José María Peñaranda

José María Peñaranda Márquez (1907–2006) was a Colombian musician and songwriter. He wrote the successful songs "Se Va el Caimán" and "Me Voy Pa' Cataca" and released the first 12-inch record on label Discos Fuentes in 1957.

Biography Peñaranda was born on 11 March 1907 in Barranquilla, capital of the Colombian department of Atlántico. As a child he often travelled to Magdalena with his mother Mercedes, who sold clothes in villages, and there he saw Francisco Moscote play. During his youth, he began composing and singing, accompanying himself on guitar and tiple. He later learned to play accordion and güiro. Peñaranda worked as an electrician and mason, and did not come from a musical family.

Peñaranda began writing songs in 1937; he also performed on local radio stations and began recording some of his songs during the early years of Colombia's recording industry. In 1940, while working as a technician at Emisoras Unidas, he composed "Se Va el Caimán" inspired by mythical creature—half man, half caiman—that he read about in newspapers. According to some sources, Peñaranda comissioned Pacho Galán to make a musical arrangement, and a local RCA Victor agent suggested sending it to Buenos Aires to be recorded. The song initially had little impact, but gained new life in 1945 with a successful version by Venezuelan singer Rosita Perón.

During the 1950s, Peñaranda began playing the accordion on his recordings, although on some early recordings he featured the accordionist Luis Enrique Martínez.