Feliciano Vierra Tavares

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Feliciano Vierra Tavares
Born
Feliciano Vierra Tavares Senior

(1920-10-29)October 29, 1920
Providence, Rhode Island, U.S
DiedDecember 17, 2008(2008-12-17) (aged 88)
Hyannis, Massachusetts, U.S
NationalityCape Verdean American
OccupationMusician, singer, guitarist
Known forFather of the Tavares Brothers
Children
  • Arthur Paul Tavares
  • Feliciano Vierra Tavares, Jr.
  • Perry Lee Tavares
  • Ralph Vierra Tavares
  • Antone Lee Tavares

Feliciano Vierra "Flash" Tavares Sr. (October 29, 1920 – December 17, 2008) was a Cape Verdean American musician, singer and guitarist based in Massachusetts. He was the patriarch of the musical Tavares family, which included the Tavares Brothers, a successful Grammy-winning 1970s and 1980s R&B band composed of five of Tavares' sons.[1] Tavares was known professionally simply as Flash.

Early life[]

Tavares was born in Providence, Rhode Island, on October 29, 1920.[2] He was a self-taught musician who learned by listening to the radio and Cape Verdean music at an early age.[2] Tavares, a longtime resident of Hyannis, Massachusetts, was considered to be an influential cultural figure within the Cape Verdean American community in Rhode Island and Massachusetts.[1] The father of all five members of Tavares, whose hits included More Than a Woman and Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel, Tavares advocated for traditional Cape Verdean music.[1] Following his death in 2008, it was noted that "Flash inspired a lot of kids to play music, and he kept the Cape Verdean musical heritage alive."[1] Tavares remained active within the musical community well into his 80s, in spite of an early diagnosis of prostate cancer.[1] He was able to travel to Cape Verde and continued to perform solo until he was 84 years old.[1] In 2007, Tavares and his sister, singer Vicki Vierra, were inducted into the Hall of Fame at the Cape Verdean museum in East Providence, Rhode Island.[1]

Death[]

Feliciano "Flash" Vierra Tavares died at his home in Hyannis, Massachusetts, on December 17, 2008, at the age of 88.[1] He was survived by his second wife of 38 years, Grace.[2] His first wife, Albina Gomes Tavares (1913–1981, the mother of the five Tavares brothers), and daughter, Eva Baptiste, as well as 10 siblings had predeceased him.[2] He was also survived by three daughters Jenny Mello, Deolinda Borges, Kathleen Clarke; seven sons (including all five members of the Tavares brothers) John Baptiste, Ralph, Arthur, Antone, Victor, Feliciano Jr., and Perry Tavares; one sister, Victoria Tavares Vierra; and 53 grandchildren, 49 great-grandchildren and 18 great-great grandchildren.[2]

Tavares, a 35-year member of the Baháʼí Faith community of Barnstable, Massachusetts, was buried at St. Francis Xavier Cemetery in Centerville, Massachusetts.[2]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Coddy, Don (December 19, 2008). "Tavares patriarch dies". The Standard-Times (New Bedford). Retrieved December 19, 2008.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Feliciano Vierra Tavares Sr". The Standard-Times (New Bedford). December 19, 2008. Retrieved December 19, 2008.
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