Joe King Carrasco & The Crowns

In the late 70's Texas band Los Molinos spawned a crown and velvet cape wearing hero. His new band combined the most thrilling aspects of farfisa laden Tex Mex music with sassy bi-lingual danceable new wave and was called the Crowns. Recording for a string of labels both small and large ( Roir, Stiff, MCA, Hannibal, Big Beat etc), Joe 'King' Carrasco & The Crowns were a lively spectacle embraced by the new MTV medium and they made a memorable, if brief splash. Branded purveyors of Nuevo Wavo Tex-Mex, from the late 70's until the early 80's they became a popular NYC based sensation, appearing on Saturday Night Live and even luring in Michael Jackson to appear on background vocals on their 1982 MCA debut Synapse Gap. They merged the stylings of 60's predecessors like Sir Douglas Quintetand QUESTION MARK? AND THE MYSTERIANS, Sam The Sham and The Pharoahs with the post moderne retro flavor rave ups of party bands like the B-52s. By the later 80's the band had lost their major label deal, and Carrasco himself moved to Nicaragua, immersing himself in the political situation and writing more socially relevant material. His influence has been seen in acts like French group Mano Negra (featuring Manu Chao) who covered Carrasco's hit Pachucco Hop on their hit debut album. While a member of the The Texas Tornados, one of Joe's influences, the late great Freddy Fender sang Carrasco's song Tell Me, bringing a musical journey full circle. Currently Carrasco lives and performs regularly in Puerta Vallarata, Mexico with three Jack Russell Terriers. http://www.joeking.com Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.