THROWBACK THURSDAY: The Dancehall Days of Tejano Music

The live Tejano music scene has changed over the years. Today's Tejano events are usually a part of some big outdoor festivals or in a club or bar, which means the headliners don't take the stage until close to midnight. Either way, you can't dance outside, or it's too crowded to dance in the club. I think we need to start a trend to bring back Tejano to the dancehall.

Live Tejano music in a dance hall just hits differently.

Back then, Tejano events were held at dancehalls! You would head out to the dance where doors opened at 7 p.m. The opening act took the stage by 8:30 p.m., and the headliner usually closed out the night, taking the stage at 10-10:30 p.m. It was all over around midnight.

You would get all dressed up for a night on a huge dance floor and dance the night away. However, back in the 90s, some of these dances turned into concerts with standing room only and no room to dance. However, it didn't matter because the live music vibe and energy were different back then.

Victoria was a Tejano dance hall hotspot back in the day.

Here is a list of all the Tejano artists I saw perform in a dance hall in Victoria, back in the day: Grupo Mazz, La Mafia, Emilio, Michael Salgado, La Fiebre, Jaime Y Los Chamcos. Intocable, Los Palominos, La Diferenzia, David Lee Garza, Ramon Ayala, La Tropa F, Bobby Pulido, Roberto Pulido, Fito Olivares, Fama, Ram Herrera, Shelly Lares, the Hometown Boys, La Sombra, and Eddie Gonzales. I know I am missing a few on my list.

While I never saw Albert Zamora or Xelencia perform at a dance hall, I saw them perform many times at Roberto's Cocktails in Victoria. Who remembers that place?

Many great dancehalls in the Crossroads and South Texas.

I attended many great dances at places like the Yellow Rose in Corpus Christi, the Texas Grand in Beeville, and, of course, here in Victoria, places like the Sun Valley Ranch, Club Westerner, and Riverside Market Square.

What are some of the dancehalls you saw live Tejano music? Let us know and send us a message in our app.

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