A common misconception amongst Americans is that Mexicans south of the Rio Grande celebrate Cinco as much as Americans do. Truth of the matter is, Cinco is an American marketing strategy, much like Easter, Halloween, and Christmas. The only place I can imagine Mexicans celebrating Cinco is down in Puebla, but that’s it. Gustavo Arrellano from Ask a Mexican, wrote a great piece last week that had a playlist of songs that you should ask the mariachis at your local Mexican restaurant to sing. Not a bad song in the lot, and you can read them here. This one’s my favorite:
“La Media Vuelta” (The Half-Turn): Is there a more supremely confident, hyper-macho Mexican song out there? “You’ll leave if I say so?” “You’ll stay if I say so?” “I want you to kiss other lips just to see how great I am in contrast?” Perfect!
Luis Miguel-La Media Vuelta [mp3]
Trio Los Panchos con Eydie Gorme-La Media Vuelta [mp3]
and what would any Cinco de Mayo be without some Chente!
Vicente Fernandez-Como Un Rey [mp3]