Leonardo "Flaco" Jiménez (born March 11, 1939) is an American singer, songwriter and accordionist from

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. He is known for playing Norteño, Tex Mex and

Tejano music Tejano music (), also known as Tex-Mex music, is a popular music style fusing Mexican influences. Its evolution began in northern Mexico (a variation of regional Mexican music known as ). It reached a larger audience in the late 20th century ...

. Jiménez has been a solo performer and

session musician A session musician (also known as studio musician or backing musician) is a musician hired to perform in a recording session or a live performance. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a reco ...

, as well as a member of the Texas Tornados and

Los Super Seven Los Super Seven is an American supergroup which debuted in 1998. According to Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine, "Los Super Seven isn't a band, per se – it's a collective, organized by manager Dan Goodman, who comes up with a concept for each ...

. Over the course of his seven-decade career, he has received numerous awards and honors, including Lifetime Achievement Awards from the

Grammys The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

, Americana Music Awards, Tejano Music Awards, and ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' magazine.

Early life

Jiménez, who is of Mexican descent, was born in

in 1939. He is descended from a line of musicians, including his father Santiago Jiménez Sr., and his grandfather Patricio Jiménez. He began performing at the age of seven with his father, a pioneer of

conjunto The term ''conjunto'' (, literally 'group', 'ensemble') refers to several types of small musical ensembles present in different Latin American musical traditions, mainly in Mexico and Cuba. While Mexican conjuntos play styles such as '' norteño' ...

music, and began recording at age fifteen as a member of Los Caporales. Jiménez's first instrument was the

bajo sexto The bajo sexto ( Spanish: "sixth bass") is a Mexican string instrument from the guitar family with 12 strings in six double courses. It is played in a similar manner to the guitar, with the left hand changing the pitch with the frets on a ...

, but he later adopted the accordion after being influenced by his father and zydeco musician Clifton Chenier. He was given the nickname "Flaco" (which translates as "Skinny" into English), which was also his father's nickname.

Career

Jiménez performed in the San Antonio area for several years and then began working with

Doug Sahm Douglas Wayne Sahm (November 6, 1941 – November 18, 1999) was an American musician, singer-songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist from San Antonio, Texas. He is regarded as a key Tejano music, Tex-Mex music and Music of Texas, Texan Music pe ...

in the 1960s. Sahm, better known as the founding member of the Sir Douglas Quintet, played with Jiménez for some time. Jiménez later went to New York City and worked with Dr. John, David Lindley, Peter Rowan,

Ry Cooder Ryland Peter Cooder (born March 15, 1947) is an American musician, songwriter, film score composer, record producer, and writer. He is a multi-instrumentalist but is best known for his slide guitar work, his interest in traditional music, and h ...

and

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

. He appeared on Cooder's

world music "World music" is an English phrase for styles of music from non-English speaking countries, including quasi-traditional, Cross-cultural communication, intercultural, and traditional music. World music's broad nature and elasticity as a musical ...

album '' Chicken Skin Music'' and was a guest musician on the

Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

' '' Voodoo Lounge'' album. These appearances led to greater awareness of his music outside of America. After touring Europe with Cooder he returned to tour in America with his own band, and on a joint bill with Peter Rowan. Jiménez, Rowan and Wally Drogos were the original members of a band called the Free Mexican Airforce. Jiménez appeared on the November 13, 1976 episode of '' NBC's Saturday Night'' with Cooder. In 1988, he performed on the hit country single " Streets of Bakersfield" by Dwight Yoakam and

Buck Owens Alvis Edgar "Buck" Owens Jr. (August 12, 1929 – March 25, 2006) was an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He was the frontman for The Buckaroos, which had 21 No. 1 hits on the ''Billboard'' country music chart. He pioneered what came ...

