Renegade (band)
Encyclopedia
Renegade is an American rock n' roll band composed of Luis Cardenas
Luis Cardenas
For the Colombian road cyclist see Luis CárdenasLuis Cardenas is an iconic Latin-American drummer who achieved considerable popularity in the late 1980s with both solo work and as a member of the rock band Renegade.-Luis/Renegade History:...

, Kenny Marquez
Kenny Marquez
Kenny Marquez is a noted guitarist, who gained fame in the 1980s as a member of the "Chicano rock" band Renegade.As one of the members of the multi-million selling rocker quartet, Renegade, Kenny Marquez is known for his outrageous banter and behavior that helps the band distinguish itself with...

 and Tony De La Rosa
Tony De La Rosa
Tony De La Rosa is a noted bass player and guitarist, who gained fame in the 1980s as a member of the rock band Renegade.As one of the members of the multi-million selling rocker quartet, Renegade, Tony De La Rosa's solid and prolific bass playing and songwriting skills helped propel the band into...

. Although each member hails from the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, the band is widely recognized as being the first Hispanic
Hispanic
Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...

 or "Chicano 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...

" band to gain acceptance in the United States. Throughout Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages  – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...

, the band is referred to as Los Renegados. Renegade has been referred to by Ritmo Beat Magazine as Chicano rock-gods.

Formation

Renegade was formed by Luis Cardenas in Whittier
Whittier
Whittier may refer to:*John Greenleaf Whittier, an American poet and abolitionist*Whittier, Alaska**Whittier Airport*Whittier, California, named for John Greenleaf Whittier**Whittier College**Whittier High School*Whittier, Iowa...

, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

. and were unusual in being ethnic Hispanic
Hispanic
Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...

s playing rock music. Building a local following and subsequently winning a record contract, the band released the albums "Rock n' Roll Crazy", "Renegade II - On The Run", "Nuns On Wheels" and "Renegade Live". The band sold well in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 and locally in California, but did not enjoy the same level of success throughout the USA as they did internationally. In the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, the band was widely viewed as teen idols, appearing in Tiger Beat
Tiger Beat
Tiger Beat is an American fan magazine marketed primarily to adolescent girls. It is currently published by Laufer Media, Inc. of Los Angeles, California, which also produces its sister publication, Bop....

, 16 Magazine
16 magazine
16 Magazine was a fan magazine based out of New York City. It was the first magazine marketed to adolescents that focused exclusively on celebrities...

, BOP Magazine and television programs, such as Dance Fever
Dance Fever
Dance Fever is an American musical variety series that aired weekly in syndication from January 1979 to September 1987. The series was created and produced by Merv Griffin and written by Tony Garofalo....

, which often overshadowed their musical prowess. The band was successful enough in the United States, to headline music festivals with bands such as 38 Special, Foreigner
Foreigner (band)
Foreigner is a British-American rock band, originally formed in 1976 by veteran English musicians Mick Jones and ex-King Crimson member Ian McDonald along with American vocalist Lou Gramm...

, Journey
Journey (band)
Journey is an American rock band formed in 1973 in San Francisco by former members of Santana. The band has gone through several phases; its strongest commercial success occurred between the 1978 and 1987, after which it temporarily disbanded...

 and Night Ranger
Night Ranger
Night Ranger is an American rock band from San Francisco that gained popularity during the 1980s with a series of albums and singles. The band's first five albums sold more than 10 million copies worldwide...

. Renegade toured throughout the world in their own Learjet, and was popular enough in the late 1980s to be asked by Kenny Rogers
Kenny Rogers
Kenneth Donald "Kenny" Rogers is an American singer-songwriter, photographer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur...

 to appear on the Texas-New Mexico Border with Lionel Richie
Lionel Richie
Lionel Brockman Richie, Jr. , is an American singer-songwriter, musician and record producer. Since 1968, he has been a member of the musical group Commodores signed to Motown Records...

 and Lee Greenwood
Lee Greenwood
Melvin Lee Greenwood is an American country music artist. Active since the early 1980s, he has released more than twenty major-label albums and has charted more than 35 singles on the Billboard country music charts....

 to support Rogers' Hands Across America
Hands Across America
Hands Across America was a benefit event and publicity campaign staged on Sunday May 25, 1986 in which approximately 6.5 million people held hands in a human chain for fifteen minutes along a path across the continental United States...

