Singer Juan Gabriel performs at the National Auditorium in Mexico City in 2012.
Advertisement
VALERIE MACON/AFP/Getty ImagesJohn Fogerty is among the many artists paying tribute to popular Mexican singer-songwriter Juan Gabriel, who died Sunday at the age of 66. The statement says he died Sunday, but does not say where. He had a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and was still on the list of music industry high-earners thanks to his touring.
Gabriel’s songs, beloved across Latin America, also had been translated into French, German, Italian and Japanese.
Juan Gabriel had a “voice and talent that represent Mexico”. “Juan is a legend in the world of Latin Music and someone that I truly admire”. “He has left us too soon”. He was also well-known for his musical films, and for his work as a music producer.
Juan Gabriel was scheduled to give another concert in El Paso, Texas, on Sunday night.
He later said that he deeply loved his mother, who died in 1974, and that she inspired one of his greatest hits, “Endless Love”, according to the AP.
He went to school only until fifth grade after he escaped the orphanage, where he met music teacher and mentor Juan Contreras. The teenager ended up in jail, accused of robbery, but the jail director and his wife helped free him.
Gabriel landed a record contract after his 1971 hit song, “No Tengo Dinero”.
Advertisement
In 1986, then-Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley declared October 5 “The Day of Juan Gabriel”. His fans were surprised when years later it became known that he had fathered four children with his friend Laura Salas.
