José Alfredo Jiménez possessed neither an elegant voice nor the movie-star good looks of his peers, yet his more than 1,000 rancheras and canciones captured the hearts of Mexico's working class. He wrote and sang about love, alcohol and patriotism in simple yet sincere verses that sounded as though they'd been scrawled on a cocktail napkin stained with tequila and tears. Guitars, strings and horns accompanied dramatic performances punctuated by the high, mournful grito, or "Mexican yell."