Cuban Influences
“It’s not that music from Havana, Cuba that was pure. It ain’t pure no more - we here!” - Benny Bonilla, member of Peter Rodriguez y su Conjunto
Arsenio Rodriguez was sometimes known as El Ciego Maravilloso (the marvelous blind man) and characterized mambo as “anarchy in tempo”l. Papaupa is an example of the son montuno style that was also an influence on Latin Boogaloo.
Known as the mambo king. Tito Puente, also performed a variety of Cuban rhythms. The timbalero performs Cuban Pete a cha cha number in this video
Son-Montuno describes the section of a Cuban son – the section featuring the call and response - and includes repetitive piano parts also known as “montunos”. Popular mambo band leader, José Curbelo’s sextet plays "La Ruñidera", here, as an example of son-montuno.
Machito’s given name was actually Francisco Raúl Gutiérrez Grillo. He was an Havana born Latin jazz musician who, along with Tito Puente and Tito Rodriguez, was part of the big three mambo bandleaders in New York.