Signal Fire: The SCRB's Latest Release

The Santa Cruz River Band is a professional concert touring group from Tucson, Arizona – Ted Ramirez, Michael J. Ronstadt, and Gilbert Brown make up the band - they perform in English, Spanish, Welsh and American Indian languages. They tour continually in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Europe.

Creating Signal Fire:

This album is truly an intriguing and captivating collection of original, contemporary and classic story-songs recorded in English, Spanish and Welsh. The album authentically represents a very beautiful heritage and vision found in the people and places of the American Southwest. The musical influences at work in this recording come from the band’s unique musical influences – they range from Mexico’s King of Falsetto, Miguel Aceves Mejia, to amazingly prolific Bob Dylan. This album is a strong, authentic and heartfelt collection.

Signal Fire is a collection of eleven wonderfully unique and beautifully recorded folk songs

– including a popular Mexican Huapango. The Huapango is Mexican song style possessing a powerful rhythm pattern, one created by the indigenous musicians of Mexico and adapted to European styled instruments by Spanish musicians. This wonderful serenade song is entitled “Serenata Huasteca” and written by the legendary Mexican composer, Jose Alfredo Jimenez.

The collection includes many honored contemporary folk songs like “Friend For Life” by auto harp master Bryan Bowers and “Who Will Watch The Home Place” by Appalachian rooted songwriter Kate Long. The band presents each song with a new and very tasty arrangement. Signal Fire takes you to the Country Blues yodeling sounds of the American depression era with the Jimmie Rogers classic “California Blues” and to the magical Sierra Madres of old Mexico with a beautiful rendition of “Cielito Lindo”.

Every song on this album offers something very exciting and new. Michael J. Ronstadt – vocalist, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, grew up in Tucson, Arizona learning traditional songs from his father, and singing with his older sister Linda Ronstadt. His family came to the southwest from Germany in the middle 1800’s. His original song "Wagon Mound" is about the old Santa Fe Trail stop in northern New Mexico - this haunting traveling song explores the effects felt by the territorial period pioneers traveling west on the Santa Fe Trail in1800’s.

Gilbert Brown – vocalist, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, grew up playing music in Ajo, a small Arizona mining town where he was born. His family came to Arizona from Oklahoma during the dust bowl period. His quizzical song "Solano's Hats" pays tribute to a collection of old cowboy hats found in the legendary Solano's Western Wear store in Raton, New Mexico. This special hat collection might represent feats of daring-do and adventure, but do they also speak of lives thrown away? Gilbert muses about the lives these old cowboy hats represent.

Teodoro “Ted” Ramirez – vocalist, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist is the founder of the Santa Cruz River Band. He was born in Tucson, Arizona, and is an 8th generation Arizonan. He is a noted cultural preservationist and was named Tucson’s Official Troubadour in 2001. Ted loves the people and culture of the southwest and his powerful songwriting reflects a clear and authentic picture of southwestern life. His original song "Born Unaware" speaks mystically and poetically to the spirit of the American Southwest.

This unique album includes the traditional Welsh folk song “Ar Lan Y Mor” The band learned this song while touring in the U.K. They were honored to perform this song, in Welsh, for the Welsh BBC in the summer of 2006. The band feels a strong connection to the people and culture of North Wales. This song honors and celebrates their strong friendship with the beautiful people of Wales.

Another special song is Bob Dylan’s “Lonesome When You Go”. This is a special song for SCRB – Ted once performed this song for a group of children living with Progeria, and the experience will be with him forever.

The album ends with a comedic song entitled “There’s No Tortillas” written by the legendary Lalo Guerrero. Lalo is recognized as the "Father of Chicano Music”.

Signal Fire is a folk music album that is truly hard to beat. This album belongs in every serious folk music fan’s permanent collection.

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