Information & accounts of events sourced from A Texan's Life at a Glance. Click on the 'Biography' tab to learn more.
Juan was born in Brownsville, Texas on March 25th, 1945 to Juan and Margarita Perez. Juan's birth fell directly between two major 20th century generations—The Silent Generation & The Baby Boomer Generation.
In his youth, Juan grew up playing with neighborhood friends and working miscellaneous jobs in and around Texas, including traversing the state picking cotton or tomatoes as young as four years old.
In 1957, Juan's father recieved a letter from his brother Tony, who had returned from the Army and headed south to find work. Tony found work as a construction union president in Douglas, Arizona. With the prospect of better work on the horizon, Juan's parents made the decision to relocate.
Juan's parents had previously lived in Pirtleville, Arizona for a brief period in 1944 before Juan's birth. During this time, Juan's father worked laying railroad tracks.
In September of 1957, Juan & his family reloacted to Douglas, Arizona. Not long after, Juan met his life-long friend Joe Duarte, bonding over guitar and wrestling.
Juan soon became enamored by one of his female classmates. [Ginny] immediately became the apple, banana, and nectarine cider of my eye."
Juan soon became enamored by one of his female classmates. [Ginny] immediately became the apple, banana, and nectarine cider of my eye."
Also during this time, Juan & friends formed a band known as 'The Krystals'. The group played rock & roll, corridos, and boledos. With Juan heading up the rhythm guitar, his first composed instrumental for the band was entitled 'Ginny'.
- Juan Peréz - Rhythm Guitar
- Oscar Romero - Lead Guitar
- Jimmy Silvas - Base Guitar
- Robert Trivizu - Drums
- Frank Figueroa - Vocals & Saxiphone
The band played gigs around town consisting of weddings, parties, and quinceañeras. In 1963, the band was invited to perform at a regional talent show for the local radio station and won second place with their song 'Underwater' broadcasted to Douglas & surrounding municipalities.
Juan joined the US Navy reserve as a junior in highschool in 1962. Continue reading in the next section, ‘Adulthood'.