Often thought of as Mexican because of the Rancheras she sang for over six decades, Chavela Vargas was in fact Costa Rican although she later became a naturalized Mexican citizen. Born Isabel Vargas Lizano on April 17, 1919 in San Joaquin de Flores, Costa Rica, Chavela (the Spanish pet name for Isabel) had a difficult childhood. Her parents, whom she claims did not love her, abandoned her to the care of an uncle after they divorced, and she contracted poliomyelitis.

At fourteen, due to the lack of musical opportunities in her country, Chavela left for Mexico where she sang and played her guitar on the streets. She dressed in men’s clothing, carried a pistol, smoked cigars and drank hard liquor. In her youth she met and befriended many artists and intellectuals, amongst them the artist Frida Kahlo and her husband, the muralist Diego Rivera who invited the homeless Chavela to live with them. There have been rumors for decades that Chavela was one Frida’s lovers but Chavela never confirmed that. Chavela was certainly very close to Frida and part of her inner circle; one of the few people allowed to remain by Frida at her deathbed. Chavela did acknowledge later in life that Frida loved her very much and a rumored diary of the painter indicates that Frida was madly in love with the young singer but that love was unrequited. Whatever the true nature and extent of their relationship, Chavela took that to her grave.

In her thirties Chavela began to sing rancheras professionally. Rancheras, a Mexican genre, up until then was only sung by men. These were songs of passionate heartbreak sung from a man’s perspective and accompanied by a mariachi. Chavela further courted controversy when she refused to change the pronouns when she sung, dressed in men’s clothing, swigging hard liquor, smoking a cigar, armed with a pistol and brandishing a horsewhip….that and her guitar….nothing and no one else. ‘Noche de Bohemia’ her first album, was released with the help of Jose Alfredo Jimenez in 1961. Chavela also sang in other genres and was once described as the Edith Piaf of Latin America.

Her alcoholism eventually caught up with her in the early-mid 1970’s forcing her to retire. For the next 15 years Chavela gave herself over drinking until, as she claims in her autobiography, she was rescued by an Indian family who took her in and cared for her curing her alcoholism. She would later return to the stage, the former beauty and power of her voice now gritty and coarser she now sang with raw emotion. She befriended and influenced a younger generation of artists, such as Joaquin Sabina (with whom she sang) and director Pedro Almodovar.

While she never denied her sexuality, she refused to confirm or discuss it until the age of 82 when she finally revealed on Colombian television what everyone knew, that she was a lesbian. Chavela continued to record and perform live in concert until her death on August 5, 2012 at the age of 92.