Ritchie Valens learned the song in his youth, from his cousin Dickie Cota.[13] In 1958 he recorded a rock and roll flavored version of "La Bamba",[14] together with session musicians Buddy Clark (string bass); Ernie Freeman (piano); Carol Kaye (acoustic rhythm guitar); René Hall (Danelectro six-string baritone guitar); and Earl Palmer (drums and claves).[15] It was originally released as the B-side of "Donna", on the Del-Fi label.[13]
The song features a simple verse-chorus form. Valens, who was proud of his Mexican heritage, was hesitant at first to merge "La Bamba" with rock and roll, but then agreed. The song ranked No. 98 in VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of Rock and Roll in 1999, and No. 59 in VH1's 100 Greatest Dance Songs in 2000. Furthermore, Valens' recording of the song was inducted into the Latin Grammy Hall of Fame.[16]
The song was listed at number 354 in the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time by Rolling Stone magazine,[17] being the only non-English language song included in the list.[18] It was also included in Robert Christgau's "Basic Record Library" of 1950s and 1960s recordings published in Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies (1981).[19] Valens was inducted posthumously into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001.[20] In 2019, Valens' version was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".[21] It is also included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's list of 500 songs that were influential in shaping rock and roll.[22]
La Bamba has been suggested to play 4 roles. Click below to see other actors suggested for each role, and vote for who you think would play the role best.
