Album Notes

The family that plays together stays together. That is certainly true of the Pena-Govea clan in the San Francisco Mission District. In the last two years, they have become a cultural force in the Bay Area, performing traditional accordion-based Mexican and Colombian music. Performances at the Mexican Museum's 30th Anniversary Gala, Pena del Sur, and El Encuentro del Canto Popular have brought them word-of-mouth acclaim. The spark propelling them is their talented 15-year old daughter Rene, an accordion prodigy. On this recording, she shares vocal duties and plays button-row accordion on classic songs such as Los Laureles, Pajarillo Barranqueno, Atotonilco, and other oldies. Joining her on guitarron is her dad Miguel Govea who leads the popular local band Los Compas, and her mom Susan Pena on Bajo Sexto guitar. Her aunt, Irene Perez, sits in on trap drums and completes the family affair. As soon as you hear Rene play, you realize there is something extraordinary as she rips out clearly executed riffs with the nuance of a Flaco Jimenez...The feeling the music creates and the spirit it captures is of a family sitting around singing together! (Jesse Varela, Latin Beat Magazine, Sept. 2001)