 effort. Renegade was the Saturday night headline attraction for the Los Angeles Street Scene Festival in both 1985 and 1986, with audiences of 150,000 in attendance. In 1990, the band was featured in a 98 minute television special aired on MTV International, entitled "Renegade MTV Special." Cardenas reprises his original Let It Out drum solo during the MTV Special, finally committing his masterful performance to a visual experience. The band was honored in August 2001 at a David Hasselhoff
David Hasselhoff
David Michael Hasselhoff is an American actor, singer, producer and businessman. He is best known for his lead roles as Michael Knight in the popular 1980s US series Knight Rider and as L.A. County Lifeguard Mitch Buchannon in the series Baywatch...

 hosted event at the Conga Room
Conga Room
The Conga Room is a Los Angeles, California, nightclub that focuses on salsa and Latin music.-History:Early on, it broadened its musical repertoire beyond salsa to spotlight popular artists in other genres: rock en Español , world beat The Conga Room is a Los Angeles, California, nightclub that...

, in Los Angeles for record sales in excess of 30 million units worldwide.

Discrimination

Being from Mexican origin proved to be a barrier for the members of Renegade during their early years. The band's manager and producer, Kim Richards, is a music industry veteran (Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...

, Queen
Queen (band)
Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...

, America
America (band)
America is an English-American folk rock band that originally included members Gerry Beckley, Dewey Bunnell and Dan Peek. The three members were barely out of their teens when they became a musical sensation during 1972, scoring #1 hits and winning a Grammy for best new musical artist...

, Mike Pinera
Mike Pinera
Mike Pinera is an American guitarist who started professionally in the late 1960s with the group Blues Image, which had a #4 hit in 1970 with their song "Ride Captain Ride". After the breakup of that group, he joined Iron Butterfly, and later formed the group Ramatam...

, Iron Butterfly
Iron Butterfly
Iron Butterfly is a US psychedelic rock band best known for the 1968 hit "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida".Their heyday was the late 1960s, but the band has been reincarnated with various members. In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida is the 31st best-selling album in the world, selling more than 25 million copies.-History:The...

 and Kevin DuBrow
Kevin DuBrow
Kevin Mark DuBrow was an American rock singer best known as the lead vocalist of the Heavy Metal band Quiet Riot from 1975 until his death in 2007...

 of Quiet Riot
Quiet Riot
Quiet Riot is an American Heavy Metal band. They are best known for their hit singles "Metal Health" and "Cum On Feel the Noize". They were founded in 1973 by guitarist Randy Rhoads and bassist Kelly Garni, under the original name Mach 1, before changing the name to Little Women and finally Quiet...

). Richards was unable to get the band booked at local Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

 clubs as a result of their skin color and a perception that a group of "Mexicans" would bring in spray cans and knives. Richards told Performance Magazine:


"[T]here used to be a place called Flippers Roller Disco in West Hollywood that booked bands and had a lot of industry people hanging out. I played Renegade’s demo tape for the booker, and he said, ‘great, sure, your guys are booked for next Wednesday. Got a picture? "Well, I gave him a group photo and he looks at it and says, ‘Oh... Latino, huh? Let me just check the book here a second. Oh, I made a mistake, we already had a booking for that night .. sorry.’ "I said cut the jive. I know what’s happening. He finally admitted he didn’t want the spray paint and knife carriers coming in to see the group. I was truly surprised by this, especially in this so-called enlightened age. I found that another very key club owner in town had the same attitude about us. But this increased my determination to make Renegade work. If they didn’t make it, it wasn’t going to be because of discrimination.." said [Kim] Richards. He finally went to Bill Gazzarri
Gazzarri's
Gazzarri's was a nightclub on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, California, United States. It is most notable as the location where The Doors, and Van Halen were featured house bands for long stretches before being discovered...

, a longtime friend of Richards and owner of a teen dance club that helped establish "video go-go dancing" in the 60’s on the Sunset Strip. "I said Bill, you’re the only one left. I want this band booked. Bill said, ‘You can put em on every Wednesday night. This is my joint, and I do what I want with it.’" Said Richards... "They [began doing] SRO business [with Renegade] every Wednesday night ... Suddenly, that big club owner who’d turned me down contacted me about booking the band. I decided if Renegade was to play a club that turned the group down when we needed the club, the group was going to get 100 percent of the door plus 20 percent of the bar. I eventually got 100 percent of the door and 10 percent of the bar.


