t age twenty, the golden age of any human being, he began to sing and he used to do that with his own lyrics.

At a pulpería (local convenience store) in the neighborhood of Flores, Gabino Ezeiza encouraged him by saying: «Very good, boy. I had heard about you but I’ve never thought you were so good».

Thereafter he was acquainted with other payadores like Luis Acosta García, Ambrosio Río, Luis Acosta García and, especially, José Betinotti.

The names of the pulperías, recreational places and other venues where he appeared were lost with the passing of time: Aulita, La Tradición, Parque Goal, etc.

He published booklets and books with titles like Los Gringos del País, Guitarra Roja, El Contrapunto Argentino and many more.

Even though in circles of friends Carlos Gardel sang his well-known song “El huérfano [b]” («It was one of those rainy, dark, cold nights...»), it is included in this work because its music was used by Anselmo Aieta to compose a tango with the same name (“El huérfano”) that the sublime singer recorded.

Castro was born in Merlo (province of Buenos Aires) on February 16, 1882 and died in Ciudadela (province of Buenos Aires) in 1971.