La Cucaracha

Nobody knows for sure who wrote “La Cucaracha” or exactly when, but we do know it exploded in popularity during the Mexican Revolution of the 1910s. Both government troops and revolutionary fighters--including Pancho Villa's soldiers--wrote their own topical verses to the same tune, using it to poke fun at politicians and events of the day, much the way “Yankee Doodle” was used in America. Over time all that political satire faded from memory outside Mexico, and what's left for most of us is just this catchy, playful melody.