Odilio González

Who is Odilio González?

Odilio González is a Puerto Rican singer.

González was born in 1939 in the center of the island of Puerto Rico, in the small town of Lares. He became a popular child star after a series of early radio performances in the capital city of San Juan.

One of Puerto Rico's most renowned and beloved popular singers, Odilio González has enjoyed an avid following for his expert singing of the island's ancient traditional poetic song form, the décima, as well as a crooner of mainstream pop music. His stage name was "Jibarito de Lares". He debuted in 1955 at the age of 16 on the New York City stage, singing before throngs of enthusiastic and nostalgic Puerto Ricans in the famed Teatro Puerto Rico. His first recordings of traditional jíbaro singing for the Ansonia label were also made in New York City during that period. He was considered a child prodigy in the music business during the Golden Age of New York jíbaro music recordings of the 1950s. Fellow Lares native José Feliciano's singing style was heavily influenced by González's during his early youth.

Odilio González crossed over into pop music in 1962 when he records Celos Sin Motivo, composed by Ismael Santiago, which broadens his appeal to a far greater audience. His greatest hit, perhaps was "Yo Tenía Una Luz", recorded during the early 1970s, became a widely popular Christmas song and today is considered among the ranks of traditional songs, in the way "White Christmas" is considered "traditional" in the United States.