The Story of Polo Montañez, the Natural Guajiro
Of humble peasant origin, with a self-taught musical education, he became one of the musical symbols of Cuba in just 2 years. He died at the peak of his career and transcended with his wonderful musical work.
Fernando Borrego Linares (Polo Montañez) was born in the Sierra del Rosario, in Pinar del Río, Cuba, on June 5, 1955. The son of a charcoal maker, from a very humble background but with great spiritual wealth and an innate talent for capturing the characteristic sounds of Cuban son, even without any musical training. He was a very popular singer with a legendary story and a short but intense professional career.
"Polo composes while walking or driving a tractor, while swimming, in the rain, the sun, or the moon, when he sows the land... and even while sleeping"
He began at the age of 7 "beating the skins of a tumbadora" at family parties, as he used to say. His father played the accordion and his mother danced. He grew up in a very musical environment, despite the family's economic hardships. During the nights, they listened to the radio, the only possible entertainment at that time, where little Fernando memorized, with great ease, the romantic songs of Spanish and Italian singer-songwriters (José José, Nicola di Bari, José Feliciano, among others) from the so-called "pop wave" of that moment. Later, he became interested in strings, playing the guitar with notable talent and an impeccable musical ear. - "Now I realize that between the strings and percussion was the path of Cuban music, which later would chart my goal in life". He then became part of a family sextet made up of his father, his brothers, and other relatives and friends. In the 90s, he began his professional career as a vocalist and tres player.
By the age of 44, he had more than 70 original songs, written in a self-taught manner, as he had no professional training or musical knowledge other than what he learned from listening to the sounds of the countryside. His band simply followed the tone of his voice with the instruments, and with impeccable mastery, they created beautiful harmonies with poetic images of surprising lyricism.
His popularity began with the international release of his first album "Guajiro Natural," recorded by the record label LUSAFRICA, which a year later sponsored his second CD titled "Guitarra Mía."
In less than a year —the second half of 2001— he topped the success charts of the country's radios with the song "Un montón de estrellas." With this and other songs from his first album, Guajiro Natural, he won over the Colombian audience and made his way into other countries in Latin America and Western Europe. After his death, a third tribute album was released in his memory.
His extensive body of work as a composer exceeds one hundred songs, most of them unpublished, spanning various musical genres.
Polo Montañéz passed into immortality as a result of a traffic accident on November 26, 2002. An aura of mysticism surrounded him after his death, as it is said that he himself prophesied his meteoric career and his death, and it is hard to explain how a practically illiterate farmer could conceive such contemporary melodies while living in such remote areas of the countryside, far from the "worldly noise."
Polo Montañéz is recognized nationally and internationally as one of the most popular singer-songwriters from Cuba, considered an unprecedented legend by prestigious figures in the music world, such as Gilberto Santa Rosa, Willie Colon, among others.