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                               A Great Singer, An Honest Friend...
Marco Antonio Solis is without question one of the most important figures

in the rise of Mexican and Latin music to world prominence. Born in Michoacan,

Mexico, Solis was only 12 when he formed his first group, Los Hermanitos Solis,

with brother Joel. He was still a teenager when he formed Los Bukis in the early

'70s. Over the course of the next two decades, Los Bukis came to profoundly

influence the norte?o and tejano music of Mexico and the southwestern United States.

Though Sol?s continued to work closely with Los Bukis, he also initiated a solo

career that resulted in platinum certifications for mid-'90s LPs such as Quiereme,

Inalcanzable, and Por Amor a Mi Pueblo. Trozos de Mi Alma followed in 1999.

Solis ushered in the millennium with a two-volume live set, En Vivo, and its companion,

En Vivo, Vol. 2. His next studio album, Mas de Mi Alma, was released in 2001 and,

like his previous solo albums, became a best-seller.

Even though he didn't release another proper album until 2003, Sol?s remained a chart favorite with several songs

from Mas de Mi Alma (including "Cuando Te Acuerdes de Mi" and "Si No Te Hubieras Ido") making appearances

on Billboard's Latin charts.

Released in May of 2003, Tu Amor o Tu Desprecio slowly made its way to the top of the charts until reaching number one in early 2004.

The best-of collection La Historia Continua... appeared by the end of 2003, followed the next spring by the split album (alongside

Joan Sebastian) Dos Grandes. Razon de Sobra was also released by the year's end. The second part to his La Historia Continua...

was issued in 2005, as was a release with tejano singer Pepe Aguilar. The well-received Trozos de Mi Alma, Vol. 2 hit shelves

in 2006; it quickly topped the Latin album charts, produced a hit in "Antes de Que Te Vayas," and earned Solis a Grammy

nomination for Best Latin Pop Album...

Rocio, was born Mara de los Angeles de las Heras Ortz, in Madrid,

Spain on October 4th, 1945. At the age of 10, she took part in the radio show,

'Conozca a sus Vecinos' ('Meet Your Neighbours'). In these shows, Marietta

(her familiar nickname, pronounced Mar-ee-etta) charmed the audience with

her clear and melodic voice that also made her a winner in many other radio

contests that she participated in those years.

In 1960, when she not yet 15, she appeared in the TV show 'Primer Aplauso'

('First Applause') where a Spanish movie producer discovered her. She took

the stage name Roco Durcal (Roco is a popular girls' name in Spain, after the

place of pilgrimage where 'La Romeria' - an annual festival of worship to the

Virgin Mary - is held, and Durcal is a town in the province of Andalucia in

southern Spain). Her first movie was 'Cancin de Juventud' ('Song of Youth')

in 1961, the first of many musical comedies she was to star in and that would

gain her fame in Spain, Portugal, France and Latin America.

At this time many other young singer-actors in Spanish films were popular,

including Raphael, Marisol, Ana Beln, Joselito, the Do Dinmico, Miguel Ros,

and the twin sisters, Pili and Mili. Other films included 'Roco de La Mancha',

'La Chica del Trbol', 'Tengo 17 Aos', 'Ms Bonita que Ninguna', 'Acompame',

'Amor en el Aire', 'Cristina Guzmn', 'Las Leandras' and 'La Novicia Rebelde'.

In 1970, Roco married the Philippine singer and composer, Antonio Morales ,

better known as Jnior, a former member of the pop group, Los Brincos

(considered at the time as the Spanish version of The Beatles). Their marriage proved

one of the more solid marriages in the world of show business and they had three

children: Carmen Mara (born in 1971), Antonio (born in 1974) and Shaila

(born in 1980), and one grandson, Christian (born in 1997, the son of Carmen Mara).

In 1975, Roco retired from movies to dedicate herself to her family but returned to

show business two years later when she recorded the first of many records of material

written by the Mexican singer-composer, Juan Gabriel. Backed by the Mexican band,

Mariachi Amrica, these resulted in unexpected hits, popularity and awards, not only

in Spain and Mexico, but also in Latin America and in the Hispanic community of

the United States.

Roco Durcal (ironically, being Spanish) revitalised the Mexican music scene in the

1970s and 80s and became even better known as a singer of 'rancheras' (traditional

Mexican song) in her later years than she had been as an actress at the start of her career.

With thousands of fans worldwide and records sales in their millions, this Madrid-born

lady was, undoubtedly, one of the brightest stars of Spanish language show business.

In 2001, Rocio Durcal was diagnosed with cancer of the uterus that unfortunately

was later found to have spread to her lung and brain. Despite extensive treatment, Rocio died on 25 March 2006 in Torrelodones, Madrid, Spain.

Contact: PrinceArthur@HomesteadPalace.com

Contact: hismajesty40@msn.com