Guadalupe is a song about the Guadalupe River in Texas and about the ledgend of La Lady De Guadalupe who the river is named after. It is a simple song but musically I wanted as distinctive a sound as Harry Belafonte’s Bananna Boat song.

Creator Commentary

I had completed a song about a fish and wanted to write a song about a river also. So I focused on the Guadalupe River here in Texas because it is such a loved and used river by Texans. I began to do some research about the river, you kow the technical stuff, how long how much water where it starts and ends etc. And the name of the river. Where did Guadalupe come from? As it would happen a girlfriend and I were on the river trail in San Antonio Texas and happend to stop at the Concepcione Mission in San Antonio for a quick visit. This was during the pandemic and so the mission was closed. As I was walking around the mission I found an open door in the back and could hear voices inside. Should I go in? I did and there inside the closed mission “Art” was coming to the mission every day to provide free information to visitors about the mission. After Art’s presentation he asked me if I knew the story of La Lady De Guadalupe and I said no. So he told me the story and how its been almost 500 years since her appearance in Mexico. Most people believe she appeared to an Aztec boy and think she is the Virgin Mary. The river Guadalupe was named after her. So my song could be completed at last. The Video was completed end of July 2023 its pretty new but already has 92,000 views.

About the Artist

Inspired by his maternal grandfather Tom Dennis, a songwriter and performer in Texas circa 1940 to 1965, songwriter Phil Coomer writes songs about life and love and sets these stories and images in motion and to life in front of you. Phil’s gentle guitar fingerpicking style combined with sweet melodies fit the lead of the lyrics and blend into focused truly original songs. Early on Phil developed a passion for music and songwriting as he listened to WABC a Pop music station beamed out of New York City to the likes of Simon & Garfunkel, John Denver and Jim Croce. Following his grandfather’s lead Phil discovered he could write his own songs from his own experiences and take listeners on a unique uplifting journey.

Credited Artists

Words, music, guitar and vocals Phil Coomer, Strings by Milo Deering, Recording by Bart Rose at Fort Worth Sound.