Letter from Mento Buru - By N.L. Belardes
From Matt Munoz:
Hello fans,
I just read some bad news and I wanted to pass it on to you.....
Ray Barretto, master conguero and bandleader passed away today, he was 76 years old. He underwent bypass surgery and never recovered.
It's a very sad day in the Mento Buru familyhood.Ray Barretto's music is a big part of our repretoire and helped us to develop the latin style our fans love to hear.
Some of Ray's songs we performed are:
-"Cocinando" (.....cocinando suave', puchunga cocinando..
-"Swing La Moderna" ...This was latin jam we love playing. The whole band usually takes massive solos, especially me and Robert..
During mine and Robert's days with our Salsa side project, Salsiology, we performed many of Ray's compostions including: "Llanto de Cocodrilo," "Ahora si," "Indestructible," and many others....
For those of you not familiar with Ray Barretto, the musician:
Born April 29, 1929, in Brooklyn, Ray Barretto is credited for being the first U.S.-born percussionist to integrate the African-based conga drum into jazz. This fact has designated him as on of the early "crossover" artists in jazz -- skillfully balancing his Latin leanings and his love for bebop througout a long and successful career.
Barretto's mother Delores was a financially strapped Puerto Rican immigrant determined to make a better life for her children. While she attended night school to study English, Ray and his siblings were glued to the radio, listening to jazz.
Hearing big band sounds of Duke Ellington, Glen Miller, and Tommy Dorsey, Barretto became enthralled by music. The radio wasn't the only source of musical entertainment for Barretto -- he learned about the majesty of Duke Ellington from a movie called Revelry With Beverly.
Growing up in 1940s America was difficult for the new Puerto Rican immigrants. Barretto and his family were no exception, as they were legally forced to move constantly from one home to another.
To escape the inner-city blues of the Bronx, Barretto enlisted in the army where he was introduced to bebop. After being mesmerized by the 45-rpm of Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie's "Shaw Nuff," Barretto discovered one of Gillespie's most defining songs, "Manteca," which featured conguero Chano Pozo.
While in the service, Barretto quickly learned that military life was not going to protect him from racial discrimination. When he was stationed in Germany, he found a nightclub that catered only to black GI's. It was at this club that Barretto began his musical career by playing the back head of a banjo.
After his discharge in 1949, Barretto returned to New York City, where he bought a drum set to further pursue his musical interests. The horrifically-named Bucket of Blood club hosted Barretto's early gigs, but as his technical skills improved he decided to seek out and learn from the bebop masters.
He soon joined Tito Puente's orchestra during the "Mambo Craze."
Becoming part of Tito Puente's orchestra, didn't curb Barretto's interest in bebop. He was building a solid reputation as a top rate studio percussionist for jazz heroes like drummer Art Blakey, saxophonist Lou Donaldson and guitarist Kenny Burrell.
Although many bebop fans despised the conga because of its rigid beats, as time and the music progressed, the instrument became more widely accepted. After several years of being one of the most in-demand sidemen in jazz, Barretto formed his first ensemble, Charanga La Moderna, in 1962.
It was with Charanga that he recorded the boogaloo standard, "El Watusi" in 1962. The song became a huge national hit and helped establish Barretto as a bandleader, but to this day the drummer is somewhat critical of its success.
Also during the early 1960s, Barretto began a his relationship with New York-based record label Fania, which specialized in Latin music and was, to Barretto, the Latin version of Motown. Over the the next decade, Barretto became a member and eventually music director for the label's famed Fania All-Stars. The band included trombonist Willie Colon, vocalists Hector Lavoe and Ruben Blades, and pianist Larry Harlow.
Barretto spent nearly three decades with the Fania All-Stars. But as time went on, he found himself frustrated with the limitations of salsa. So in 1992, he formed his current ensemble, New World Spirit, that places a heavier emphasis on bebop jazz. The group released its third album, Portraits in Jazz and Clave, in early 2000.
-------------------------------------------
***If you ever get a chance, buy "Indestructible" or "Acid" by Ray Barretto, these are some of my favorites. Also, there a few duet CD's he recorded with the queen of salsa, Celia Cruz...pick 'em up and learn...
Ray Barretto....Rest in peace, hermano...
Hello fans,
I just read some bad news and I wanted to pass it on to you.....
