Trini Lopez

In late 1962, after the King contract expired, Lopez followed up on an offer by producer Snuff Garrett to join the post-Holly Crickets as vocalist. After a few weeks of auditions in Los Angeles, that idea did not go through. He landed a steady engagement at the nightclub PJ's, where his audience grew quickly. He was heard there by Frank Sinatra, who had started his own label, Reprise Records, and who subsequently signed Lopez.

His debut live album, Trini Lopez at PJ's (R/RS 6093), was released in 1963. The album included a version of Pete Seeger's “If I Had a Hammer”, which reached No. 1 in 36 countries (No. 3 in the United States), and was a radio favorite for many years. It sold over one million copies and was awarded a gold disc. He also performed his own version of the traditional Mexican song “La Bamba” on the album; his recording of the tune was later reissued as a single in 1966. Another live album from PJ's was recorded later that same year under the title By Popular Demand More Trini Lopez at PJ's (R/RS 6103), which contains the song Green, Green which was written by Randy Sparks and Barry McGuire and originally recorded by the New Christy Minstrels earlier that year for their Columbia album Ramblin.

Lopez scored 13 chart singles through 1968, including “Lemon Tree” (1965), “I'm Comin' Home, Cindy” (1966), and “Sally Was a Good Old Girl” (1968). Later in 2013, Lopez told Portland Magazine, "People ask about 'Lemon Tree' all the time. It's one of my most favorite requested songs. It's a very catchy tune. I just happen to like the chorus." On the adult contemporary chart, he racked up 15 hits, including the top-10 singles “Michael” (1964), “Gonna Get Along Without Ya' Now” (1967), and “The Bramble Bush” (1967), which he sang in the movie The Dirty Dozen. Beyond his success on record, he became one of the country's top nightclub performers of that era, regularly headlining in Las Vegas. In 1968, he recorded an album in Nashville entitled Welcome to Trini Country (R/RS 6300).

Lopez produced a single promoting the Coca-Cola Company's soft drink Fresca in 1967. In 1969, NBC aired a Trini Lopez variety special featuring the outstanding instrumental group the Ventures and singer Nancy Ames as guests. Its soundtrack, released as The Trini Lopez Show, has him singing his hits with the Ventures as his backing band.

He continued his musical career with extensive tours of Europe and Latin America during this period; an attempt to break out further by releasing a disco album in 1978 proved unsuccessful.

In 2002, Lopez teamed with Art Greenhaw for Legacy: My Texas Roots. The album used the “Texas Roots Combo” including Lopez, Greenhaw, and Lopez's brother, Jesse. Said reviewer Steve Leggett of AllMusic, "The album has an easygoing feel very similar to Lopez's classic live sets from the 1960s, only it rocks a good deal harder." Thereafter, Lopez focused on charitable work.

Lopez was still recording and appearing live in the years leading up to his death. He took part in a benefit concert to raise money for the victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, and appeared as a guest performer in a number of shows held in Maastricht in the Netherlands with the Dutch violinist and composer André Rieu. He continued to record; El Inmortal was released in 2010, and the following year he released his 65th album, Into The Future.