"Flores negras" ("Black Flowers") is a

bolero Bolero is a genre of song which originated in eastern Cuba in the late 19th century as part of the trova tradition. Unrelated to the older Spanish dance of the same name, bolero is characterized by sophisticated lyrics dealing with love. It has ...

song written and composed by Cuban musician Sergio De Karlo and published in 1937. It was introduced by Mexican

tenor A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...

Pedro Vargas Pedro Vargas Mata (San Miguel de Allende, 29 April 1906 – Mexico City, 30 October 1989) was a Mexican tenor and actor, from the golden age of Mexican cinema, participating in more than 70 films. He was known as the "Nightingale of the Ameri ...

in the 1937 film ''Los chicos de la prensa''. Vargas recorded it for

RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also Aris ...

. "Flores negras" is also one of the greatest hits of Mexican singer

Elvira Ríos María Elvira Gallegos Ríos (16 November 1913 – 13 January 1987) was a Mexican singer and actress. One of the most notable performers of Agustín Lara's songs, Ríos was the first Mexican singer who achieved international success through r ...

, who popularized the song in the United States and South America. She first recorded "Flores negras" on 21 May 1940 in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

for

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

. She sang it in 1942 Argentine film '' Ven... mi corazón te llama'', and later rerecorded the song in Mexico for RCA Victor in 1963 and Orfeón in 1974. The song has also been recorded by

Lydia Mendoza Lydia Mendoza (May 31, 1916December 20, 2007) was a Mexican-American guitarist and singer of Tejano and traditional Mexican-American music. Historian Michael Joseph Corcoran has stated that she was "The Mother of Tejano Music", an art form tha ...

(1937),

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

(1941),

Eydie Gormé Eydie Gormé ( ; born Edith Gormezano; August 16, 1928 – August 10, 2013) was an American singer who had hits on the pop and Latin pop charts. She sang solo and in the duo Steve and Eydie with her husband, Steve Lawrence, on albums and telev ...

with

Los Panchos Originally, Trio Los Panchos are a '' trío romántico'' formed in New York City in 1944 by Alfredo Gil, Chucho Navarro, and Hernando Avilés. The trio became one of the leading exponents of the bolero and the romantic ballad in Latin America. I ...

(1965),

Elvira Quintana Elvira Catalina Quintana Molina (7 November 1935 – 8 August 1968) was a Spanish-Mexican actress and singer. Early life and career Born in Montijo, Spain, Quintana and her family migrated to Mexico when she was 5 years old. She began her car ...

(1965),

Irma Serrano Irma Consuelo Cielo Serrano Castro (; born 9 December 1933) is a Mexican singer, actress and politician. Famous for her "tantalizing", "untamed spitfire" voice, she is one of the most noted performers of the ranchera and corrido genres; she was ni ...

(1973),

Julio Jaramillo Julio Alfredo Jaramillo Laurido (October 1, 1935 – February 9, 1978) was a notable Ecuadorian singer and recording artist who performed throughout Latin America, achieving great fame for his renditions of boleros, valses, pasillos, tangos, a ...

, and

Ana Gabriel María Guadalupe Araujo Yong (born December 10, 1955), better known as Ana Gabriel, is a Mexican singer and songwriter from Guamuchil, Sinaloa, Mexico. She first sang on the stage at age six, singing "Regalo A Dios" by José Alfredo Jiménez. S ...

(2000).

References

{{authority control Songs about flowers 1937 songs Boleros Cuban songs Songs in Spanish Bing Crosby songs