Ray Barretto, master conguero and bandleader passed away today, he was 76 years old. He underwent bypass surgery and never recovered.
It's a very sad day in the Mento Buru familyhood.Ray Barretto's music is a big part of our repretoire and helped us to develop the latin style our fans love to hear.
Some of Ray's songs we performed are:
-"Cocinando" (.....cocinando suave', puchunga cocinando..
-"Swing La Moderna" ...This was latin jam we love playing. The whole band usually takes massive solos, especially me and Robert..
During mine and Robert's days with our Salsa side project, Salsiology, we performed many of Ray's compostions including: "Llanto de Cocodrilo," "Ahora si," "Indestructible," and many others....
For those of you not familiar with Ray Barretto, the musician:
Born April 29, 1929, in Brooklyn, Ray Barretto is credited for being the first U.S.-born percussionist to integrate the African-based conga drum into jazz. This fact has designated him as on of the early "crossover" artists in jazz -- skillfully balancing his Latin leanings and his love for bebop througout a long and successful career.
Barretto's mother Delores was a financially strapped Puerto Rican immigrant determined to make a better life for her children. While she attended night school to study English, Ray and his siblings were glued to the radio, listening to jazz.
Hearing big band sounds of Duke Ellington, Glen Miller, and Tommy Dorsey, Barretto became enthralled by music. The radio wasn't the only source of musical entertainment for Barretto -- he learned about the majesty of Duke Ellington from a movie called Revelry With Beverly.
Growing up in 1940s America was difficult for the new Puerto Rican immigrants. Barretto and his family were no exception, as they were legally forced to move constantly from one home to another.
To escape the inner-city blues of the Bronx, Barretto enlisted in the army where he was introduced to bebop. After being mesmerized by the 45-rpm of Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie's "Shaw Nuff," Barretto discovered one of Gillespie's most defining songs, "Manteca," which featured conguero Chano Pozo.
While in the service, Barretto quickly learned that military life was not going to protect him from racial discrimination. When he was stationed in Germany, he found a nightclub that catered only to black GI's. It was at this club that Barretto began his musical career by playing the back head of a banjo.
After his discharge in 1949, Barretto returned to New York City, where he bought a drum set to further pursue his musical interests. The horrifically-named Bucket of Blood club hosted Barretto's early gigs, but as his technical skills improved he decided to seek out and learn from the bebop masters.
He soon joined Tito Puente's orchestra during the "Mambo Craze."
Becoming part of Tito Puente's orchestra, didn't curb Barretto's interest in bebop. He was building a solid reputation as a top rate studio percussionist for jazz heroes like drummer Art Blakey, saxophonist Lou Donaldson and guitarist Kenny Burrell.
Although many bebop fans despised the conga because of its rigid beats, as time and the music progressed, the instrument became more widely accepted. After several years of being one of the most in-demand sidemen in jazz, Barretto formed his first ensemble, Charanga La Moderna, in 1962.
It was with Charanga that he recorded the boogaloo standard, "El Watusi" in 1962. The song became a huge national hit and helped establish Barretto as a bandleader, but to this day the drummer is somewhat critical of its success.
Also during the early 1960s, Barretto began a his relationship with New York-based record label Fania, which specialized in Latin music and was, to Barretto, the Latin version of Motown. Over the the next decade, Barretto became a member and eventually music director for the label's famed Fania All-Stars. The band included trombonist Willie Colon, vocalists Hector Lavoe and Ruben Blades, and pianist Larry Harlow.
Barretto spent nearly three decades with the Fania All-Stars. But as time went on, he found himself frustrated with the limitations of salsa. So in 1992, he formed his current ensemble, New World Spirit, that places a heavier emphasis on bebop jazz. The group released its third album, Portraits in Jazz and Clave, in early 2000.
-------------------------------------------
***If you ever get a chance, buy "Indestructible" or "Acid" by Ray Barretto, these are some of my favorites. Also, there a few duet CD's he recorded with the queen of salsa, Celia Cruz...pick 'em up and learn...
Ray Barretto....Rest in peace, hermano...
This entry was posted by N.L. Belardes, on
Friday, February 17, 2006.
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Rest in peace. Music lives on in places people just cant stay...
sad! but good he got to go out with music in his life... i hope i'm so lucky. thanks for posting matt's letter
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