. The song reached number 1 on the ''Billboard''

Hot Country Singles Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data along with digital sales and streaming. ...

chart in 1988. Jiménez won his first

Grammy award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

in 1986 for his album '' Ay Te Dejo en San Antonio'', whose title song was composed by his father. His third Grammy was for another song written by his father, " Soy de San Luis", recorded by the

Tejano Tejanos ( , ) are descendants of Texas Creoles and Mestizos who settled in Texas before its admission as an American state. The term is also sometimes applied to Texans of Mexican descent. Etymology The word ''Tejano'', with a ''J'' instead ...

fusion group Texas Tornados with Augie Meyers, Doug Sahm and Freddy Fender. Starting in 1998, he was a member of

, a supergroup that won a Grammy Award for their eponymous album. Jiménez was one of the featured artists in the 1976 documentary film '' Chulas Fronteras'', directed by Les Blank. He also appeared as a band member in the 2000 movie '' Picking Up the Pieces'', with

Woody Allen Heywood Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American filmmaker, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades. Allen has received many List of awards and nominations received by Woody Allen, accolade ...

and

Sharon Stone Sharon Vonne Stone (born March 10, 1958) is an American actress and film producer. Known for primarily playing femmes fatales and women of mystery on film and television, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1990s. She is the ...

, and was also featured on the film's

soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television show, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of m ...

. His music has been featured on the soundtrack for other movies, such as ''

Y Tu Mamá También ''Y tu mamá también'' (Spanish for ''And Your Mother Too'') is a 2001 Mexican Coming-of-age story, coming-of-age comedy drama Road movie, road film directed by Alfonso Cuarón, who co-wrote the script with his brother Carlos Cuarón, Carlos. I ...

'',
El Infierno
', '' The Border'', '' Tin Cup'', ''Chulas Fronteras'', and ''

Striptease A striptease is an erotic or exotic dance in which the performer gradually undresses, either partly or completely, in a seductive and sexually suggestive manner. The person who performs a striptease is commonly known as a "stripper", "exotic d ...

''. He was one of the artists featured in archival footage in the 2013 documentary film ''This Ain't No Mouse Music'' about

Arhoolie Records Arhoolie Records is an American small independent record label that was run by Chris Strachwitz and is based in El Cerrito, California, United States (it is actually located in Richmond Annex but has an El Cerrito postal address.) The label was ...

and its founder Chris Strachwitz. The Hohner company collaborated with Jiménez to create the Flaco Jimenez Signature series of accordions.

Personal life

His brother, Santiago Jiménez Jr., is also an accomplished accordionist and has recorded extensively. In March 2015, Jiménez suffered a broken hip and two rib fractures from two separate falls. By May of that year, he returned to performing and was one of the acts on closing night of the 34th annual Tejano Conjunto Festival in San Antonio. Jiménez and his wife once owned a food truck in the San Antonio area, named Tacos Jimenez.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''Una Sombra'', 1972, D.L.B. Records, San Antonio, TX * ''El Papa Del Caminante'', 1973, D.L.B. Records, San Antonio, TX * ''Mis Polkas Favoritas'', 1973, D.L.B. Records, San Antonio, TX * ''Corridos Famosos'', 1973, D.L.B. Records, San Antonio, TX * ''Clavelito Clavelito'', 1973, D.L.B. Records, San Antonio, TX * ''La Otra Modesta'', 1974, D.L.B. Records, San Antonio, TX * ''El Rey De Texas'', 1975, D.L.B. Records, San Antonio, TX * ''A Mis Amigos Cariñosamente'', 1976, D.L.B. Records, San Antonio, TX * ''El Principe Del Acordeón '', 1977, D.L.B. Records, San Antonio, TX * ''Flaco Jiménez Y Su Conjunto'', 1977,

* ''Flaco '79'', 1979, D.L.B. Records, San Antonio, TX * ''Mis 25 Años'', 1980, D.L.B. Records, San Antonio, TX * ''El Sonido de San Antonio'', 1980, Arhoolie * ''Polkas De Oro'', 1983, D.L.B. Records, San Antonio, TX * ''Ay Te Dejo en San Antonio'', 1986, Arhoolie * ''Flaco's Amigos'', 1988, Arhoolie * ''Entre Humo y Botellas'', 1989,

Rounder Records Rounder Records is an independent record label founded in 1970 in Somerville, Massachusetts, by Marian Leighton Levy, Ken Irwin, and Bill Nowlin. Focused on American roots music, Rounder's catalogue of more than 3000 titles includes records by A ...

