[2] A successful follow-up single ("Sorry, I'm a Lady") and European tour led to a number of album releases, numerous television appearances and the duo's selection to represent Luxembourg in the Eurovision Song Contest 1978.

Despite a substantial following in Spain, Germany and Japan, by 1981 their blend of disco, pop and Spanish folk music was no longer fashionable, and by 1983 Mateos and Mendiola were both working on solo projects.

In 1976, María Mendiola (prima ballerina of Alberto Portillo's Spanish Television ballet) proposed to her colleague Mayte Mateos the formation of a separate singing and dancing duo (using the title Venus).

Their first television appearance was on the Palmarés light entertainment programme[3] and they were engaged at a nightclub in the Aragon city of Zaragoza, but their contract was cancelled when the club manager decided that they were "too elegant" for the style of the show.

Leon Deane is generally credited with the Baccara formula—consisting of breathy lyrics, lush backing, a disco beat and the striking image of two women (Mateos dressed in black, Mendiola in white) dancing.

[8] It is also an example of the Euro disco genre, described in The Independent newspaper in 1999 as follows : This mind-bending Common Market melding of foreign accents, bad diction, bizarre arrangements and lightweight production, usually top-heavy with strings[9]"Yes Sir, …" reached the top of the charts in Germany, the Netherlands, the UK, Sweden, Belgium, and Switzerland, and number three in France.

[4] Baccara sold more than 16 million copies of "Yes Sir, I Can Boogie" and featured in the 1977 edition of the Guinness Book of Records as the highest-selling female musical duo to date.

Touring in Europe during the late 1970s helped the duo establish a firm fan base in Germany (where their records continued to be produced) and the Scandinavian countries, and their Spanish-flavoured interpretation of the disco sound also brought them recognition in Japan and Russia.

"Somewhere in Paradise" (with its allusions to life after death) is regularly played by Christian radio stations while "The Devil…" (with its background pistol shots) is sometimes identified with the gay community.

By this time, the disco sound had been overshadowed by newer music movements such as punk, new wave and synthpop in much of Europe and interest was largely confined to those countries where the duo had an established fan base, notably Germany.

One music critic suggested that the Baccara formula lacked artistic depth but had been "mined for all it was worth" over two years until public interest moved on to other things.

The New Musical Express commented in May 2002 (page 6): "Think what you like about Baccara, seen today their 1978 Eurovision performance has a certain style while their competition from that event looks dated and amateurish".

A 28-second instrumental bridge was removed from the start of the recording (thereby reducing the play time from 6:12 to 5:44) and the vocals were remixed so as to give Mendiola and Mateos equal prominence.

By 1988, both artists had released a series of singles and one studio album each of their own – Mendiola with Born Again and Mateos with Spanish Dreams under the name Mayte Mathée – which saw moderate success among Baccara's original fan base.

Mateos' Spanish Dreams was re-released on CD in Germany in the 2000s under the title Noche Latina but Mendiola's Born Again still remains unreleased in digital format.

However, the original song versions – those recorded between 1977 and 1981 – remain the property of Sony Music Entertainment, which now holds the rights to the RCA back catalogue.

Following the original Baccara's dissolution in 1981 Mayte Mateos released three solo singles through the RCA-Victor label, "Souvenirs from Paradise", "Recuerdos del ayer" and "Malaguena", the first two produced by Rolf Soja.

Pérez was followed by a succession of partners including Ángela Muro, Sole García, Jane Comerford, Carmen, Cristina Sevilla, Paloma Blanco, Isabel Patton, Romy Abradelo, Rose, Francesca Rodrigues and María Marín.

In 1999, Mateos and Cristina Sevilla released a new studio album through RCA-Victor/Sony-BMG, Baccara 2000,[20] as well as an updated dance version of breakthrough hit "Yes Sir, I Can Boogie" as a single.

The album was produced by Thorsten Brötzman,[21][22] who has previously worked as a keyboarder during Thomas Anders tour in Russia in 1995, and took part in many recordings of Blue System.

In 2004, Mayte Mateos was once again involved with Eurovision, when she took part (along with Cristina Sevilla) in the Swedish Melodifestivalen preselection contest to represent Sweden with the song "Soy tu Venus".

In 2013 Mateos sang on a cover version of "Yes Sir I Can Boogie" by the London indie rock band Sala & The Strange Sound.

In 2016 Mateos' Baccara collaborated with Fundacion Tony Manera with a cover song of "Dame un Poco de Tu Amor" by "Juan Carlos Calderón".

[34] Mendiola and Pérez toured[35] United Kingdom in 2000 together with The Supremes and The Three Degrees and appeared at Wembley Stadium, London with various other music groups.

In April 2005, they appeared in the third episode of British reality show Hit Me Baby One More Time, performing "Yes Sir I Can Boogie" and a contemporary song – "Hero", originally by Enrique Iglesias.

In November 2020, "Yes Sir, I Can Boogie" returned to the UK charts[39] after it was featured in several online videos posted[40] by members of the Scotland football team.

On 26 January 2022, the official announcement was made introducing their new member, Helen De Quiroga,[48] a singer with a long career and known for her work with such artists as Miguel Bosé and Alejandro Sanz.

In May 2023, the label "In Out Record" released on vinyl the maxi-single "Don't Let This Feeling Go Away", that featured extended versions of the aforementioned song, as well as "Call Me Up" and "Fantasy Boy", re-recorded with the vocals of Sevilla and de Quiroga.