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Cathy Wurzer

Los Lobos took 'La Bamba' to the top of the charts

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"La Bamba" by Los Lobos was No. 1 on the Billboard pop chart 30 years ago.

It's the title track from a 1987 bio pic about Ritchie Valens.

Valens was a rising star in 1959 when he was killed in a plane crash along with Buddy Holly and the Big Bopper. The song, a rock and roll interpretation of a traditional Mexican folk song, was not a big hit for Valens when it first came out in 1958. His mother and sisters asked Los Lobos to record the song for the film.