The folksongs of Texas's Mexican population pulsate with the lives of folk heroes, gringos, smugglers, generals, jailbirds, and beautiful women. In his cancionero, or songbook, Amrico Paredes presents sixty-six of these songs in bilingual text-along with their music, notes on tempo and performance, and discography. Manuel Pea's new foreword situates these songs within the main currents of Mexican American music.