The year 1972 was part of a dynamic period of Chicano politics and cultural production in South Texas. A few years earlier, in the Crystal City Revolts, Tejanos had moved to gain control of city and school board positions, events that resulted in the creation of the Raza Unida Party in 1970. Nineteen seventy-two also marked the beginning of the most significant career any Chicano has had in country music. That year Johnny Rodriguez, whose real name is Juan Raoul Davis Rodriguez, saw his song "Pass Me By" climb to the top 10 on the music charts. "Pass Me By" was one of the singles released before Rodriguez's 1973 debut album "Introducing Johnny Rodriguez," which reached the number-one spot on all three major music trade charts. Also in 1972, Rodriguez was named "Most Promising Male Vocalist" by the Academy of Country Music. In this article, the author features the life and the music career of Johnny Rodriguez, with the hope that Johnny's story may encourage scholars of Chicana/o music and cultural studies to consider listening to those Chicana/o and Tejana/o musical subjects sometimes shaped by a twang or located along seemingly incompatible musical routes, as they may have something to offer. (Contains 4 figures and 6 notes.)