Renegade's original record label wanted the band members to change their names to more "Americanized" names, but Richards supported their refusal, ultimately prevailing. Richards opted to go the opposite direction and promoted the band's ethnicity, persuading then Warner / Electra / Atlantic
Warner Music Group
Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...

 Distribution (WEA
Warner Music Group
Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...

) head Nesuhi Ertegün
Nesuhi Ertegun
Nesuhi Ertegun was a Turkish record producer and executive of Atlantic Records and WEA International.-Background:Born in Istanbul, Turkey, Nesuhi and his family, including younger brother Ahmet, moved to Washington, D.C...

 to release the band's single, Girls, Girls, Girls in Latin-America. The single shot to the top of the charts effectively forcing a worldwide release of the band's first album, Rock N' Roll Crazy!. Los Renegados, as the band is known throughout Latin-America, became a household name based on a combination of the band's teen idol appearance and the fact they were Latin.

Luis Cardenas Solo Projects

Cardenas personally achieved additional fame in the U.S., Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

, and especially throughout Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

, where he participated in a TV show resulting from his having broken the world record for having the world's largest drumkit, which had previously landed him in the Guinness Book of World Records. Ironically, Cardenas's solo efforts have helped overcome Renegade's original teen idol image in the U.S., for that of a highly regarded musical unit. Unlike many drummers of the 1980s, Cardenas proved his drumming ability with the band's debut live track "Let It Out" in which he performs an intricate drum solo that comprises nearly a quarter of the song, ala Iron Butterfly
Iron Butterfly
Iron Butterfly is a US psychedelic rock band best known for the 1968 hit "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida".Their heyday was the late 1960s, but the band has been reincarnated with various members. In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida is the 31st best-selling album in the world, selling more than 25 million copies.-History:The...

's In Gadda Da Vida. After being inducted into the Guinness Book of World Records, Cardenas intentionally reduced the size of his drum kit to avoid being known for its size, rather than his personal skills as a drummer.

Cardenas released a solo album called "Animal Instinct", and the first single "Runaway
Runaway (Del Shannon song)
"Runaway" was a number-one Billboard Hot 100 song made famous by Del Shannon in 1961. It was written by Shannon and keyboardist Max Crook, and became a major international hit...

", a cover of a Del Shannon
Del Shannon
Del Shannon was an American rock and roll singer-songwriter who had a No. 1 hit, "Runaway", in 1961.- Biography :...

 original, became a worldwide hit. This was mainly due to an excellent video that included cameos by Del Shannon
Del Shannon
Del Shannon was an American rock and roll singer-songwriter who had a No. 1 hit, "Runaway", in 1961.- Biography :...

 and Donny Osmond
Donny Osmond
Donald Clark "Donny" Osmond is an American singer, musician, actor, dancer, radio personality, and former teen idol. Osmond has also been a talk and game show host, record producer and author. In the mid 1960s, he and four of his elder brothers gained fame as the Osmond Brothers on the long...

, which received heavy rotation on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....

 for many weeks, and ultimately became the most added video in history, with rotation as diverse as BET
Bet
Bet or BET may refer to:* A wager in gambling* Basic Economics Test * Bet , the second letter in many Semitic alphabets, including Aramaic, Hebrew, Phoenician and Syriac* Brunauer-Emmett-Teller isotherm. See BET_theory...

. Cardenas won a National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences
National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences
The National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc., known variously as The Recording Academy or NARAS, is a U.S. organization of musicians, producers, recording engineers and other recording professionals dedicated to improving the quality of life and cultural condition for music and its...

 (NARAS) Best Rock Video Grammy Nomination for his Runaway Video and it's documentary, The Making of Runaway. The Runaway video was an instant MTV favorite, propelling Cardenas into the Top Ten worldwide and added to the international cache of Renegade as a result of Cardenas's personal success. Further singles and unique videos followed, such as the Cardenas penned Hungry For Your Love, which included another captivating video with Phyllis Diller
Phyllis Diller
Phyllis Diller is an American actress and comedian. She created a stage persona of a wild-haired, eccentrically dressed housewife who makes jokes about a husband named "Fang" while pretending to smoke from a long cigarette holder...

 and Cardenas's pet tiger, Bundi. Although Hungry For Your Love shot up the carts worldwide, it did not match the initial success enjoyed by Runaway. Cardenas took some time off from public appearances between 1990 and 1993, but recorded two albums during that time that have not yet been released.

