Tejano duo René and René enjoyed a brief, dazzling celebrity
” and a few others. They’re slow-dance, “our-song” tunes with sweet lyrics that move smoothly between Spanish and English … and local businessman Abe Epstein had something to do with that.
According to the discography Hernandez compiled for his book, the recording of “Angelito” released on Epstein’slabel was the first of several versions with different B sides, countries of origin and labels. The one issued by Columbia Records is probably the most significant. It’s dated April 24, 1964; on Aug. 8 of that year, the dapper Renés were crooning their bilingual hit on “Bandstand” and getting interviewed by host Dick Clark.
As for the lawsuit between Epstein and the Renés, a San Antonio Light story from Jan. 16, 1969, says Epstein filed it against the singers and their manager, Mel Lance, a former employee of Epstein Enterprises, asking for $75,000 in damages. “The plaintiff contends the recording artists signed a contract with him Jan. 18, 1964, which included a provision that they would not record songs with other firms for a five-year period.
The Express story on the lawsuit reports that Epstein requested an accounting and asked for punitive damages of $25,000 from Lance, $50,000 from Falcon Records and a percentage of the income earned by Herrera and Ornelas. There is no further coverage of the case in either San Antonio daily newspaper. Biographer Hernandez, who has interviewed Ornelas extensively, didn’t know the outcome of the suit.
Hernandez asked Ornelas if he or Herrera was asked to remove their sunglasses during their depositions. I heard the recorded answer: “I don’t remember that.” ,” that made hit-parade lists all over the country in 1968, going up against songs by the Beatles, Petula Clark, Sammy Davis Jr., the Doors, Aretha Franklin, Martha & the Vandellas, Smokey Robinson, the Who and Stevie Wonder.