Carmelo Larrea

Carmelo Larrea Carricarte (16 July 1907 – 2 February 1980) was a Spanish songwriter and musician. During the 1940s and '50s he composed famous songs such as "Noche triste", "No te puedo querer", "Dos cruces" and "Camino verde".

Life and career

Early years Carmelo Larrea Carricarte was born at 1 AM on 16 July 1907 in the neighbourhood of Elorrieta in Deusto, Spain (nowadays a district of Bilbao), to Mariano Larrea and Nemesia Carricarte. He studied commerce at the Escolapios and music at the Philharmonic Society's Music Academy, soon deciding to pursue a career in the latter. He studied organ and choir singing under Jesús Guridi. At the same time he worked as a bicycle shop assistant. He worked for five years at the circus as part of a piano/violin/concertina trio, making his debut with the Carrey brothers circus in San Sebastián. After playing in Barcelona and Madrid, the trio joined the Corzana and Feijoo circuses. Originally sung by Jorge Gallarzo, a version that earned him his second golden record in 1954, it has been covered over 80 times. He then penned "Camino verde", a song performed by Angelillo in the 1955 film Suspiros de Triana, directed by Ramón Torrado. Many of his compositions ended up as leitmotivs in films such as Manuel Summers' The Girl in Mourning. He then went to London to join the orchestra at the Nili, an Israeli cruise ship that toured Nordic countries.

Legacy and influence Larrea is considered one of Spain's most prolific songwriters of the 20th century, particularly in genres such as the bolero and the pasodoble. During his time he was compared to songwriters such as Agustín Lara, Charles Trenet, Osvaldo Farrés and Bobby Capó due to the fact that he wrote both the music and the lyrics of his songs. Spain's most famous singers, including María Dolores Pradera and Jorge Sepúlveda immortalized many of his works. In 2011, a garden in Bilbao was named after him, concerts took place in his honour and his biography –Carmelo Larrea (1907-1980) Compositor de boleros universales– was published.