Javier Solís

Javier Solís, drawn by a user of the Spanish language Wikipedia

Javier Solís (born September 1, 1931 in Nogales , Sonora , Mexico ; † April 19, 1966 in Mexico City ; born as Gabriel Siria Levario ) was a Mexican singer and actor who was mainly known through popular songs such as "Media Vuelta" or " Sombras ”appeared as a ranchera singer.

Early life

Javier Solís was born in Nogales, the first of three children to the baker Francisco Siria Mora and the clerk Juana Levario Plata. His childhood was very mixed, for example he had to drop out of school to support his family in everyday life. At a young age, Javier Solís wanted to become a professional boxer; he trained in his spare time and was initially successful. It was only after a series of failures that his father advised him to give up boxing. Still, it wasn't Solís' father who made him sing: during his youth, the Mexican worked in a butcher's shop, the boss of which once heard Solís sing and suggested that he pursue a career as a singer. At the age of 16, Solís moved to Puebla , where he finally met the two members of the music group " Los Panchos " Julito Rodriguez and Alfredo Gil, the inventor of the requinto . This helped him get his first recordings on Columbia Records in 1950.

Career as a singer

During his first album recordings in the early 1950s, Solís also sang at the “Teatro Lirico”, where he met his future wife, the dancer Blanca Estela Sáinz. His first well-known track was "Llorarás", which was produced by Felipe Valdes Leal. His producer also gave him the stage name "Javier Solís", previously he was known under the name Gabriel Siria Levario. Solís was active as a singer in the business from 1957, he combined the style of the ranchera with bolero elements and is still considered the "king of the bolero ranchero" today. From 1959 Solís also worked as an actor, in total he took part in more than 20 films.

death

Javier Solís died in Mexico City on April 19, 1966, after having previously had an operation on the gallbladder and complications. His doctor had forbidden him to drink, which is why he said shortly before his death:

"Que riegen con mucha agua mi tumba, se que me voy a morir esto no tiene remedio."

"You will have to pour a lot of water into my grave, I know that I will die, there is no cure."

- Javier Solís : 1966

In 1994 the singer Vikki Carr recorded the album Recuerdo a Javier Solis (German: Memory of Javier Solís) in memory of Solís.

Web links

• Javier Solís in the Internet Movie Database (English)
• fiestaweb.org (Spanish)