Bandlands
  October 4, 2006 
 
 Delicias Mexico is a marvelous little city in Southern Chihuahua. Thats somewhere in the high desert almost a thousand miles from either Ocean maybe a little closer to the Pacific if you were to take the famous ferrocarril (railroad) over the Sierra Madre through the magnificent Copper Canyon you would probably reach the Pacific at Los Mochis faster than the highway to the Gulf of Mexico.. at least a days journey either way.

 I don't know why or how there are so many great people in Delicias. Something about that city.
It's a relatively new city maybe only a 100 years old that's gained strength as the rivers were harnessed into reservoirs and the land became used for agriculture. I see lots of green cultivated lands as I look out the window of the buses that transported me and this area has become a bread basket for Mexico not unlike the Central Valley of California.

 I had returned to Delicias from Saucillo after the Pachanga at Ventura's casa. I would call this the Never Again tour of Mexico as once again Moctezuma struck with vengeance on this loco gringo. My spanish is still so bad. It was Monday when I flew out of El Paso and the next day I was hanging out in Haarlem with my brother looking for medical help..yip oh joy! Mexico to Haarlem to Maine. Straight shot.

 Let's get back into Delicias where I had that Saturday night passed some time given up on the young woman selling popsicles. God! I am an old man. Please try to remember that as I say to myself.

 Anyways next to the Hotel Baeza in downtown Delicias is a bar called the Metro Bar which I had not entered there were a flight of steps leading down to a cellar and I just had not ventured there and generally kept myself out of any bars in Mexico unless I had some good company like Ventura or Elias in Saucillo. So this young man must be reading my mind as I the lonely Gringo wandered back to the Hotel on a Saturday night and I was leaving back to the USA the next day but he begins some conversation basically telling me 'Cmon in senior. This place is great, we have a great band tonight, come on in.' Well it's about 10:30 in the evening and he tells me that in fact the band hasn't showed up yet but will be there real soon. So I say to him 'well tell you what since I can't hold much alcohol why don't I come back in about 45 minutes to check out the band.'

 So I do and go down below in the cool grotto atmosphere with a sort of chic New York City Subway motif and about two other people are there and the band still hasn't showed up. Anyways the fellow was real friendly and made some jokes about the bartender meet Jose he's a great guy he's gay which was funny, Jose laughs and I decide that they are just doing some typically and reminded me of some stupid thing a bartender or someone would say about someone else in Peri's Bar in Fairfax so anyways I felt at home even though there were still like 3 people in the Metro Bar in Delicias at 11:30 PM saturday night and the band still hadn't shown up. Don't worry said my buddy, they'll be here soon.


 AiiYi Yi I say to myself as I drink my Corona and then have one more because it would be like heart breaking for these poor guys for there big customer of the nights bows out so soon.
 Well the band shows up only it's one guy his name is Roberto he came down from Chihuahua City for the gig. After a few tunes I have to admit the guy is very good It's not the music that I would call exactly my music but it was answering my question that loomed large in my mind as I hung out in Saucilllo which was 'who is picking up the torch the Romantic Ballad tradition of Mexican Music.?'  Not that Roberto follows some exact train of inheritance from the classic tradition that's almost a style like bluegrass... but anyways don't worry about the music.


   Roberto is good and I tell him between songs that I am going to go get my video camera since i still had 20 minutes on one of my cartridges. He tells me cool and the truth is right now I have waited so long (2 months) to tackle this that I can't find the information he wrote down about his web
address. I am not even sure if I have his name right it is all from memory. Roberto told me he has a band that is really tight and I need to think gypsy acoustic guitars with some percussion and that sounds great to me.

 After a couple of tunes the people at the only other occupied table in the room decide to leave.
That moment is on the video when Roberto says into the mic 'Well I'm Sorry' anyways the man sings and plays great he gave a 110 percent to a virtually empty room. By the time I had run out of video tape well... the place started filling up at least I had my DAT recorder with me and excuse the slight from one of the channels. Oh by the way instead of a trumpet fading out Roberto plays a Kazoo... did that work? Well you have to listen. 'soy loco', but I am not the only one. 

Give it up for that great audience who showed up a little late for the show on a Saturday night as is the style. 
A sweet little triumph from the Metro Bar in Delicias Mexico. That was a great night.


 

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