written by Danny Flores (as Chuck Rio)

produced by Joe Johnson

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I’m making this page July 11th, 2021, which would have been the

92nd birthday of Daniel (Danny) Flores, one of the core members

of The Champs, and songwriter of “Tequila” under his pseudonym

Chuck Rio. Happy Posthumous Birthday, DF.

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Born (Santa Paula) and raised (Long Beach) in California, Danny grew from a very musical childhood, playing instruments and forming bands at a young age. He met and teamed up with the younger Dave Burgess, who then was going by the recording name Dave Dupree. The duo tapped Danny’s previous collaborators and band members to come together as The Champs. Just before Christmas 1957, they recorded a couple of songs for Dave’s label Challenge Records, including “Tequila,” an instrumental based on an old Cuban mambo beat. As 1958 opened, it became their first single.

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“Tequila” secured the #1 spot on both the US and US R&B charts, as well as placing at #5 in the UK. Old as the song now is, many of us of the younger generations know it from its myriad of uses in pop culture. One of the most famous is a memorable scene from the 1962-set baseball-centered kids’ movie The Sandlot (1992), in which the boys go to the carnival, chew tobacco (“you’re killin’ me, Smalls!”), get on a dizzying ride and all end up nauseated, vomiting everywhere. Good times.

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The song is, of course, essentially an instrumental, with the title spoken/chanted/shouted three times total throughout. This being the case, lyrics below are not necessary. My final note on this song is that it’s quickly referenced at the end of Sheb Wooley’s 1959 novelty hit “The Purple People Eater”—along with a reference to another ’50s hit, “Short Shorts” by The Royal Teens.

 

RIP Danny, 7/11/29 to 9/19/06.

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Have notes to add? Let me know!

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YT:

full version

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The Champs’ official website