Joe Cuba

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
In this
Spanish name, the first or paternal surname
is Calderón and the second or maternal family name is Cardona.
Joe Cuba
Birth nameGilberto Miguel Calderón Cardona
Also known asSonny, Joe
BornApril 22, 1931
Harlem, New York, U.S.
DiedFebruary 15, 2009(2009-02-15) (aged 77)
New York, New York, U.S.
GenresBoogaloo, salsa
Occupation(s)Musician, bandleader
Instrument(s)Conga
Years active1950–2009
LabelsTico, Fania

Gilberto Miguel Calderón Cardona (April 22, 1931 – February 15, 2009),

Latin Boogaloo
".

Early years

Gilberto Miguel Calderón Cardona was born in

stickball club called the Young Devils. Stickball was the main sport activity of the neighborhood. After Calderón broke a leg he took up playing the conga and continued to practice with the conga between school and his free time. Eventually, he graduated from high school and joined a band.[3]

Musical career

In 1950, when he was 19 years old, he played for Joe Panama and also for a group called La Alfarona X. The group soon disbanded and Calderón enrolled in college to study law. While at college he attended a concert in which Tito Puente performed "Abaniquito". He went up to Puente and introduced himself as a student and fan, and soon they developed what was to become a lifetime friendship. This event motivated Calderón to organize his own band. In 1954, his agent recommended that he change the band's name from the José Calderón Sextet to the Joe Cuba Sextet,[2] and the newly named Joe Cuba Sextet made their debut at the Stardust Ballroom.[3]

In 1962, after recording three albums for Mardi Gras Records, Cuba recorded his first album with the Joe Cuba Sextet called Steppin' Out featuring the hit "To Be With You", featuring the vocals of

Nuyorican Movement.[4]

In 1965, the Sextet got their first crossover hit with the Latin and soul fusion of "

Afro-Cuban tune "Manteca." Sabater later revealed that "None of us had ever been to Georgia."[5]

Along with fellow Nuyorican artists such as

Latin boogaloo sound,[2] which became a popular and influential Latin style in the latter half of the 1960s.[6] In 1966, his band scored a hit on the United States Billboard Hot 100 with the song "Bang! Bang!".[7] The record peaked at No. 63 on the Hot 100,[2] and No. 21 on the R&B chart. The follow-up, "Oh Yeah", peaked at No. 62 on the Hot 100.[8]

Later years and death

In April 1999, Joe Cuba was inducted into the

Spanish Harlem, Manhattan, New York.[9]

Joe Cuba died on February 15, 2009, in New York City, after being removed from life support.[1] He had been hospitalized for a persistent bacterial infection. Cuba's remains were cremated at Woodhaven Cemetery.[1] He is survived by his two adult children from his first wife (Nina, married in 1960)[9]

Discography

As leader

  • I Tried To Dance All Night (1956)
  • Mardi Gras Music For Dancing, Vol. 1 (1956)
  • Cha Cha Chá (1957)
  • Mardi Gras Music For Dancing, Vol. 2 (1958)
  • Mardi Gras Music For Dancing, Vol. 3 (1959)
  • Brava Pachanga (1959)
  • Merengue Loco (1961)
  • Joe Cuba (1961)
  • Steppin' Out (1962)
  • To Be With You (1962)
  • Cha Cha Chá's To Soothe The Savage Beast (1962)
  • Diggin' The Most (1963)
  • Vagabundeando! (Hangin' Out) (1963)
  • Comin' At You (1964)
  • El Alma del Barrio (The Soul of Spanish Harlem) (1964)
  • Breakin' Out (1965)
  • Bailadores (1965)
  • Red, Hot and Cha Cha Chá (1965)
  • Estamos Haciendo Algo Bien! (We Must Be Doing Something Right!) (1966)
  • Bang! Bang! Push, Push, Push (Wanted Dead Or Alive) (1966)
  • The Velvet Voice of Jimmy Sabater (1967)
  • My Man Speedy! (1968)
  • Recuerdos de mi Querido Barrio (Memories of My Beloved Neighborhood) (1970)
  • Bustin' Out (1972)
  • Hecho y Derecho (Doing it Right) (1973)
  • Cocinando la Salsa (Cookin' The Sauce) (1976)
  • El Pirata del Caribe (The Caribbean Pirate) (1979)
  • Steppin' Out... Again! (1995)
  • Salsa y Bembé (1998)

Compilations

  • Greatest Hits (2009)
  • El Alcalde del Barrio (2010)
  • The Best of Joe Cuba (Lo Mejor de Joe Cuba) (2010) - Fania Original (Remastered)
  • Anthology (2012)

See also

Notes


References

  1. ^ a b c Sanchez, Laura N. Perez, "NYC salsa band leader Joe Cuba dies at 78", USA Today, February 15, 2009
  2. ^
    ISBN 0-85112-939-0
    .
  3. ^ a b "Streetplay.com: The Stickball Hall of Fame - El Barrio - Joe Cuba". Streetplay.com. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  4. ^ "Joe Cuba: Biography". Archived from the original on 2012-03-20. Retrieved 2009-02-22.
  5. ISBN 0-231-11076-6
  6. ^
    ISSN 0362-4331
    . Retrieved 2017-05-12.
  7. ^ "The Perfect Summer Song, with a Dash of Social History | Now and Then: an American Social History Project blog". Nowandthen.ashp.cuny.edu. Retrieved 2017-05-12.
  8. ^ "Joe Cuba Sextet Songs". Musicvf.com. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  9. ^ a b "Joe Cuba Biography". Oldies.com. Retrieved 21 August 2021.

External links

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