Fito Olivares

Born in Ciudad Camargo, Tamaulipas, Mexico, cumbia saxophonist Fito Olivares came of age with siblings Javier, who handled vocals, and Jaime, who played keyboards. The family moved to Houston, Texas, in 1977; three years afterward the brothers established La Pura Sabrosura, which later secured a deal with Gil Records. Olivares first reached wide audiences in 1988 via the popular singles “La Gallina” and “Juana la Cubana.” La Pura Sabrosura followed with the 1989 success “La Negra Catalina” and then issued “Aguita de Melon” in 1990. Throughout the middle of the decade Olivares placed multiple tracks inside Billboard’s Latin Top 40, among them “La Ranita,” “Cupido Bandido,” “El Paso del Canguro,” “Juana Maria,” and “El Colesterol.” Later albums comprised 1996’s La Sabrosura Continua, 1997’s Con Amor y con Sabor, and 1998’s A Gozar con Sabrosura. On March 17, 2023, Fito Olivares passed away in Houston at age 75 after battling cancer.