Los Humildes

The ensemble sparked a reversal in the usual flow of Latin music currents by exporting influence from northern locales southward. Formed in California during 1972 by the Ayala brothers alongside accordion and keyboard player Rudy Flores, the group drew its personnel from Modesto and Turlock. Jose Luis Ayala, Johnny Ayala, and Alfonso Ayala poured the full strength of their fraternal bond into the enterprise, and together with the accomplished Flores they notched repeated successes from 1972 until the founding configuration disbanded in 1988. Their initial Tejano breakthrough bore the aptly forward-looking title "Ambition" (or "Ambicion") and simultaneously became the first international hit for the Discos Fanas label. Additional releases appeared on Phonovisa, RCA, and Thump. The ensemble’s signature approach soon resonated with musicians in Mexico’s Nueva Leon region, where it was embraced as the "Monterey style."

Following their split from their partner in the late ’80s, the brothers retained the original name and launched two unwieldy yet commercially viable offshoots: Los Humildes de los Hermanos Ayala, which presents the Humildes outlook from the siblings’ vantage, and los Humildes de Rudy Flores, which reflects the displaced accordionist’s perspective. Some labels exhausted their available type after printing only the “los Humildes” portion, creating further mix-ups. Reissues of the original band’s earliest albums reached compact disc during the ’90s, raising the likelihood that an unplanned purchase would contain the Flores/Ayala collaboration.

Both projects have sustained live performances and new recordings into the twenty-first century, although Los Humildes de los Hermanos Ayala has proven the more active. They have produced numerous studio albums and compilations for Sony, Fonovisia, and Def Jam. Their 2016 album Javier Solis, credited to José Luis Ayala & los Humildes Ayala, honors the boleros and rancheras of the late, influential Mexican singer and actor.