Steve Salas, a founding member of the pioneering Eastside rock band Tierra and an early-day Chicano rights activist, has died after battling myeloma for two years and recently contracted COVID-19.
Salas died on Thursday. He was 69.
His brother Rudy, Tierra’s lead singer and co-founder died in 2020, also after contracting COVID-19.
“Steve and Rudy created the soundtrack for many people’s lives, and we are so grateful to everyone who loved their music,” the band and family members said in a statement.
The death of the Salas brothers leaves saxophonist Rudy “Bub” Villa, 72, as the lone surviving member of the original group, which formed in 1972.
“Steve was this guy who liked to have fun, not take things too seriously and fool around, which bugged Rudy,” Villa said. “As a musician, he was multitalented and could learn any instrument within a few hours and just had a tone and presence as a singer that was incredible.”
The trio came together in 1972 along with David Torres (keyboard) and Albert Bustillos (drums) to form Tierra. According to Villa, Bustillos “played a few gigs” before leaving and being eventually replaced by drummer Kenny Roman midway through 1972.
Steve Salas, a singer, bass player, and percussionist, performed with his brother in some fashion for more than a decade, most notably as the Salas Brothers. The duo worked on neighborhood functions, such as weddings and graduations.
Steve and Rudy Salas grew up in Lincoln Heights with their mother, Margaret Brambila, and father, Rudy Sr. Their uncle, Art Brambila, lived across the street.
He stayed less than two years before returning to Lincoln Heights and joined his brother as a member of the Chicano R&B group El Chicano.
In 1972, El Chicano released “Celebration,” in which Steve Salas and Freddie Sanchez were the featured vocalists in a cover of Van Morrison’s famed “Brown Eyed Girl.” Their version of the song climbed to No. 45 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart that year.
Joanna Salas, Rudy’s wife, said her husband and his brother loved each other, no matter their differences.
“Steve was and will always be remembered as a very talented, complicated, and rambunctious type of individual,” Joanna Salas said. “He didn’t go by the rules and lived his life the way he wanted.”
Steve Salas was married briefly in the mid-1970s and had no children.