CHARLY GARCÍA

"Mamá la libertad,

 Siempre la llevarás

dentro del corazón

te pueden corromper

te puedes olvidar

pero ella siempre está"

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"B"

Main Decade: 80's  

Main Ages:

80's Rock en Ñ Clásico

90's Rock En Ñ: La Era de Oro

2000 Rock En Ñ: La Dispersión

Key Members: Charly García

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Key Songs:

Yendo de la Cama al Living, Demoliendo Hoteles, Cerca de La Revolución, Inconsciente Colectivo, Yo no quiero Volverme Tan Loco, No Soy un extraño, Los Dinosaurios, No Me dejan Salir, Rap del Exilio, Raros Peinados Nuevos, Funky, Promesas sobre el Bidet, Pasajera en Trance, Rezo por Vos, No voy en Tren, Fantasy, No Toquen, Asesiname, Influencia, Reloj de Plastilina, Filosofía Barata y Zapatos de Goma, De Mi, Fax U, La Sal no Sala, Chipi Chipi, Alguien en el Mundo Piensa en Mi, El Aguante, Tu Vicio, I’m Not Love, Rock and Roll Yo, No Importa, Nos Siguen Pegando Abajo (Pecado Mortal).

 

There are those who are born with amazing musical abilities and reach great heights; others, without having much, achieve great things thanks to the power they have over the people themselves. In other cases, it's a combination of both, but they don't become widely known. Still, other musicians can become so but at the same time lack good lyrics.

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But achieving absolute idolatry in Argentina is a task for a select few, who can be counted on the fingers of one hand. They are not only touched by a magic wand, but also manage to wield power over their audiences, to the point that their words become sacred. Among them, without a doubt, is Charly Garcia.

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Charly achieved idolatry at the beginning of the 1980s. His solo albums were fundamental weapons for this, and at the same time his media appearances were, but like his previous works, (which will be discussed when his respective previous groups are discussed), it is the sociological nuances that breathe from album to album, at that time already being almost an idol of the masses and being the great triumphant of a military dictatorship that ended, he was one of the cultural heroes of the recently recovered democracy in Argentina and at the same time one of its victims.

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In the transition from the last military dictatorship and the return of democracy, Argentine Rock was reborn with influences from the 80s; Punk and New Wave had already exploded in bands like Soda Stereo, Sumo, Fito Páez, Patricio Rey y sus Redonditos de Ricota, Los Fabulosos Cadillacs among others. They were forming what would be the sound of the 80s in Argentina, they were different times and people no longer wanted to protest because they were repressed; They wanted to dance and enjoy the freedom that the arrival of democracy brought them. Charly wouldn't be left behind in the face of all these events.

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In any case, he had already proven himself and fulfilled his role in the 1970s. At the beginning of the 1980s, he would embark on his first solo career, while also launching his career as a producer. His involvement in albums by Andrés Calamaro, Sueter, Git, Los Abuelos de la Nada, and Los Twist, all key groups for understanding the 1980s in Argentina, would be marked by the idolatry he felt for the new generation of Argentine rock musicians, the emergence of nightlife on the streets of Buenos Aires, and the beginning of drug use, especially cocaine, that spread to the country—in other words, the emergence of the rise of democracy.

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This would influence his music, which also took on a more danceable sound and far removed from the progressive rock he had with Serú Girán, his previous group, from his revenge on the military in his first album, "Yendo de la Cama al Living," to his revolutionary "Clics Modernos," influenced by Prince. His subsequent albums, from the "Piano Bar" era onward, would mark his career with the selection of great musicians in his ensembles. For example, the group that recorded the album "Piano Bar" with him included the Trio GIT on rhythm section and Fito Páez on keyboards. These first three releases would be related to Charly's "post-dictatorship" period, celebrating and fighting to prevent the military from regaining control of the country. He even flirted with Spinetta about releasing an album together, but it never came to fruition. The result of this brief affair was the track "Rezo Por Vos," another classic from both of them. A fight between the two would suspend the project. This attempt at an album served to alert Charly that his drug problems were becoming unsustainable, as the fight with Spinetta arose from the mood swings Charly began experiencing at that time.

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After two more albums featuring his usual collaborators such as Fernando Samalea on drums, El Negro García López on guitar, and Fabiana Cantilo on backing vocals, among others, and two albums with his former Serú Girán bandmate Pedro Aznar, the 1990s arrived, and with them a new Charly García.

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Filosofía Barata and Zapatos de Goma were an album that lived up to its time, with a sound far removed from the '80s and New Wave, returning to his roots more closely tied to Classical Music and Pop, adding the darkness into which his personal life was gradually sinking, including one of his first drug inpatient sessions.

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The following album, La Hija de La Lágrima, would be one of his last great works, a dark and cinematic album with a concept that runs throughout the album. The great news was that it would also mark the debut of another of Charly's constant collaborators, María Gabriela Epumer, who would also be featured on Charly's subsequent MTV Unplugged.

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Already during the Menem era, Charly would fall victim to his own idolatry, which would lead him to the worst excesses and completely unfortunate public appearances (among which were his support for then-president Carlos Saúl Menem and his jumping into a pool from the tenth floor). His life was truly chaotic, and the only thing that would emerge from it would be a strange, experimental, and even risky work: Say No More. The album isn't bad at all; I think it's a very risky piece of work from Charly. The downside of this album was his subsequent transformation; after Say No More, Charly would become a cliché of himself, a mere rock star product of the cheapest marketing and his television-like perception of rebellion. This image would tarnish his own name and influence his life. Anyway, it goes without saying that between the years 95 until more or less 2008, Charly Garcia would get lost in the image he created of himself, and as a person before his peers he left much to be desired, he continued releasing albums among which is the disastrous "El Aguante" there are also other great albums like "Influencia" and "Rock and Roll Yo" and even a collaboration with the Folklore singer Mercedes Sosa in "Alta Fidelidad", but nothing compared to those he had released in the 80's or early 90's. To all this, the death of Maria Gabriela Epumer and the constant fights with his son, marked Charly more, until he was on the verge of death.

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He went to a rehab, detoxed, and gained a lot of weight thanks to this. Today, he tours and at the same time enjoys a more mature life without the youthful frenzy of other eras. Although he hasn't released any albums and doesn't even have 5% of his previous voice, he has had golden moments, like Spinetta's appearance on the DVD "El Concierto Subacuático," where the two of them sang "Rezo por Vos." Beyond that, I have a lot of faith in whatever he releases next. Today, with Cerati's condition, Spinetta's death, and the absence of truly compelling bands on the Argentine scene, Charly Garcia is not only a survivor of four decades of rock music, but a survivor of the two musical movements that emerged in Argentine rock, both in the 70s, as a protesting rebel against a military regime that censored and killed, and in the 80s and 90s, and as a symbol of the resurgent culture.

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Ladies and gentlemen, Charly Garcia, who was born with Videla, who was born without power, who fought for freedom when he could never have it.

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Por Homer  

Mar/4/2014

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