Legendary Tejano and Country Musician Flaco Jiménez Has Died

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Flaco Jiménez (center) at the 2024 Ameripolitan Awards


“Flaco” is partly a term of endearment, and partly a euphemism in the Spanish language, translating in English to “skinny.” Flaco Jiménez was certainly svelte and earned the nickname, but he was so much more. He was a star in the realm of the Tejano, Tex Mex, and Norteño music that carried the Hispanic music traditions north of the border. He was an incredibly prolific session music, both in the Tejano realm, and well beyond it.

Flaco Jiménez was a prolific collaborator, working with a wide range of popular performers, from Bob Dylan to The Rolling Stones. He was also the member of numerous supergroups, namely the Texas Tornados and Los Super Seven.

Ultimately, “Flaco” didn’t come to mean “skinny” at all. It came to mean “musical legend.” On July 31st after a long illness, that music legend died at the age of 86, leaving behind one of the most rich, diverse, beloved, and revered musical legacies in the Americas.

Leonardo “Flaco” Jiménez was born on March 11,1939 in San Antonio, Texas to musician Santiago Jiménez Sr., who also went by the nickname “Flaco,” and was considered one of the pioneers of conjunto music. Grandfather Patricio Jiménez was a musician as well, meaning music was always in the household when the younger Flaco was growing up, and was a family affair.

Flaco Jiménez started performing in his father’s band by the age of seven, playing the 12-string Mexican guitar, or bajo sexto, but later converting to accordion, which would become Flaco’s signature instrument throughout his career. Jiménez was heavily influenced as a player by both his father, and zydeco player Clifton Chenier.

Though Jiménez made a name for himself performing in bands like Los Caporales, he quickly became a sought-after collaborator throughout North American music. If you wanted an accordion on a song, you wanted Flaco. This made the accordion player from San Antonio an international music star.

One of the first non-Tejano names to recognize the talent of Flaco Jiménez was Doug Sahm, who’d taken his name recognition from the Sir Douglas Quartet, and turned it into a solo career with Texas as the epicenter. Sahm’s debut album on Atlantic Records in 1971 featured Jiménez, and this would be one of many collaborations between the two. This opportunity gave way to Jiménez traveling to New York to perform and record with the likes of Bob Dylan, Dr. John, David Lindley, and especially Ry Cooder.

Ry Cooder made Flaco a feature of his 1976 album Chicken Skin Music, which landed Jiménez an opportunity to perform on Saturday Night Live on November 13th, 1976. This whole time, Flaco had a successful solo career releasing albums via D.L.B. Records out of San Antonio.


Throughout the 1980’s the collaborations kept on coming, while Flaco’s solo career took off. He won his first of four Grammy Awards in 1986 for his album Ay Te Dejo en San Antonio. The 1988 version of the country classic “Streets of Bakersfield” was best known for pairing up Dwight Yoakam with the legendary Buck Owens. But Flaco Jiménez was also part of the collaboration, making him part of a country music #1 song.

1989 is when Flaco Jiménez, Doug Sahm, Augie Myers, and country legend Freddy Fender would form the legendary Texas Tornados. They won a Grammy with the song “Soy de San Luis” written by Flaco’s father, and released numerous albums over the years. The year before, Jiménez was also part of the supergroup Los Super Seven, who won a Grammy for their self-titled album. Jiménez was also a member of a band with former Bill Monroe Blue Grass Boys Peter Rowan called the Free Mexican Airforce.

In 1994, Flaco Jiménez appeared on the Rolling Stones album Voodoo Louge, speaking to his enduring appeal as a collaborator. The prolific nature of Jiménez’s career is nothing short of astounding, speaking to the appeal of his playing, and the respect he pulled from his peer musicians.

Along with receiving his own special line of signature Hohner accordions, Flaco Jiménez was honored with the Founder of the Sound awards at the 2024 Ameripolitan Awards held in Austin.

Whether playing his own songs, or adding that special spice and dialect of someone else’s, Flaco Jiménez made sure the Hispanic influence in North American music remained alive and vital for some seven decades. He will never be replaced, but he will always be remembered. “Flaco” will forever mean a legend in music.

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