{"id":18553,"date":"2020-03-05T21:54:48","date_gmt":"2020-03-05T20:54:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.expoflamenco.com\/archivo\/?p=18553"},"modified":"2020-03-05T21:55:27","modified_gmt":"2020-03-05T20:55:27","slug":"who-remembers-antonio-el-sevillano","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/expoflamenco.com\/archivo\/en\/bordonazo-new\/who-remembers-antonio-el-sevillano\/","title":{"rendered":"Who remembers Antonio El Sevillano?"},"content":{"rendered":"

There was a cantaor in Seville, a good friend of mine, who few people remember today, surely because his cante<\/em> was hard to emulate, having an incredible speed and a unique style. I\u2019m referring to Antonio P\u00e9rez Guerrero El Sevillano<\/em>, who was born at Macasta Street in 1909, by the San Luis neighborhood, near La Macarena, traditionally an area where good cante was always performed. Everyone born in Seville is a Sevillano<\/em> of course, so why did he end up with such moniker? He actually got it in Alcal\u00e1 de Guada\u00edra, to where he moved in his childhood, and where he became a cante aficionado<\/em>. Although he was a child prodigy of flamenco, he first became a football (soccer) player and he even played for the Real Betis Balompi\u00e9<\/em>, a popular football team of Seville, where he was known as El P\u00e9rez<\/em>. He was reportedly a fast and daring player, with lots of class. Antonio was a very good friend of Ni\u00f1a de los Peines and El Pinto, and he usually sang in private gatherings only, always creating a stir with his fandangos, a style he was good at since his childhood. He was also well acquainted with the soleares de Alcal\u00e1, because of his friendship with Joaqu\u00edn el de la Paula, gypsy cantaor from that town, and he was also good at buler\u00edas<\/em> and canti\u00f1as<\/em>. When the Odeon label released his first records, where he was accompanied by the guitar of Ni\u00f1o Ricardo, they sold like hotcakes, specially because of his fandangos, as no one had ever sung like that, with his unique style. Antonio was also a great poet, and he often wrote his own lyrics. One of the things that should be done in his memory would be gathering all his lyrics in one book, and also re-editing his discography, specially from his slate records, which undoubtedly have his best tracks.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00abA good opportunity to remember this great cantaor, with his wonderful personality, who is ignored by Seville, something that is not a surprise\u00bb<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

El Sevillano not only was a genius as a cantaor, one of those that come up every half a century, but he was also a wonderful person, having a great sense of humor. I was lucky to having been able to spend good times in his company, enjoying his wit and spark. I also witnessed his decline. The last time he sang in public was in the town of Tomares, near Seville, in 1987. Beni de C\u00e1diz and myself helped him on stage, as he was too weak to walk. It was a tribute paid to him by the Pe\u00f1a Flamenca de Tomares. That night he was moved to tears, seeing the venue full of spectators and all his friends selflessly singing in his honor. One day we talked about the possibility of writing his memoirs, and I remember he told me \u201cthere are things I won\u2019t be able to tell\u201d. It never happened, because he died soon after, in 1989. It\u2019s a pity, because Antonio el Sevillano knew all the greats of cante, baile and toque, rivalling many aces of cante such as Manuel Vallejo, Ni\u00f1o de Marchena, Manolo Fregenal, El Carbonerillo, Juanito Valderrama \u00a0and even Ni\u00f1a de los Peines. He was a great friend of Tom\u00e1s Pav\u00f3n, although he once said that the best in the family was his brother Arturo, the elder sibling. He died in 1989, so 2019\u00a0could be a good opportunity to remember this great cantaor, with his wonderful personality, who is ignored by Seville, something that is not a surprise. We don\u2019t reproach the artists, because we know that there are masters that are hard to emulate, and one of this masters is don Antonio P\u00e9rez Guerrero, from whom we take this fandango, well suited for the occasion:<\/p>\n

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Te contestar\u00e1.<\/em>
\nPreg\u00fantale a tu conciencia<\/em>
\ny ella te contestar\u00e1.<\/em>
\nQue no tuviste clemencia<\/em>
\ny arreglao a tu maldad<\/em>
\nte impondr\u00e1 la penitencia.<\/em><\/p>\n

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She\u2019ll reply.<\/em>
\nAsk your concience<\/em>
\nAnd she\u2019ll reply<\/em>
\nThat you had no lenience<\/em>
\nAnd according to your malice<\/em>
\nShe\u2019ll assign the penitence<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n