Juanito Valderrama
Full name
Date of birth
Place of birth
Biography
uan Valderrama Blanca was born in Torredelcampo (Jaén) on the 24th of May 1916. He worked from a child in the countryside on the La Sierrezuela country estate. He was discovered by Pepe Marchena, who was a friend of his fathers, who encouraged him to appear on stagefor the first time. Juan won various contests of 'saetas´ in Torredelcampo, but his great moment arrived when he went to Madrid to work in the Café Tetuán Later he went to the Villa Rosa, where he met José Cepero, Bernardo de los Lobitos and Ramón Montoya. La Niña de la Puebla took him on tour for the first time. At the age of nineteen, in 1935 he recorded his first album for Parlophon, accompanied by Sabicas. There was an attempt to baptism him as El Niño de la Perla Fina, but he always refused.
He spent the war in Jaén with Canalejas, el Sevillano, el Calzá, el Niño de la Huerta, el Muela, Pepe el Culata or Enrique Orozco, amongst others. After the conflict he recorded more album for Columbia and set up his own shows until in 1949 he went to America for the first time.
In the fifties, at the end of the flamenco operas, Juan went through a bad patch, which led him to record El emigrante in 1952. This antagonised the orthodox and Valderrama blamed Antonio Mairena for this. However nor this nor anything else can mar the greatness of this singer who forms part of the basis of the history of flamenco. He died on April 12, 2004.
