Flaco Jiménez performs at the 35th Annual Tejano Conjunto Festival in 2016. Credit: Jaime Monzon

Iconic conjunto performer Flaco Jiménez, a six-time Grammy winner who helped expand the reach of his South Texas-born genre, has died at age 86.

The accordion legend’s family shared the news late Thursday night in a Facebook post, saying he’d passed away while surrounded by loved ones. The message asked for privacy while the family contends with its loss.

“Thank you to all of his fans and friends — those who cherished his music,” the post continued. “And a big thank you for all of the memories.”

Jiménez was hospitalized this January due to a “medical hurdle,” his family announced at the time. Two weeks later, a separate online post revealed that he’d been released and was “on the road to recovery.”

Born into a San Antonio family that included not one but two pioneering accordion players — father Santiago Jiménez Sr. and grandfather Patricio Jiménez — Flaco Jiménez built a seven-decade music career of his own, emerging as a legendary bandleader, sought-after musical collaborator and one of Tex-Mex music’s chief global ambassadors.   

Flaco Jiménez (right) pauses for a beer break with his father Santiago Jiménez Sr. Credit: Chris Strachwitz © Arhoolie Foundation

The conjunto sound sprouted up in South Texas as performers of Mexican traditional music adopted the button accordion and polka beats favored by the region’s German immigrants. Jiménez played an important role in the style’s expansion by working in elements of country, blues, zydeco and more. Indeed, his expressive accordion style was heavily influenced by zydeco legend Clifton Chenier.

By the early 1960s, Jiménez had become a statewide dancehall draw thanks to his squeezebox skills and charismatic stage presence.

In the following decade, Jiménez embarked on groundbreaking collaborations with Texas roots-rock pioneer Doug Sahm and slide guitar maestro Ry Cooder. He continued to work with well-known rock and pop artists including Linda Ronstadt, the Rolling Stones, Emmylou Harris, Bob Dylan and Los Lobos well into his career.

Jiménez joined forces with Sahm again in late-’80s Tex-Mex supergroup the Texas Tornados, winning his first Grammy for the song “Soy de San Luis.” The Tornados’ releases became some of the best selling of Jiménez’s career and introduced legions of fans to South Texas’ musical melting pot. Later, Jiménez threw in with another supergroup, Los Super Seven, and secured yet another Grammy win.

Jiménez was recognized with a Lifetime Achievement Grammy in 2015, and he was among the 2022 recipients of the National Medal of the Arts.

“Puro conjunto is a very limited thing when you’re dealing with a gringo audience,” Chris Strachwitz, founder of groundbreaking roots music label Arhoolie Records, told the Current in 2021 of Jiménez’s legacy. “Flaco has expanded beyond, crossed genres with the Tornados and Ry Cooder.”

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This article appears in Jul 23 – Aug 6, 2025.

Sanford Nowlin is editor-in-chief of the San Antonio Current. He holds degrees from Trinity University and the University of Texas at San Antonio, and his work has been featured in Salon, Alternet, Creative...