The Life, Music and Times of Carlos Gardel

376 Pages·1986·5.688 MB·English

by  Simon Collier

THE LIFE, MUSIC, AND TIMES OF
Cfo r le sre d a
The Life, Music, and Times
of Carlos Gardel
Simon Collier
Pitt Latin American Series
Carlos Gardel (1890—1935) holds a
unique place in the popular culture of
Latin America. From very modest
beginnings he rose to become the first
genuine “superstar” of twentieth-
century Latin America. In his late
teens he won local fame in the barrios
of Buenos Aires, singing in cafes and
political clubs. In the 1910s, in
collaboration with José Razzano, he
formed part of the most celebrated
singing duo of its time in Argentina
and Uruguay, specializing in folk
music. But it was in the 1920s, after he
switched to tango singing, that his
genius became apparent. The tango
was then at the height of its
popularity; the tango songs that
Gardel wrote and sang have become
classics of the genre. The magic of his
singing—on records, on the radio, and
in theaters—earned him an immense
following in Argentina, and he made
triumphant appearances in cabarets
and theaters in Barcelona, Madrid, and
Paris.
He began making movies in the
early 1930s, quickly establishing
himself as the most popular star of the
Spanish-language cinema. His films
(Continued on back flap)

Pitt Latin American Series

The Life, Music, and Times of Carlos Gardel

THE LIFE, MUSIC, e) TIMES OF
Carlos Sardel
SIMON COLLIER
University of Pittsburgh Press
Published by the University of Pittsburgh Press,
Pittsburgh, Pa., 15260
Copyright © 1986, University of Pittsburgh Press
All rights reserved
Feffer and Simons, Inc., London
Manufactured in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Collier, Simon.
The life, music & times of Carlos Gardel.
(Pitt Latin American series)
Bibliography: p.
Includes index.
1. Gardel, Carlos, 1890-1935. 2. Singers— Argentina —
Biography. 1. Title. II. Series.
ML420.G247C64 1986 784.500924 [B|] 86-4029
ISBN 0-8229-3535-X