Photo: Jake Chessum
On Oct. 7, 1968, José Feliciano was living a musician’s dream.
His Latin-inspired versions of “California Dreamin’” and “Light My Fire” were flooding the airwaves, and his new single “Hi-Heel Sneakers” was climbing the charts.
Then, in front of more than 53,000 baseball fans gathered in Detroit to watch Game 5 of the World Series, he performed his soulful, Latin-influenced version of the “Star Spangled Banner.”
To learn more about José Feliciano’s legendary career, pick up this week’s issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands Friday.
But the 74-year-old music icon refused to give up – and resuscitated his career for the first of many times for more than half a century.
“I don’t want to sound like sour grapes, but there are some grapes in my life that are sour,” he says. “I feel that because of what happened to me, I’ve been underrated.”
He toured internationally through South America and Asia, and two years later, he rebounded with his Christmas classic “Feliz Navidad,” which he says he wrote in less than 15 minutes and will be celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.
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Once again, he’s in the midst of a resurgence. His version of the Mamas and the Papas’ “California Dreamin’” appeared in theOscar-nominated filmOnce Upon a Time … in Hollywoodand became one of the most-streamed songs from the soundtrack.
Last month, he released his 56th studio albumBehind This Guitar, and he continues to tour worldwide. His contributions to music will be showcased inJosé Feliciano: Behind This Guitar, a documentary making its world premiere on March 18 at the SXSW Festival in Austin.
“Let’s hope they don’t underrate me anymore, and they realize the musician that I am,” he says, “and that I didn’t take any shortcuts.”
source: people.com
