{"id":76,"date":"2021-09-08T16:40:39","date_gmt":"2021-09-08T20:40:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/unewhavendh.org\/music-of-texas-fall-2021\/?p=76"},"modified":"2021-12-25T17:14:34","modified_gmt":"2021-12-25T21:14:34","slug":"soy-de-tejas-by-steve-jordan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unewhavendh.org\/music-of-texas-fall-2021\/2021\/09\/08\/soy-de-tejas-by-steve-jordan\/","title":{"rendered":"“Soy De Tejas” by Steve Jordan"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Song Information:<\/strong>  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Soy De Tejas\u201d was written and performed by Steve Jordan. This song was released in 1979 by Hacienda Records in his album, Soy De Tejas<\/em>. Hacienda Records is located in Corpus Christi, Texas. The label was founded in 1979 by brothers, Rick Garc\u00eda and Roland Garcia. The genre of the song is Latin, and the style is considered to be Tejano, Tex-Mex,  Norte\u00f1o (Texan, Northern) and conjunto. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Artist Information:<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The songwriter, Esteban \u201cSteve\u201d Jordan, is known to be the \u201cJimi Hendrix of the accordion\u201d. He was also known for keeping up with technological advancements such as synthesizers, fuzz boxes and phase shifters. Jordan was born in Elsa, Texas in 1939, and began performing music at the age of 7. He was the youngest of 15 children to migrant farmworkers and learned how to sing and play instruments before learning how to read and write. He held the nickname of \u201cEl Parche,\u201d which translates to \u201cthe eyepatch\u201d. He was partially blinded shortly after he was born due to an accident involving a midwife who rinsed his eyes with a contaminated liquid. This required him to wear an eyepatch nearly his whole life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Analysis:<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the first few\u00a0seconds of listening to \u201cSoy De Tejas,\u201d\u00a0by Steve Jordan, it is easily detected to be a\u00a0conjunto song, with Mexican roots and Spanish lyrics.\u00a0The very first line translates to \u201cI’m from Texas, it’s my pride to be a Chicano\u201d.\u00a0\u201cChicano,\u201d which\u00a0is someone who is\u00a0native of, or descends from, Mexico who lives in the US.\u00a0\u00a0This piece is categorized under the Latin genre on streaming services, and\u00a0can\u00a0be\u00a0described in the style of Tex-Mex, Tejano and conjunto.\u00a0\u201cRancho Alegre\u201d,\u00a0a\u00a0nonprofit\u00a0radio\u00a0organization dedicated to preserving and promoting Tejano and Conjunto music\u00a0describes conjunto music as\u00a0\u201ccharacterized by a strong, unrelenting beat and bright accordion melodies, evidence of the fusion of German and Mexican immigrant cultures in south Texas at the beginning of the 20th\u00a0century,\u201d, this is a clear representation of conjunto music. While listening to this piece, I could hear similarities with\u00a0Flaco\u00a0Jimenez\u00a0in the style and\u00a0timbre\u00a0of both the instrumental and vocal portions.\u00a0The style of this song\u00a0reflects the Tex-Mex \/conjunto music style of Texas, and how Mexican culture has absorbed in parts of Texas.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After\u00a0listening\u00a0to the lyrics all the way\u00a0through,\u00a0it is noticed that\u00a0cities and towns of\u00a0both\u00a0Texas and Mexico are represented, such as\u00a0San Antonio, Corpus Christi,\u00a0and\u00a0Mcallen. Jordan\u00a0then mentions towns\/cities\u00a0that conduct part of the Texas and Mexico\u00a0border; Laredo\u00a0(Texas), Matamoros\u00a0(Mexico)\u00a0and Reynosa (Mexico).\u00a0After the general translation I was able to make out of the lyrics, it reminded me of the Cheers theme song, \u201cWhere Everybody Knows Your Name\u201d.\u00a0He sings about\u00a0how in Texas, he is well known everywhere he goes, and he\u00a0has\u00a0pride in where he grew up.\u00a0Another lyric that shows his Texan pride is when he says\u00a0\u201cMis carnales te\u00a0sabr\u00e1n\u00a0alivianar\u201d,\u00a0which directly translates to \u201cmy\u00a0carnal ones will know how to alleviate you\u201d.\u00a0Carnal is a Mexican \u201cslang\u201d word that means friend or close relative, implying\u00a0that he had a large family and a tight-knit community.\u00a0It is clear through the song that Texas is a big part of his life, and it gives a\u00a0comfortable\u00a0lifestyle to\u00a0where he grew up.\u00a0In 1958 he had moved from San Antonio to San Jose, California. In the early 70s, Jordan had moved back to Texas and continued to release music such as “El Corrido de Johnny el Pachuco\u201d and \u201cEl Piedrecita,\u201d. It is clear that although he physically left Texas, his Texas and Tejano pride did not leave him. The lyrical interpretation of this work, I believe,\u00a0is that he took his Texan pride with him to\u00a0California and\u00a0reminisced\u00a0about\u00a0his life growing up.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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