Johnny Pacheco
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Johnny Pacheco, born March 25, 1935 in Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic is a producer, musician, bandleader, and arguably the godfather of and the most influential figures in salsa music.
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[edit] Early history
Pacheco inherited his passion for music from his father, Rafael Azarias Pacheco, who was the bandleader and clarinettist of one of the most famous orchestras of that time the “Santa Cecilia Orchestra”. It was his father that first put a musical instrument into his son's hands. At the age of 11, his parents moved to New York City in the late 1940s from his native Dominican Republic, where he continued polishing his musical skills. Pacheco learned to play accordion, violin, saxophone and clarinet. He attended the Juilliard School of Music where he studied percussion making him the leading percussionist of the time. He performed and recorded with the most important American artists. He then learned to play flute. He is recognized as one of the top flutists of his era.
Pacheco plays the flute, saxophone and assorted percussion. He performed alongside Charlie Palmieri‘s Latin orchestra for a number of years before creating his own band in 1959. Experimentation was the focus of his new band, blending African, Cuban, Puerto Rican and Latin music into what came to be known as salsa.
In 1960, he organized his first and legendary orchestra, “Pacheco y Su Charanga”. The band signed with “Alegre” Records and its first album “Johnny Pacheco y Su Charanga” sold over 100,000 copies within the first year, becoming the best selling album of the time. The album is a classic. Beginning then and through the end of 1963, Pacheco introduced a new dance craze called “Pachanga”. He became an internationally renowned star and toured extensively throughout the United States, Europe, Asia, and Latin America. Moreover '"Pacheco y Su Charanga", was the first Latin band to ever headline the Apollo in 1962 and 1963.
[edit] Selected recordings
Early albums included
“Que Suene la Flauta” (1962)
“Las Charangas” (1963)
“Recuerdo de Arcaño” (1963),
“Guachinango” (1964)
“Que Suene la Flauta, Vol. 3” (1964)
“Latin Jam” (1965)
“Pacheco Te Invita a Bailar” (1967) and
“Para Gozar Belen” (1967) to name just a few.
[edit] Mid career highlights
In late 1963, Pacheco's career took another historical turn when he created Fania Records with Gerald (Jerry) Masucci. In 1964, the label released his next endeavor entitled "Cañonazo" ("Canon Shot"). The album feature Pete "El Conde" Rodriguez on vocals and a switch from the Charanga to Conjunto style. This was the first of many recordings with the "compadres" (literally familial compatriots) (as they came to be known) and the beginning of a long friendship and working relationship. Together they recorded "Los Compadres" (1970), "Perfecta Combinacion" ("Perfect Combination") (1971), "Tres de Cafe y Dos de Azucar" ("Three Coffees Two with Sugar") (1973) and many others successful albums.
In June 1966, Pacheco was the first Latin music producer to receive the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) Governor’s Award in New York City. In 1968 he gathered many of the musicians from the Fania label and showcased them together in concert. This marked the birth of the legendary Fania All-Stars. In 1971, this orchestra consisting of Fania’s elite exploded all over the salsa scene starting an incredible musical era for Latin music that has continued for over 30 years under the masterful direction of “Maestro” Pacheco.
As the company’s executive, creative director and musical producer, Pacheco was responsible for launching the careers of many of the young stars that formed part of Fania Records family.
[edit] Original Fania band
The early Fania All-Stars band was made up of Johnny Pacheco, musical director and flute; Larry Harlow on piano, Bobby Valentin on bass guitar, Ray Barretto on conga, Roberto Roena on bongo, Orestes Vilato on timbales, (replaced by Nicky Marrero later on); Willie Colón, Barry Rodgers, and Larry Spencer (replaced by several others) on trombones, Renaldo Jorge, Roberto Rodriguez (replaced by Victor Paz) and Hector “Bomberito” Zarzuela on trumpets, and Yomo Toro on the cuatro (a small Puerto Rican guitar with four strings). The vocalists were the lead singers from the Colon, Pacheco, Barretto and Harlow bands. Hector Lavoe, Pete "El Conde" Rodriguez, Adalberto Santiago, Ismael Miranda, were joined by Santitos Colon (from the Tito Puente band) and Jose Cheo Feliciano (from the Joe Cuba band). Early Fania All Stars guests were Eddie Palmieri, Tito Puente, Joe Bataan, Monguito, Mongo Santamaria, Jimmy Sabater, La La, Louie Ramirez, Ralph Robles, Ricardo Richie Ray and Bobby Cruz. The 1970’s line-up included Rubén Blades, Celia Cruz, Papo Lucca, Eddie Palmieri, Andy Montañez, Jorge Santana (Carlos’s brother) and the Cameroonian sax player Manu Dibango, who appeared as a guest in concerts and live recordings in Africa and New York.