* ''San Antonio Soul'', 1991, Rounder Records * ''Partners'', 1992, Warner Bros. Records * '' Flaco Jiménez'', 1994,

Arista Records Arista Records ( ) is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the American division of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. The label was previously a division of Bertelsmann Music G ...

* '' Buena Suerte, Señorita'', 1996, Arista * ''Said and Done'', 1998,

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a British record label owned by Universal Music Group. They were originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman (musician), ...

* ''Arriba el Norte'', 1998, Sound Records * ''Sleepytown'', 2002, Back Porch Records * ''Squeeze Box King'', 2003, Compadre Records * ''Ya Volvi De La Guerra'', 2009, Fiesta Records * ''Flaco & Max: Legends & Legacies'', 2014, Smithsonian Folkways Recordings

Live albums

* ''One Night at Joey's (Live)'', 1999,

Sony Records Sony Records was a record label founded by R&B duo Ike & Tina Turner in 1963. It was not affiliated with Sony Group Corporation. Ike Turner produced singles by members of the Kings of Rhythm and the Ikettes on Sony Records. Records on the la ...

Compilations and re-releases

* ''El Rancho de la Ramalada'', elease year unknown Joey Records * '' Ay Te Dejo en San Antonio y Más!'', 1990, Arhoolie * ''Un Mojado Sin Licencia and Other Hits From the 1960s'', 1993, Arhoolie * ''Flaco's First! (with Los Caminantes)'', 1995, Arhoolie * ''15 Exitos'', 1995, Joey Records * ''Best of Flaco Jiménez'', 1999, Arhoolie * ''Ultimo Tornado'', 2001, Warner Bros. * ''20 Golden Hits'', 2001, Hacienda Records * ''Flaco's Favorites: 14 Fabulous Tracks'', 2002, Fab14 Records * ''Contiene Exitos, Prieta Case Se Me Olvido Otra Vez'', 2003, Discos Ranchito * ''Fiesta Del Rio'', 2006, Fiesta Records * ''Melodias'', 2010, Joey Records * ''Polkas y Mas...'', 2010, Joey Records

Featured on multi-artist compilation albums

* ''Tex-Mex Conjunto Classics'', 1999, Arhoolie

Singles

Guest singles

Participations

* 2007 : "My Name Is Buddy" (

Nonesuch Records Nonesuch Records is an American record company and label owned by Warner Music Group, distributed by Warner Records (formerly Warner Bros. Records), and based in New York City. Founded by Jac Holzman in 1964 as a budget classical label, Nonesuch ...

), by

, with

Paddy Moloney Paddy Moloney (; 1 August 1938 – 12 October 2021) was an Irish musician, composer, and record producer. He co-founded and led the Irish musical group the Chieftains, playing on all of their 44 albums. He was particularly associated with the re ...

Van Dyke Parks Van Dyke Parks (born January 3, 1943) is an American multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, arranger, record producer, singer, and former Warner Bros. Records executive whose work encompasses orchestral pop, elaborate recording experiments, Ame ...

, Mike & Pete Seeger, Bobby King & Terry Evans, Jim Keltner, Jacky Terrasson,

Jon Hassell Jon Hassell (March 22, 1937 – June 26, 2021) was an American trumpet player and composer. He was best known for developing the concept of "Fourth World" music, which describes a "unified primitive/futurist sound" combining elements of various w ...

* 1989 : Plays accordion on "New Pony" on the Orchestre Super Moth EP ''The World At Sixes And Sevens''. Released on Rogue Records (12FMS 6–7). * 1973 : plays accordion on '' Doug Sahm and Band'',

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

Awards and honors

Between 1986 and 2015, Jiménez has won six Grammy Awards, including a

Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award The Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award is a special Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achiev ...

