PERCUSSIONIST

Ramon Santamaria was born on April 7, 1922 in Havana, Cuba where his father nicknamed him ‘Mongo’ – a Senegalese word for tribal chief. He began studying violin at a young age, but moved to drums and percussion in his teens. He soon dropped out of school and jumped into the Havana music scene as a percussionist. He spent his early twenties playing at the Tropicana with bands such as Conjunto Matamoros and Conjunto Azul. In 1948, he traveled to Mexico City with a dance troupe, and then moved onto New York in 1950. Upon arriving in New York, he started working with Perez Prado, and then got a job with Tito Puente. Santamaria played with Puente for more than six years, recording several albums including Cuban Carnival and Top Percussion. In 1958, Santamaria moved to California and began working with Cal Tjader. He recorded a series of albums with Tjader including Monterey Concerts and Cal Tjader’s Latin Concert. At the same time, he released several influential albums under his own name, including the 1960 album Our Man in Havana. He left Tjader’s group in the early sixties, leading his own band exclusively. While performing in an empty nightclub in 1962, Santamaria’s band experimented with a new song from their piano player, a young Herbie Hancock – Watermelon Man. The song became a permanent part of their repertoire, and eventually a huge recorded hit for Santamaria. The combination of Latin, jazz, and R n’ B meant success for Santamaria, and he released a series of albums using that mixture including the 1967 album Mongo Explodes. In the late 70s, Santamaria returned to his Latin roots on the Vaya label, producing the Grammy award winning 1977 album Amanacer. The early 80s brought a jazz focus for Santamaria, collaborating with Dizzy Gillespie and Toots Thielsmans on the 1980 album Summertime. He then moved to the Concord Picante label, an affiliation that lasted into the mid-90s. His albums for Concord Picante included Olé Ola, Live at Jazz Alley, and the 1995 collaboration with Poncho Sanchez, Conga Blue. Santamaria retired from live performance in the nineties, yet still recorded albums including the 1996 album Brazilian Sunset. He suffered a stroke and died on February 1, 2003 in Miami. Mongo Santamaria left a lengthy recorded legacy and an undeniable influence on the next generation of percussionists.

Biography courtesy Latin Jazz Corner by Chip Boaz

MONGO SANTAMARIA - WATERMELON MAN (1995)

recorded live at Birland, New York City 9th/10th October 1992

Mongo Santamaria (conga, drums)

Eddie J. Allen (trunmpet)

Jimmy Cozier (alto & baritone saxes, flute)

Craig Rivers (tenor sax, flute)

Ricardo Gonzalez (piano)

Guillermo Edgehill (bass)

Johnny Almendra (drums, timbales)

Eddie Rodriguez (percussion)

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From left to right:  Unidentified gentleman, Mongo, Marty Sheller, Steve Berrios and Julito Collazo