La Famiilia Peña-Govea and Los Compas 2006

Do you remember the scenes in Sam Peckinpah’s “The Wild Bunch” where between battles in Revolution-era Mexico, the people are resting and drinking and eating and there’s always a band playing? The Peña-Govea family could have been that band! Their music has the same post-colonial European influences performed on traditional instruments and their family history shows deep musical roots in the region. In the early 1900s, grandfathers on both sides of the family played fiddle in the Monterey area of Northern Mexico. One of these grandfathers, Jesus Govea, later migrated to Mexico City where he and his son Juan played live music to accompany silent movies in neighborhood theaters. In 1942, Juan dropped his studies at the National Conservatory of Music in order to help support his mother and eight younger brothers and sisters. World War II had just created a great demand for labor and the U.S. government opened its arms to millions of Mexican braceros. A young Juan Govea was among these millions — coming to California as a railroad worker, meeting his future wife, and raising a family (including Miguel) all the while instilling a passion in his children for music, culture, education and social justice.

60 years later, in contemporary San Francisco, these generations of musical forbearers have borne fruit in La Familia Peña-Govea. Two multi-instrumental / vocalist / composer daughters (Rene, age 21 and Cecilia, age 13) have been exposed by their parents (Susan Peña and Miguel Govea) to music and art from the earliest ages. The result of this exposure is an exciting, living, breathing tradition of music making that gathers influences from Mexico, Colombia, jazz and salsa.

La Familia Peña-Govea proudly announces the release of a second CD recording entitled Cohetes. The music was recorded over a period of three days in the winter of 2006. During this momentous season, Rene celebrated her 21st birthday, Cecilia became a teenager, Susan and Miguel married each other after 23 years of loving companionship, and the family marked the one-year anniversary of the passing of sister/aunt Jessica Govea Thorbourne. This album commemorates these events and offers an exciting glimpse of the fireworks that occur whenever the family gathers. Cohetes features Rene and Miguel on 3-row button accordion and guitarrôn, Susan on bajo sexto and vihuela, Cecilia on güira, woodblock, triangle and trumpet, and everyone on vocals. The group is joined in Cotati by legendary Nicaraguan rock drummer Donaldo Mantilla on timbales, bongo and bell, famed Chicana artist Irene Perez on traps set, and the Bay Area’s preeminent sonero Edgardo Cambon on congas.

Contact Miguel Govea at 415-378-6348 or at michaelgovea@sbcglobal.net. Web site is www.miguelgovea.com