, plus an additional three nominations. In 1999, Jiménez was awarded the ''Billboard'' Latin Music Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2000, Jiménez won a Tejano Music Video of the Year award at the Tejano Music Awards for his song "De Bolon Pin Pon". In 2001, both Flaco and his brother

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

were included among the first group of recipients of the Texas Medal of Arts in the folk arts category. Jiménez was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 31st Tejano Music Awards ceremony in 2011. In 2012, he received a National Heritage Fellowship awarded by the National Endowment of the Arts, which is the United States government's highest honor in the folk and traditional arts. In 2014, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award for Instrumentalist from the Americana Music Association. He received his plaque at the ceremony from longtime collaborator Ry Cooder, with whom he also performed at the event. Jiménez was one of five artists to receive the inaugural Distinction in Arts honor from the City of San Antonio in 2015. Also in 2015, his collaborative album with Max Baca titled ''Flaco & Max: Legends & Legacies'' won an award in the Latin Album category at the 14th Annual Independent Music Awards. Additionally in 2015, Jiménez was inducted into the

Austin City Limits ''Austin City Limits'' is an American Concert, live music Television show, television program recorded and produced by KLRU, Austin PBS. The show helped Austin become widely known in the United States as the "Live Music Capital of the World", an ...

Hall of Fame. In 2017, a photograph of Jiménez taken by Al Rendon in 1987 was added to the National Portrait Gallery of the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

in Washington, D.C. Images in the Gallery "represent the numerous individuals who have made a significant impact on the history and culture of the United States". In 2018, the ''

Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Houston, Texas, United States. it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. ...

'' listed him as number 19 of the Greatest 50 Texas Musicians of all time. Jiménez received the Top of Texas Award from the Country Music Association of Texas in 2019. Earlier in the same year, he also received the History-Making Texas Award from the Texas State History Museum Foundation. In 2020, Jiménez received the Chris Strachwitz Legacy Award from the Arhoolie Foundation. In 2021, Jiménez's album ''Partners'' was selected as one of 25 works to be inducted into the

National Recording Registry The National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant, and inform or reflect life in the United States." The registry was established by the National Recording Preservation ...

's class of 2020, with the registry calling Jiménez "a champion of traditional conjunto music and Tex-Mex culture who also is known for innovation and collaboration with a variety of artists."

Grammy awards

, - ! scope="row" ,

1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...

, '' Ay Te Dejo en San Antonio'' , Best Mexican-American Performance , , solo album , - ! scope="row" ,

1989 1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ended communism in Eastern Bloc of Europe, starting in Poland and Hungary, with experiments in power-sharing coming to a head with the opening of the Berlin W ...

, ''Flaco's Amigos'' , Best Mexican-American Performance , , solo album , - ! scope="row" ,

1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...

, " Soy de San Luis" , Best Mexican-American Performance , , song by the Texas Tornados , - ! scope="row" ,

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

, ''Zone of our Own'' , Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal , , album by the Texas Tornados , - ! rowspan="2" ,

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

, '' Flaco Jiménez'' , Best Mexican-American/Tejano Music Performance , , solo album , - , "Cat Walk" , Best Country Instrumental Performance , , Lee Roy Parnell song, featuring Jiménez , - ! rowspan="2" ,

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

, ''

'' , Best Mexican-American Music Performance , , album by

, - , ''Said and Done'' , Best Tejano Music Performance , , solo album , - ! scope="row" ,

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

, himself ,

, , , -

References

External links

* *
Audio interview with Flaco Jiménez, May 28, 1986, University of Texas at San Antonio: Institute of Texan Cultures: Oral History Collections
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jimenez, Flaco Living people 1939 births 20th-century American accordionists 21st-century American accordionists 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians American country singer-songwriters American male singer-songwriters American musicians of Mexican descent Musicians from San Antonio Singer-songwriters from Texas Country musicians from Texas Tejano accordionists Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners National Heritage Fellowship winners Texas Tornados members Hispanic and Latino American musicians Arhoolie Records artists Arista Records artists Rounder Records artists Virgin Records artists