJennifer Lynn Lopez is an American actress, singer, record producer, dancer, television personality, and fashion designer. Lopez began her career as a dancer on the television comedy program In Living Color. Subsequently venturing into acting, she gained recognition in the 1995 action-thriller...
- MaloMaloMalo was an American Latin-tinged rock and roll group. The San Francisco-based ensemble was led by Arcelio Garcia and Jorge Santana, the brother of Latin-rock guitarist, Carlos Santana....
- Thee MidnitersThee MidnitersThee Midniters were an American group, amongst the first Chicano rock bands to have a major hit in the United States. Also they were and one of the best known acts to come out of East Los Angeles in the 1960s, with a cover of "Land of a Thousand Dances", and the instrumental track, "Whittier...
- The PremiersThe PremiersThe Premiers were an American garage band in the 1960s, best known for their 1964 hit, "Farmer John".-Career:The band was formed in 1962 in San Gabriel, California, by brothers Lawrence Perez and John Perez , and neighbours George Delgado and Frank Zuniga...
- Stacie OrricoStacie OrricoStacie Joy Orrico is a Contemporary Christian and R&B singer-songwriter and occasional actress. In 1998, she signed to ForeFront Records when she was 12 years old, and recorded her first album Genuine , which sold 13,000 in the first week of release.After her first album she signed to a new record...
- Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs
- The TeenagersThe TeenagersThe Teenagers are an American integrated doo wop group, most noted for being one of rock music's earliest successes, presented to international audiences by DJ Alan Freed...
- TierraTierra (group)Tierra is a Latin R&B band, originally from Los Angeles, California, that was established in the late 1970s by former El Chicano members Steve Salas , Rudy Salas , David Torres and Andre Baeza . The other original members were Bobby Navarrete , Joey Guerra , Steve Falomir , and Philip Madayag...
- Ritchie ValensRitchie ValensRitchie Valens was a Mexican-American singer, songwriter and guitarist....
- WarWar (band)War is an American funk band from California, known for the hit songs "Low Rider", "Spill the Wine", "The Cisco Kid" and "Why Can't We Be Friends?". Formed in 1969, War was a musical crossover band which fused elements of rock, funk, jazz, Latin, rhythm and blues, and reggae...
- Joe BataanJoe BataanJoe Bataan is a Filipino-African American Latin R&B musician from New York.- Early life and career :...