Your Cinco de Mayo Playlist
Happy Cinco de Mayo… or, if you’re just here for the cold beer and good food, the soundtrack matters, even if you don’t know every name on it.
Billboard put together a playlist that hits the basics and then some. It’s not about being an expert. It’s about the feel.
Here are some highlights:
- “La Bamba” – Ritchie Valens
- “Amor Prohibido” – Selena
- “El Rey” – Vicente Fernández
- “Clavado en Un Bar” – Maná
- “Viva México” – Lucero
- “Hasta la Raíz” – Natalia Lafourcade
- “La Venia Bendita” – Marco Antonio Solís
- “Mi Ranchito” – Roberto Tapia
- “El Noa Noa” – Juan Gabriel
- “Parrandera, Rebelde y Atrevida” – Jenni Rivera
You’ve probably heard “La Bamba” a hundred times without thinking about it. Same with Selena… even if you don’t speak Spanish, you know the melody. That’s the hook with this list. You don’t need to translate it. You just feel it.
Some songs are made for sitting outside with a plate of tacos and a drink sweating in your hand. Others feel like they belong in a packed bar where everybody knows the words.
That’s really the whole point. It’s not about knowing the catalog. It’s about turning it up, letting it play, and realizing pretty quickly that good music doesn’t need a manual.
You can find the Billboard playlist on Spotify.
Happy Cinco de Mayo!
Doug O’Brien
