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Biography:
His fusion of tight tropical rhythms with American rock && roll earned Mike Laure the title "El Rey del Trópico." Born in Jalisco in 1939, Laure grew up listening to an assortment of cross-the-border rockers; he even borrowed the name for his group, Las Cometas, from his favorite, Bill Haley's band. Laure tempered his rock && roll inclinations with Cumbia rhythms learned from Colombia's Sonora Dinamita. The fusion sparked a whole new style of music, termed chunchaca, and Laure scored many Mexican hits during the mid-'60s, including &"Banda Borracha," &"Rajita de Canela," and &"Tiburón, Tiburón." During the early '70s, the most important facet of Laure's band, his cousin Chelo, left for a successful solo career. Despite a few more hits during the mid-'70s, Mike Laure's popularity waned by the 1980s. He was debilitated by a 1990 stroke, though he returned to live performance on a limited basis. Laure's influence stayed strong, however, among several generations of Cumbia artists, from Rigo Tovar in the '70s to Fito Olivares in the '80s to Yahari in the '90s. John Bush, All Music Guide

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