Q&A: TRINI LOPEZ Early push from Sinatra launched a career of surprises

By Jerry Fink

Wednesday, Aug. 29, 2007 | 10 p.m.

IF YOU GO

What: Bubblegum Bonanza featuring Ron Dante, the Ohio Express, the 1910 Fruitgum Company, Andrew Gold, Bo Donaldson & The Heywoods and special guest Trini Lopez

When: 4 p.m. Saturday

Where: The Cannery

Admission: Free

Info: 617-5585

By Jerry Fink

Las Vegas Sun

As a child, Trini Lopez played guitar and sang on the street corners of Dallas for pennies.

As a star, he played in concert halls around the world and earned millions of dollars.

He stayed on top for 20 years until he called it quits in 1981 to play golf and tennis and to relax, traveling no farther for business than to the recording studio to turn out an occasional album.

“I got burned out with all the traveling, even though it was first class -- the beautiful hotels, the limos,” Lopez, 70, recently said by phone from his home in Palm Springs, Calif. “I still got bored with being on the road. You know, you get up in the morning and say, ‘What country am I in?'”

He was big. For a time in the same league as Elvis. He had a slew of No. 1's -- “La Bamba,” “Lemon Tree,” “If I Had a Hammer.”

He and Elvis started performing about the same time, in the '50s. But Elvis made it bigger sooner and then went into the Army. Lopez, who had been singing primarily in Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana, headed for Los Angeles about the time Elvis was discharged.

It was Frank Sinatra who forever changed the life of the young man from the barrio.

Lopez will make a rare public appearance Saturday at the Cannery, at the Bubblegum Bonanza concert produced by Ron Dante, the driving force behind the Archies. Dante produced Lopez's latest album, “The Wanderer,” which was recorded at the Palms in Las Vegas this year.

Q Why did you really retire?

I just retired from being on the road all the time. I didn't get tired. I just got bored with so much traveling all over the world. People say to me, “Aren't you bored not doing anything?” I say no. I love to sleep late. I just got up about an hour ago. I'm used to entertaining all my life. You can't go to sleep early. I can't go to sleep till 3 or 4 in the morning.

Did you ever dream you would be so successful?

I dreamed a lot. I prayed a lot. My father was a singer. He taught me all the songs he used to sing as a boy in Mexico. I went on to record a lot of those songs that became hit records for me all over the world, songs like “Besa Me Mucho,” “Granada,” “La Bamba.”

I was doing my Latin songs that my dad taught me when I was a kid. I was doing “La Bamba” even then. I used to sing “La Bamba” long before Ritchie Valens (Valens' version was a hit in 1958; he died in a plane crash in 1959 along with Buddy Holly and J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson). I was a little older than Ritchie. When he came out with “La Bamba” I was mad. I thought “Ah, God, somebody beat me to it,” because I wanted to record it one day. It turned out Ritchie died in the first year or so after the record was out. I recorded it in 1962 for Frank Sinatra's Reprise Records and it became a smash, worldwide. It was meant to be my song. I made it international, bigger than Ritchie's. Bigger. A worldwide hit.

When did your career first take off?

I came to Los Angeles and I got my first job there in February 1960 at a little club, opening a show for Joanie Sommers (“Johnny Get Angry”). She had her first album. I'll never forget. We were booked for two weeks and then another unknown guy came in. He just had his first album out, too. His name was Jack Jones. All these people would come in for two weeks. Guess how long I stayed? I stayed a year. Can you believe it?

How were you discovered?

Frank Sinatra discovered me at a nightclub called P.J.'s in Hollywood. It was 1962. He used to come in there a lot with all his big star friends. I was so nervous to see him. I've only had one idol in my life and that was Frank Sinatra. I was supposed to be at P.J.'s for four or five months and I stayed a year and a half, just me and my guitar. Reprise recorded my first album, “Trini Lopez Live at P.J.'s,” and by the grace of God the record comes out and becomes an international hit. The record went on to be No. 1 in 25 countries within six months. They gave me a five-year contract and I stayed with them for eight years. I can't even believe it to this day.

How did your sudden success affect you?

The record comes out and becomes the No. 3 album on Cashbox and Billboard and stayed there for two years. So now I leave P.J.'s, where I'm making $250 a week working six nights a week -- and I went to making $10,000 a night. That was in 1963.

Did it change you?

I don't think it did. Everybody says it has not. I don't believe in being conceited and so on. Two men in my life who were the nicest, down-to-earth people were the biggest stars in the world -- Elvis and Frank.

Were you and Elvis close?

He was my friend. He was my neighbor here in Palm Springs. He lived a block away. I used to go see his shows. He used to come see my shows.

Did you perform a lot in Las Vegas?

Yeah. I worked lot at the Desert Inn. I worked with so many comedians who became big names, so many I can't even remember some of their names. John Byner, Totie Fields, Joan Rivers. Shecky Green at the MGM. When I started my career my first hotel in Las Vegas was at the old Flamingo. My opening act was Bill Cosby. Can you believe that?

You worked with some giants.

Woody Allen, when he was just starting his career with movies, he opened a show for me in New York. In Vegas, oh my God, I had Rich Little. Myron Cohen worked for me. Sammy Shore (a founder of the Comedy Store in Los Angeles). I started Sammy Shore in Las Vegas. He went from working with me for many years to opening a show for Elvis.

Any regrets?

I have three regrets. I've always wanted to do acting. The biggest thing I ever did was “The Dirty Dozen.” My contract was for three months, but the picture was taking longer to make than they thought it would. I stayed for seven months and Frank Sinatra told me to leave. He said the public is very fickle and that they'll forget you. So I got three attorneys to get me off that movie. I had a big part at the end of the movie. I was supposed to be one of the heroes at the end, but I never got to do my big part. I had to leave.

The second regret, I turned down 20th Century Fox. They wanted to give me a five-year movie contract, but my manager said I should put a clause in the contract for script approval. So that deal was never made.

My third regret, Universal wanted to give me a seven-movie contract. But they wanted me to leave Reprise and join Uni Records, which was owned by Universal. I turned the deal down. The artist that became the biggest for Uni was Neil Diamond. Other than that, I've done pretty good.

Jerry Fink can be reached at 259-4058 or at [email protected].