Renegade Returns to the Studio

In 2000 Cardenas was once again with Renegade and the band was hopeful of regaining past glories. Renegade headlined a performance at the Los Angeles Staples Center
Staples Center
Staples Center is a multi-purpose sports arena in Downtown Los Angeles. Adjacent to the L.A. Live development, it is located next to the Los Angeles Convention Center complex along Figueroa Street. Opening on October 17, 1999, it is one of the major sporting facilities in the Greater Los Angeles...

 for Infinity Broadcasting shortly after the September 11 attacks to raise funds for victims. In 2002, the band announced another charity concert at the Hollywood House of Blues
House of Blues
House of Blues is a chain of 13 live music concert halls and restaurants in major markets throughout the United States. House of Blues first location was in Cambridge's Harvard Square. It was opened in 1992 by Isaac Tigrett, co-founder of Hard Rock Cafe, and Dan Aykroyd, star of The Blues Brothers...

 to benefit the Music Cares effort to put music back into schools. Despite a high ticket price (all going to the charity) the show sold out in a matter of minutes and was turned into a video production. Renegade invited a number of their industry friends, such as Vivian Campbell
Vivian Campbell
Vivian Patrick Campbell is a Northern Irish rock guitarist who is a member of Def Leppard and was, from May 2010 to November 2011, a member of Thin Lizzy. Prior to joining Def Leppard in April 1992, he had been a member of Whitesnake, Sweet Savage, Trinity, Riverdogs, and Shadow King...

 (Def Leppard
Def Leppard
Def Leppard are an English rock band formed in 1977 in Sheffield as part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement. Since 1992, the band have consisted of Joe Elliott , Rick Savage , Rick Allen , Phil Collen , and Vivian Campbell...

), Mike Pinera
Mike Pinera
Mike Pinera is an American guitarist who started professionally in the late 1960s with the group Blues Image, which had a #4 hit in 1970 with their song "Ride Captain Ride". After the breakup of that group, he joined Iron Butterfly, and later formed the group Ramatam...

 (Iron Butterfly
Iron Butterfly
Iron Butterfly is a US psychedelic rock band best known for the 1968 hit "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida".Their heyday was the late 1960s, but the band has been reincarnated with various members. In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida is the 31st best-selling album in the world, selling more than 25 million copies.-History:The...

, Blues Image and Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper is an American rock singer, songwriter and musician whose career spans more than four decades...

) and Mick Fleetwood
Mick Fleetwood
Michael John Kells "Mick" Fleetwood is a British musician and actor best known for his role as the drummer and namesake of the blues/rock and roll band Fleetwood Mac. His surname, combined with that of John McVie, was the inspiration for the name of the originally Peter Green-led Fleetwood Mac...

 (Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac are a British–American rock band formed in 1967 in London.The only original member present in the band is its eponymous drummer, Mick Fleetwood...

) to join them. Pinera performs his signature songs (Ride Capatin Ride, Ina Gada Da Vida) with Renegade backing him up. Cardenas performs his version of the legendary drum solo from Ina Gadda Da Vida.
Renegade's past successes, caused Ritmo Beat Magazine to refer to them as the first Latin rock band, hailing them as Chicano rock-gods. Transcending a generation, children ten years of age and younger can be heard screaming "Los Renegados" as the band makes its way through East Los Angeles in the annual Cinco De Mayo
Cinco de Mayo
Cinco de Mayo is a holiday held on May 5. It is celebrated nationwide in the United States and regionally in Mexico, primarily in the state of Puebla, where the holiday is called El Dia de la Batalla de Puebla...

 parade. The members remain tight knit today. According to Allied Artists Music Group, the band continues to write and record music and may announce yet another world tour. The DVD Renegade Live @ The House of Blues, that contains some older material, brand new material and a jam session with guitarist Mike Pinera
Mike Pinera
Mike Pinera is an American guitarist who started professionally in the late 1960s with the group Blues Image, which had a #4 hit in 1970 with their song "Ride Captain Ride". After the breakup of that group, he joined Iron Butterfly, and later formed the group Ramatam...

, was released in the United States in September 2009.

New Solo Projects for Luis Cardenas

Luis Cardenas is now working on a new album to be completed in 2011. Whether a Renegade album will precede or follow the new Cardenas album is unknown at this time. Being well regarded as both a musician and drummer, Cardenas is a sought after studio musician and has produced several local bands, as well as writing material for various artists.

External links

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