[edit] The 1990s
Throughout his 40-year involvement with the development of Latin music, Pacheco has received many kudos for his extraordinary genius. In 1994, he established the Johnny Pacheco Scholarship Fund demonstrating his love for music and commitment to higher education. Each year a college freshman is honored with financial support and Mr. Pacheco’s blessing. He says, "My hope is to give a young aspiring and talented musician a chance to develop as an artist and benefit from a college education."
In 1996 the president of the Dominican Republic, Juaquin Balaguer bestowed him with the prestigious Presidential Medal of Honor. In 1997, he was the recipient of the Bobby Capó Lifetime Achievement Award, awarded by Governor George Pataki. In November of 1998, he was inducted into the International Latin Music Hall of Fame. That same year, Pacheco was presented with the First International Dominican Artist Award from the distinguished Casandra Awards.
[edit] Other achievements
He has written more than 150 songs and most of them are now classics. Among them are “La Dicha Mia”, “Quitate Tu” (Pa’ Ponerme Yo), “Acuyuye”, “El Rey de la Puntualidad”, Tito Puente‘s “El Numero Cien” and Celia Cruz’s “Celia y Tito”. Pacheco was also inspirational to the younger generations. Rap artist Mangu asked this Latin legend to write arrangements, sing chorus, and play the flute in his album “Calle Luna Y Calle Sol”. Pacheco also produced music for feature films. He was the musical director of the film, Our Latin Thing, the first film about salsa and its influence on New York Latinos. And in 1974, he worked on a second film entitled Salsa. During the 1980s, he wrote the musical scores and themes for the films “Mondo New York” and Something Wild. The last one was in collaboration with David Byrne, leader of the group Talking Heads. His most recent work in the movie industry was the feature film The Mambo Kings released by Warner Brothers.
Throughout his career, Pacheco has turned out over 60 recordings. Pacheco's pioneering musical approach has made him one of the most solicited producers in Latin music. For decades, Pacheco has been at the center of the Latin music universe. His nine Grammy nominations, ten Gold records and numerous awards pay tribute to his creative talent as composer, arranger, bandleader and producer. Moreover, he is the pioneer of an unforgettable musical era that changed the face of Latin music history.
Pacheco has also been deeply committed to the improvement of the Latin community worldwide. He participated in the AIDS benefit concert “Concierto Por La Vida”, in November 1988 at New York City’s Avery Fisher Hall. He demonstrated his solidarity with the victims of Hurricane Georges (Zhorzh) by collaborating with the Hispanic Federation Relief Fund during “Hurricane Georges Relief Fund 1998”. This event was transmitted live across the northeastern United States by the NBC television network. He also participated at an event at Hostos Community College for the same purpose.
Pacheco's pioneering musical approach has made him one of the most solicited producers in Latin music. He has worked with many Salsa greats, including Celia Cruz, Willie Colon, Hector Lavoe, Ruben Blades, Cheo Feliciano, La Lupe, and Pete "El Conde" Rodriguez. His resume also includes producing the hit song "Bailando Salsa" for the Spanish pop group Mecano, whose album sold half a million copies the first month after its release. Pacheco also co-wrote and produced three songs for David Byrne's first solo album, Rei Momo.
The music of Johnny Pacheco continues to bless the Latin music industry. He remains highly active in the recording industry performing and recording with his group as the guiding force behind the best tropical music. Always ahead of his time, he is one of the most admired and loved musicians on the music scene all over the world. Johnny Pacheco is a pioneer, an innovator and more importantly a living legend.
[edit] Latest events and activity
His latest album was recorded in 2004 after an 11 year absence “Entre Amigos” was recorded under the “Bronco” label and it feature appearances by his life-long friends Bobby Valentin, Roberto Roena, Papo Lucca, Nelson Gonzalez, Cheo Feliciano, Ismael Miranda and Adalberto Santiago the album also featured Dave Valentin, Arturo Sandoval, Ricky Gonzalez and others. Songs by Gilberto Santa Rosa, Tito Rojas, Jose Alberto "El Canario," Michael Stewart, Herman Olivera, Ray Viera, Hector Casanova and Johnny Ventura. His trademark phrase "Tres de café y dos de azúcar" ("Three -parts- coffee, and two -parts- sugar") is not only a recipe for preparing a good cup of coffee; but also the title of one of his better selling albums which are now being re-released by eMusica (from Miami) who owns the Fania Label recording rights. “A Man and His Music,” A two-disc 30 track retrospective commemorative recording was released on October 2006 to celebrate Pacheco's 50th Anniversary in music. It coincided with the Fania All-Stars concert reunion that took place on Friday, October 20th at The Theatre-Madison Square Garden.
In November 6, 2006 “El Maestro” Johnny Pacheco made a musical appearance at the Latin Grammy with the Fania All-Stars, the band played an ensemble of salsa numbers from the 1970s. Anaís, Victor Manuelle, Andy Montañez, and Gilberto Santa Rosa sang numbers from that decade.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
Pacheco 50th Aniverssary Celebration
