The rock that revolutionized the Costa del Sol in the 60s: The Beatles and the Rolling Stones that brought the foreigners

The story of that Torremolinos of wine and roses days was not complete. The transformation of the fishing village into a tourist paradise has been told, the jábegas (traditional fishing boats) that coexisted with sun loungers to both scorch and embrace the Swedish women in bikinis turn by turn, the parties that never turned off the lights, and that unprecedented sexual freedom in Spain enjoyed by heterosexuals, gays, and lesbians. What happened in Torremolinos, stayed in Torremolinos. But an important chapter was still missing: the soundtrack of those wild parties, with their bands and joints. Journalist Manolo Bellido has set out to dust off the record player and recover those songs from the then-unknown Beatles and Rolling Stones that arrived with the tourists. But this time, he will not do it for a TV report but for his debut as a film director with the documentary 'Grandchildren of Torremolinos', which paraphrases the novel by American writer James A. Michener that immortalized the myth of the Costa del Sol in the 60s.

"Much has been said about the emblem of the Pez Espada hotel or the Pasaje Begoña, but the music and counterculture of that era remain untouched," explains the journalist who, having just retired from Canal Sur, is now in full filming after decades with this project echoing in his mind's speakers. Even before he dedicated himself to journalism and met many of the protagonists of that prodigious decade face to face, he already knew of the Malaga myth. "I am from Montilla and my father told me that he sometimes escaped here in the 60s... in my town, Torremolinos was a place of perdition," says the debutant director.

The documentary aims to revive the legendary nightlife, starting with its venues, clubs, party rooms, bars, discos, and dives. From legendary dance floors like Tiffany's or Barbarella to ViP Club, Pedro's, or the Top Ten, where there were live performances every night. "But at the same time, I want to create a human portrait of its protagonists, those young people who wanted to change the world and have fun playing their favorite songs," adds the ideologist of 'Grandchildren of Torremolinos'.

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The visit by SUR to the filming that started last Monday confirms that human touch the documentary seeks. The team of 'Grandchildren of Torremolinos' has taken over the Torremolinos house of Remi Fernández Campoy, the owner of Misol records, to rescue the big and small history of this vinyl temple on San Miguel street. Since 1963, a must-stop for anyone who wanted to be up-to-date. "When we opened, the trendy song was 'Cuando calienta el sol', but soon people from all over Andalusia started coming, many of them bohemians and artists, because we imported music and sold records from The Beatles and The Rolling Stones," says this music lover who, without being asked, brings up the eternal rock dispute: "I'm more of a Stones fan."

The Rolling Stones' Antics

Remi's words on camera help Manolo Bellido to point out that things were different here. "Unlike major capitals like Madrid, Zaragoza, and Sevilla where rock n roll entered through American bases, on the Costa del Sol it came through tourists... it was all more civilized and natural," he says with a smile at that final twist. "Additionally, there were fashion stores that couldn't be found on Gran Vía and records that hadn't yet been released in Spain, so people came here to buy clothes and music," recounts the director, who will portray the emergence of local groups such as Los Iberos, Los Gritos, Los Buitres, and Los Ángeles, and that international atmosphere so characteristic of the Costa del Sol thanks to the colony of foreigners.

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"Even John Lennon, when planning his vacations after his first hit, came to Torremolinos with his manager, Brian Epstein," the journalist and novice director recalls. That was in 1963, the same year his import records could be bought at Misol. The documentary will portray that foreign influence that blended so much with the Malaga character that many of those foreigners, also legendary musicians, repeated summer after summer or ended up staying indefinitely by the beach. There are the Rolling Stones' antics, with Keith Richards stealing his bandmate Brian Jones' girlfriend; or the moves to the south by Mike Vernon, producer of David Bowie and Eric Clapton, and Rick Parfitt, guitarist of Status Quo.

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With the support of Canal Sur, the Diputación de Málaga, and the Torremolinos City Council, the filming will continue over the next weeks in Málaga, Granada, Sevilla, Cádiz, and Madrid, where the protagonists of the era will rescue this story still to be seen and heard on screen. A documentary for which Manolo Bellido admits he is a novice, so he has surrounded himself with a team that sounds promising: filmmaker Sigfrid Monleon, director of photography César Hernando, producer Antonio Hens, and singer Javier Ojeda, leader of Danza Invisible and author of the book 'A History of Malaga Pop 1960-2009'. "I'm just an assistant," the latter interjects, giving all the credit for the film to Bellido. A project in which the musician has enrolled for the same reason he wrote his pop volume. "Malagueños have a poor memory regarding our elders and that music must be claimed."