Tomás Méndez (born Tomás Méndez Sosa; July 25, 1927 – June 19, 1995) was a Mexican composer and singer of

Mexican music The music of Mexico is very diverse and features a wide range of musical genres and performance styles. It has been influenced by a variety of cultures, most notably deriving from the culture of the Europeans, Indigenous, and Africans. It also ...

and

ranchera Ranchera () or canción ranchera is a genre of traditional music of Mexico. It dates to before the years of the Mexican Revolution. Rancheras today are played in virtually all regional Mexican music styles. Drawing on rural traditional folk mus ...

music. He was born in Fresnillo,

Zacatecas , image_map = Zacatecas in Mexico (location map scheme).svg , map_caption = State of Zacatecas within Mexico , coordinates = , coor_pinpoint = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type ...

, Mexico. He obtained his first success in 1954 with the Mexican music song "Gorrioncillo pecho amarillo" and continued in the same year with the

huapango is a family of Mexican music styles. The word likely derives from the Nahuatl word that literally means 'on top of the wood', alluding to a wooden platform on which dancers perform dance steps. It is interpreted in different forms, the most ...

s like "

Cucurrucucú paloma "Cucurrucucú paloma" (Spanish for ''Coo-coo dove'') is a Mexican huapango-style song written by Tomás Méndez in 1954. The title is an onomatopeic reference to the characteristic call of the mourning dove, which is evoked in the refrain. The ...

" and "Desafío". He died in

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley of ...

on June 19, 1995. The song "Cucurrucucú paloma" was played in many movie pictures like ''

The Last Sunset ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in E ...

'', ''

Happy Together Happy Together may refer to: Music * "Happy Together" (song), a 1967 song by the Turtles that has been covered several times ** ''Happy Together'' (The Turtles album) (1967) ** ''Happy Together'' concert tours in 1985 and from 2010 featuring T ...

'', ''

Talk to Her ''Talk to Her'' ( es, Hable con ella) is a 2002 Spanish drama written and directed by Pedro Almodóvar, and starring Javier Cámara, Darío Grandinetti, Leonor Watling, Geraldine Chaplin, and Rosario Flores. The film follows two men who form an ...

'' and ''

The Five Year Engagement ''The Five-Year Engagement'' is a 2012 romantic comedy film written, directed, and produced by Nicholas Stoller. Produced with Judd Apatow and Rodney Rothman, it is co-written by Jason Segel, who also stars in the film with Emily Blunt as a co ...

'' and has also been performed by notable singers such as

Harry Belafonte Harry Belafonte (born Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.; March 1, 1927) is an American singer, activist, and actor. As arguably the most successful Jamaican-American pop star, he popularized the Trinbagonian Caribbean musical style with an internat ...

Perry Como Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (; May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an Italian-American singer, actor and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century, he recorded exclusively for RCA Victor for 44 years, after signi ...

, Lola Beltrán and

Caetano Veloso Caetano Emanuel Viana Teles Veloso (; born 7 August 1942) is a Brazilian composer, singer, guitarist, writer, and political activist. Veloso first became known for his participation in the Brazilian musical movement Tropicalismo, which encomp ...

Songs

*"Pobre Leña de Pirul" *"Gorrioncillo pecho amarillo" *"

" *"Golondrina presumida" *"Huapango torero" *"Las rejas no matan" *"Que me toquen las golondrinas" *"

Paloma negra "Paloma Negra" is a ranchera song written by Tomás Méndez and originally released by Chavela Vargas in 1961 on her self-titled debut album. The song was later featured on the soundtrack to the Academy Award-nominated biopic '' Frida''. "Palom ...

" *"Puñalada trapera" *"Tres días" *"La Muerte de Un Gallero" *"La Melina Que Se Fue"

External links

* (Spanish) 1927 births 1995 deaths People from Fresnillo Mexican male composers Ranchera singers 20th-century composers 20th-century Mexican male singers {{mexico-composer-stub