Earlier, we informed you of the passing of 70s/80s hip hop pioneer Shabba Doo (Adolfo Quinones). Also happening around the same time was a Latino band from LA called Tierra that was making a lot of noise on “Soul” radio stations.
If you were listening to the radio in 1980, you couldn’t miss one of the smoothest soul songs of the year: a Philly classic from the 60s … first recorded by the Intruders called “Together” … was remade by Tierra with Rudy Salas on lead vocals. As Soul Tracks notes, it was an across-the-board smash.
Unfortunately, here’s where the story turns. Salas, who was also the co-founder of Tierra, passed away yesterday (12-29-20). As of this posting, we don’t have any info as to the cause of death. Rudy Salas was 72.
Tierra posted the sad news on its Facebook page:
It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Rudy Salas, the leader and co-founder of Tierra, early this morning. We have lost our rock, our creative spirit, husband, father, grandfather (and soon to be great-grandfather), uncle, brother and leader of Tierra whose history spans nearly 5 decades. Millions have enjoyed Tierra’s music and we are deeply grateful for the outpouring of love and support we have received from close friends, supporters and family. Because of the pandemic, we cannot immediately announce funeral arrangements but we will keep you informed in the future. In the meantime, please respect the privacy of the family and band members as we grieve. Please keep us in your prayers and thoughts in this difficult time.
Sincerely,
The Salas and Tierra Family
Here’s more about Tierra via Soul Tracks:
After working as part of the popular group El Chicano, Rudy and Steve Salas formed Tierra in the early 70s as a full bodied R&B band, with additional members Rudy Villa, Kenny Román, Conrad Lazano, Aaron Ballesteros, Alfred Rubaclava and Leon Bisquera. They recorded a couple albums that had regional success, but broke out in 1980 with a harmony-filled cover of the 1967 Intruders hit “Together” (which also had a piece of “Cowboys to Girls” thrown in at the end). It became the group’s signature song, hitting the upper registers of both the pop and R&B charts.
Tierra followed it with another Philly soul cover, charting on a nice version “La La Means I Love You.”
Get the rest of this story on Tierra and the death of Rudy Salas at Soul Tracks
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