Baccara

***Baccara*** was a female vocal duo formed in 1977 by Spanish artists Mayte Mateos (born February 7, 1951, Logroño) and María Mendiola (born April 4, 1952, Madrid) who met at Spanish Television's Ballet Company. In 1976 the two women formed a singing and dancing duo (using the title Venus) and left the Ballet Company.

### Formation (1976)

Mateos and Mendiola relocated to the Canary Islands in search of work. Here they found that there was an audience for the performance of traditional Spanish music and dance in a form that was adapted to suit international tastes. The duo were spotted by the manager of the German subsidiary of record company RCA, whilst performing flamenco dance and traditional Spanish songs for tourists (mostly German) on the island of Fuerteventura. He invited them to Hamburg to meet Dutch producer/composer Rolf Soja who became the prime mover behind what became Baccara. He developed their stage performance and recruited their instrumental support. Mateos and Mendiola were retitled Baccara, after the name of the black rose, in reference to the women's dark Spanish appearance.

### Career (1977-81)

The pair rapidly achieved international success with their debut single "Yes Sir, I Can Boogie", which reached number one across much of Europe. A successful follow-up single, "Sorry, I'm a Lady" and European tour led to a number of album releases, numerous television appearances and the duo's selection to represent Luxembourg in the Eurovision Song Contest 1978.

Despite a substantial following in Spain, Germany and Japan, by 1981 the duo's distinctive blend of disco, pop and Spanish folk music was no longer fashionable.

### Split (1981)

A dispute between the two over the vocal mix of "Sleepy-Time-Toy", released in 1980, led to 250,000 records being recalled and a new vocal mix released. Mendiola had complained that her voice was not given sufficient prominence in the song's arrangement and sued RCA for breach of contract. Mendiola's case was that the song should not have been released as a Baccara recording when it amounted to a Mateos solo. As a result, relationships between all parties involved were damaged. Baccara's final album, Bad Boys, was unsuccessful and RCA declined their new contract. Mateos and Mendiola ended their professional partnership and both launched solo careers.

### Solo (1982-)

By 1983 Mayte Mateos and María Mendiola were both working on solo projects. Achieving little success as solo artists, the two formed duos of their own: separate incarnations of the original Baccara appeared during the middle of the decade, with Mendiola fronting New Baccara and Mateos keeping the duo's original name. During the 1990s New Baccara was renamed back to Baccara; as a consequence both Mateos and Mendiola now head different duos with the same name. Both principals have subsequently had prolonged but separate legacy careers based on nostalgia and their earlier fame.

Mendiola's Baccara has seen more international recognition, releasing a string of Hi-NRG club hits such as "Fantasy Boy" and "Touch Me" in the late 1980s and the later UK club hit "Wind Beneath My Wings". Mateos' Baccara has released few new recordings, but has remained in demand for television and live appearances in countries such as Spain and Germany where the original Baccara developed a loyal fan base, performing the duo's back-catalogue and modernised versions of traditional Spanish songs.

### Hits (1977-78)

#### Baccara

* Released October 21, 1977

***Baccara*** is the debut studio album by Spanish duo Baccara, which contains the European hit singles "Yes Sir I Can Boogie" and "Sorry, I'm A Lady". In the UK, the album peaked at #26 (in its first week). Listen to the album on Deezer.