Tanguito

José Alberto Iglesias, better known by the stage name Tanguito, was a singer/songwriter from Argentina who achieved prominence in the late 60s as a member of the early Argentine rock scene. Born in the city of Caseros on September 16 1945, Tanguito became involved in the music scene at a very young age. After dropping out of his studies at age 15, he started playing cover versions of popular rock n roll songs at various clubs in Buenos Aires. In 1963 he joined local rock band Los Dukes, replacing original vocalist Jorge Sosa. Together, they released various singles. The following year, he left Los Dukes to pursue a solo career. After meeting fellow musician Litto Nebbia at the famous Buenos Aires nightclub La Cueva, the pair wrote the song “La Balsa" together. The song was recorded and released by local band Los Gatos and went on to be a major success, selling over 250,000 copies and helping popularize Argentine rock. This raised Tanguito’s profile as a songwriter, and through his live performances he continued to gain prominence as part of the counter-cultural movement of the 1960s. Tanguito worked with record label Mandioca, which focused exclusively on Argentine music, to record some solo tracks. These stripped-down recordings include the longing ballad “Amor de Primavera.” Tanguito passed away on May 19, 1972 after an accident at the train tracks, and his recordings for Mandioca were released posthumously as an album titled Tango. This was followed by another compilation of previously unreleased solo recordings titled Yo soy Ramsés.