Rosie Flores

Rosie Flores
Rosie Flores at the 67th Annual Peabody Awards in 2008
Rosie Flores at the 67th Annual Peabody Awards in 2008
Background information
Birth nameRosalie Flores[1]
Born (1950-09-10) September 10, 1950 (age 74)
OriginSan Antonio, Texas, U.S.
Genres
Occupations
  • Singer
  • guitarist
  • songwriter
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • guitar
Years active1968–present
Labels
Websiterosieflores.com

Rosie Flores (born Rosalie Flores; September 10, 1950)[2] is an American singer, songwriter and musician. She currently resides in Austin, Texas, where August 31 was declared Rosie Flores Day by the Austin City Council in 2006.[3]

Biography

Rosie Flores was born in San Antonio, Texas, United States,[2] where she lived until the age of twelve, when her family moved to San Diego.[2] In interviews, Flores has recalled that growing up, she loved to watch musical television shows like The Dick Clark Show and Hit Parade. She began singing as a young child, and her brother, Roger, taught her to play rhythm guitar when she was a teenager.[4]

Flores formed her first band, Penelope's Children, while still in high school in California.[5] In the 1970s, Flores played the San Diego nightclub circuit and was the namesake of the alt country/cowpunk band Rosie and the Screamers.[2] After leaving the Screamers, she joined a cowpunk all-female band called Screamin' Sirens in the 1980s.[6] The latter band produced a series of 7-inch singles and tracks for compilation albums before releasing an album in 1984, Fiesta.produced by Brian Ahern, Michael Reid and Greg Humphries.

Flores's self-titled solo debut came out on Warner Bros./Reprise in 1987.[2] The single, "Crying Over You", put her on the Billboard chart for the first time.[7] Since then, Flores has recorded 13 additional solo albums.

Flores has toured widely, appearing in the United States, Europe, Asia, Australia,and New Zealand. and also performing frequently in Austin, continuing into 2024.[8] In 1995, she organized a tour with Wanda Jackson on a coast-to-coast North American tour,[9] and she toured for 8 months as a member of Asleep at the Wheel in 1997.[10] She has also traveled with a concert tribute she created to honor Janis Martin, a program which she performed at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum among other places.[11] In 2012, she was part of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's tribute to Chuck Berry.[12] Her media appearances include Austin City Limits and Late Night with Conan O'Brien, and she had a cameo role in the 1993 film The Thing Called Love featuring River Phoenix and Sandra Bullock.

In addition to her work as a performer and songwriter, Flores has helped to revive the careers of female rockabilly musicians from previous generations and to create new interest in their music. Her album Rockabilly Filly, released on Hightone Records in 1995, included vocals from early rock and roll musicians Janis Martin and Wanda Jackson.[13] In 2007, Flores brought Janis Martin to a recording studio in Blanco, Texas, to procuce with Bobby Trimble a record that would be both Martin's first solo album in thirty years as well as her last before her death of cancer.[14] After the project was turned down by a number of record labels, Flores raised more than $16,000 on Kickstarter to release the album, which was titled Janis Martin: The Blanco Sessions. Flores is credited as a producer.[15]

Flores's current (as of 2013–2018) guitar of choice is her James Trussart SteelTopCaster. She uses Fender amplifiers, and has also played Fender Telecasters, Gretsch electrics, Gibson Les Pauls, and various acoustic guitars.[16]

Musical style

According to AllMusic, Flores's "talent for alternative country and rockabilly made her a favorite with both audiences and critics."[2] Nashville Scene defined Flores as a "New Wave country-rocker".[17] San Diego Tribune described Flores as a "dynamo of rockabilly and cow-punk" who is "equally gifted as a singer, songwriter, guitarist and band leader [and] shines whether performing country, rock, swing or any of the other earthy American styles she has made her own."[18]

Personal life

Flores has revealed that, under pressure from her manager, she had an abortion in 1986, shortly after signing with Warner Bros. She later regretted the decision.[5] She has never been married, and has said that her lifestyle, which involves frequent touring, makes it difficult to maintain long-term relationships.[16]

Discography

Main article: Rosie Flores discography

Awards and nominations

Year Association Category Nominated Work Result
1986 Academy of Country Music Top New Female Vocalist Herself Nominated
2007 Peabody Awards N/A Whole Lotta Shakin' Won
2014 Ameripolitan Music Awards Honky Tonk Female Herself Won
2014 Ameripolitan Music Awards Rockabilly Female Herself Won
2024 National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellow Lifetime career Won

References

  1. ^ "BANDERA HIGHWAY". ASCAP. American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Manheim, James. "Rosie Flores Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  3. ^ "Search Results – AustinTexas.gov – The Official Website of the City of Austin". Austintexas.gov. Retrieved February 28, 2019.
  4. ^ Hudson, Kathleen (2013). Women in Texas Music: Stories and Songs. University of Texas Press. pp. 69–73. ISBN 978-0292752863.
  5. ^ a b Davis, John T. "Rosie Flores Still Rockin'". Austin Woman Magazine. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
  6. ^ Gary Indiana, "Screamin' Sirens," Flipside, whole no. 49 (Summer 1986), pp. 18–19.
  7. ^ Arnold, Thomas K (September 16, 1987). "TWO SINGERS HOPE ALL IS 'ROSIE' ON THE COMEBACK TRAIL : Flores Comes Full Circle, Returns to Traditional Country". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
  8. ^ "Rosie Flores: Tour". Rosie Flores. 2019. Retrieved January 6, 2019.
  9. ^ "Rosie Flores Official Web Site". Archived from the original on September 9, 2007. Retrieved August 6, 2021.
  10. ^ "Calhoun Times and Gordon County News – Google News Archive Search". Retrieved February 28, 2019.
  11. ^ "Rosie Flores: A Tribute to Janis Martin". Rockhall.org. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
  12. ^ Yarborough, Chuck (October 26, 2012). "Rock Hall's Chuck Berry American Music Masters tribute: Range of performers paying homage to '50s pioneer". Cleveland Plain Dealer. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
  13. ^ "Rockabilly Filly Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
  14. ^ "Janis Martin, 'The Female Elvis,' Returns". NPR. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
  15. ^ Flores, Rosie. "JANIS MARTIN " The Female Elvis", Final Recording Sessions". Kickstarter.com. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
  16. ^ a b Charupakorn, Joe (January 9, 2013). "Interview: Rosie Flores – Rockabilly Road Doggie". Premier Guitar. Retrieved January 6, 2019.
  17. ^ Hurt, Edd (October 3, 2022). "Chris Hillman, Rosie Flores and Many More Celebrate the Story of Country-Rock". Nashville Scene. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  18. ^ Varga, George (July 2, 2017). "Rosie Flores, San Diego-bred dynamo of rockabilly and cow-punk, returns". San Diego Tribune. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
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