They absolutely love the Beatles in Mexico. In fact, they've dedicated a whole day in Mexico City where people dress up in Beatles attire otherwise known as Beatles Look Alike Day. And they say the Beatles are played more in Mexico than anywhere else in the world. I remember being in a church up in Ixtlan in northern Oaxaca chatting with some young band members who were giving a concert that day. They wanted me to know that they didn't just play church music - they played Beatles covers as well, and could I tell them what the lyrics to the song Michelle translated to in Spanish.* I mean this was really rural Oaxaca. Pretty sure none of those kids had ever even been to Oaxaca City - going to Ixtlan was the big city for them. But they loved the Beatles.
Still it hasn't always been that way. In the 60's and 70's rock and roll was banned in large swathes of Mexico. The conservative right considered it too decadent, prurient, and a negative influence on young people. And the radical left thought it was too western. "Why would we want to import the colonizer's music when we already have our own strong cultural music traditions?", was the thinking.
Santana was denied a permit to play in Mexico City and nary a Beatles song was found on the airwaves. But times have changed and globalization is real. And there's something I love about Mexico meets the Beatles. I'm going to call it one of the upsides of globalization. Check out this link for more fun photos -
*The other thing they wanted to ask me was, "Didn't I think their friend looked Chinese?". Big hilarity ensued when I agreed with them.
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