Tejano music star Michael Salgado is quick to tell you about the biggest day of his career. He recalled cutting his first hit, "Cruz de Madera," in late 1994 and playing an outdoor concert in San Antonio the following summer. Driving to San Antonio, he wondered which group the crowd was coming to see. At the show, "The crowd was singing every word of every song on the album. When we got off stage, people bombarded us. The people representing us weren't expecting it, either, and there was not a lot of security. It really got out of hand." Starting his band at age 19 and recording three albums with little success, Salgado performed for 30,000 people at the Tejano Music Awards in San Antonio in March 1996 and has since recorded 10 albums with the hits including: "Sin Ella" (Without Her), "Palomita Blanca" (Little White Dove), "Otra Vez a la Cantina" (Another Time to the Bar) and "Volare, Volare." His latest full-length CD, "El Zurdo de Oro" (The Golden Lefty), refers to his playing the accordion left-handed, upside down and backward. An accordion virtuoso, he is sometimes referred to as "the Jimi Hendrix of Tejano music." The left-handed Hendrix is credited with re-inventing rock 'n' roll guitar in the 1960s. Born in the Mexican state of Chihuahua, Salgado came to the United States at an early age with his parents, Ernie Sr. and the former Alice Samora. His father was a farm worker and musician who inspired his son to take up bajo sexto and then accordion. He said his early years in small nightclubs "were disappointing, but we kept going, time went by and the group gained more experience and got a lot sharper. "When we go on stage, the idea is to get the crowd going and interacting with you. We don't do a lot of dancing. We entertain with our music. When the crowd is really hyped and yelling, it's a rush you can't get anywhere else, like 'Wow!' " Salgado said he was inspired by the lyrical and emotional substance of pioneer norteño singer Ramon Ayala. "When people hear a song on the radio, for some it's the rhythm and for others the words," he said. "I like to sing songs about real life, the drama in your life, to have a drink and forget the one who broke your heart." His new single releases on Freddy Records are "Dueña de mi Corazón" (Owner of My Heart) and "Sirvame Otra, Cantinero" (Give Me Another, Bartender).