Ray Barretto, 1929-2006

For nearly 40 years, conguero and band leader Ray Barretto was one of the leading forces in Latin jazz. His hard, compelling playing style has graced the recordings of saxophonists Gene Ammons, Lou Donaldson, Sonny Stitt, and guitarists Wes Montgomery and Kenny Burrell.

Born April 29, 1929 in Brooklyn, Barretto is one of the most prolific and influential Latin percussionists in the history of modern jazz. With a musical heritage as deeply rooted in the bebop jam sessions held in Harlem during the late-'40s as in his Puerto Rican ancestry, Barretto has spent over four decades refining the integration of Afro-Caribbean rhythms with the improvisational elements of jazz. Coincidentally, it was the tune "Manteca" recorded by Gillespie with Chano Pozo on percussion that drove Barretto to music. And it was a version of that same tune that became Barretto's first recording with Red Garland.

Barretto's parents moved to New York from Puerto Rico in the early 1920s, looking for a better life. He was raised in Spanish Harlem and at a very young age was influenced by his mother's love of music and by the jazz music of musicians such as Duke Ellington and Count Basie.

In 1946, when Barretto was 17 years old, he joined the Army. While stationed in Germany, Barretto met Belgium vibist Fats Sadi, who was working there. However, it was when he heard Dizzy Gillespie's "Manteca" with Cuban percussionist, Chano Pozo, that he realized his true calling in life.

In 1949, when Barretto returned home from the service, he started to visit clubs and participated in jam sessions, where he perfected his conga playing. On one occasion Charlie Parker heard Barretto play and invited him to play in his band. Later, he was asked to play for Jose Curbelo and Tito Puente, for whom he played for four years. Barretto developed a unique style of playing the conga and soon he was sought by other jazz band leaders. Latin percussionists started to appear in jazz groups with frequency as a consequence of Barretto's musical influence.

In 1960, Barretto was a house musician for the Prestige, Blue Note, and Riverside labels. New York had become the center of Latin music in the United States and a style called "Charanga" was the Latin music craze of the time.

In 1961, Barretto recorded his first hit, "El Watusi", the first Latin song to enter the Billboard charts. In 1967, he joined the Fania record label where he recorded "Acid", an experiment joining rhythm and blues with Latin music.

Barretto played the conga in recording sessions for the Rolling Stones and the Bee Gees. In 1975 he was nominated for a Grammy Award for the song "Barretto". From 1976 to 1978, Barretto recorded three records for Atlantic Records, including "La Cuna", and was nominated for a Grammy for "Barretto Live...Tomorrow". In 1979, he produced a salsa record for Fania, titled "Ricanstruction", which was named 1980 "Best Album" by Latin N.Y. Magazine, with Barretto crowned as Conga Player of the Year.

In 1990, Barretto finally won a Grammy for the album "Ritmo en el Corazon" (Rhythm in the Heart), which featured the vocals of Celia Cruz. In 1999, Barretto was inducted into the International Latin Music Hall of Fame.

Few artists have been as successful over the years at fusing these two genres as Barretto, an undisputed master of this style. A pioneer of the salsa movement, Barretto achieved international super stardom and released nearly two dozen albums with the Fania label from the late-'60s until salsa's popularity peaked in the mid-1980's.

Ray Barretto will be viewed at the Riverside Memorial Chapel on Wednesday, February 22, 2006 from 11 - 5 p.m. and 6 - 10 p.m. Barretto died at the Hackensack University Medical Center in Hackensack, N.J. at 5 a.m on Friday, February 17th, 2006. Ray Barretto is survived by his wife Annette Rivera, his four children: Chris, Raun, Ray, & Kelly Barretto and four grandchildren: Jullian Barretto, Aja Peters, Arno Peters and Alex Peters.