So, Los Bukis never really went away, you just couldn’t see them together live.Ī couple of weeks ago, Latin Internet went absolutely crazy when Marco Antonio Solis and Los Bukis got together one more time for ‘El Reencuentro’ where they filmed a virtual live performance of “Tu Carcel” with the original members of Los Bukis, who still looked good, albeit a little older, who still sounded good together, and who looked genuinely happy to be playing together. Thus one could hear ‘Tu Carcel’ and all of the Bukis hits on any given day in any given city. When they broke up, the Spanish Oldies format was developed and became super popular. When The Eagles broke up, there was still a way to hear them on the radio as the Classic Rock format was developed so you could hear their songs on Classic Rock radio anytime, anywhere. Both bands ended their run at the top of their game with very strong composers at the helm of each group. I compare Los Bukis breakup to The Eagles breaking up. At Marco’s shows, I used to always say, “if the Bukis ever get back together, es dinero seguro, they will sell every concert out”. I’ve also lost count of the times that I’ve seen Marco in concert and he always has a section in his show where he plays ‘Tu Carcel’ and other Bukis hits to the total delight of the crowds. Marco quickly became one of the world’s major solo artists and continues to be Mexico’s most prolific composer. Folks have always hoped for a reunion ever since. Folks were stunned, sad, and even angry at ‘El Buki’ for breaking up their favorite group ever. In the late 1990’s, Marco Antonio Solis made the decision to go solo and leave Los Bukis. Our lil station, which was an AM station by the way, shot up to #1 in the ratings. I knew that I was in business, able to have my dream job because of Los Bukis and groups like them. I’ve lost count of the times that I was able to see Los Bukis in concert but I do remember it was always packed from the front of the stage to the back of the venue. This was the song that broke Los Bukis into all of LatinAmerica, Spain and made them even more popular in the US. The one song that always seemed to be one of the most requested was “Tu Carcel”. But eventually I did learn most of their songs by heart, which albums these songs were on, and which ones were listener favorites. When I started, I knew nothing, not the members of the bands, not the hits, nada. One of these shows was an hour dedicated to the 3 supergroups: Los Temerarios, Bronco, and Los Bukis. I was on-air Middays then and given a bunch of special programs to incorporate into my show. Very shortly after, we were now a Regional Mexican station playing what our listeners wanted to hear. Almost everyone surveyed put this group at the top of their list. A good 80% of the folks surveyed wanted to hear songs by, among others, Los Bukis. I either had to embrace this change or I would not be able to continue doing this work that I absolutely loved. It’s not about me or what I like, it’s totally about the listeners. I still remember telling myself, “there is NO way that I will be playing THAT music”. To my shock, it was not Tejano music, it was grupos, rancheras and banda. We ended up calling about 1000 people, asking them what kind of music they liked and, if they could have their favorite music played on the radio, what would it include. I was devastated but my new boss asked me to coordinate a research project, there were no money for music studies or focus groups. I was brought back by the new owner of the company who was seriously considering changing the music format of the station. I was more into Tejano music and was working at a Tejano station when it was announced that the station would be sold. But this group took hold of Mexico and the growing amount of Mexicanos crossing the border to work and live in the United States. I never grew up listening to Los Bukis, I knew OF them but didn’t really know any of their songs, they weren’t really my thing. But the way Los Bukis were to transcend borders and countries was something spectacular. Born and bred in the state of Michoacan, Mexico and founded by cousins Joel and Marco Antonio Solis, this group had humble origins, yes. To the outside world, people probably look at each other and think ‘who are these guys?’ To Mexico, Latin America and Latino USA, Los Bukis has to be up there as the greatest musical group of all time. #52SlicesOfChingonaLife 12/52 #52EssaysNextWave2021
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