Jul 17, 2025 12:44 PM
DownBeat’s 73rd Annual Critics Poll: One for the Record Books
You see before you what we believe is the largest and most comprehensive Critics Poll in the history of jazz. DownBeat…
Conguero Ray Barretto, one of the leading forces on the Latin Jazz scene, died Friday morning at at the Hackensack University Medical Center in Hackensack, N.J. Barretto had suffered a heart attack in January, shortly after he received the NEA Jazz Masters Fellowship. He was 76.
The son of Puerto Rican parents, Barretto was born in Brooklyn on April 29, 1929, and grew up in the Bronx and Spanish Harlem. While he was reared with Afro-Latin music, he became involved with jazz in the late ‘40s by sitting in at various sessions. After a tour with the U.S. Army in Europe in the early ‘50s, he became a music professional in 1954. He first worked with Jose Curbelo for two years, then joined Tito Puente, replacing Mongo Santamaria. Following four years with Puente, he left to join Herbie Mann, then formed his own band after four months.
Barretto had also been working and recording as a first-call Latin percussionist with jazz players such as Red Garland, Gene Ammons, Lou Donaldson, Cannonball Adderley, Dizzy Gillespie, Freddie Hubbard and others. His leadership credentials were cemented by the 1963 crossover hit “El Watusi” and he has continued to lead groups since that time, including New World Spirit, which he formed in 1992, the most directly linked to his Latin-jazz roots.
James Brandon Lewis earned honors for Artist of the Year and Tenor Saxophonist of the Year. Three of his recordings placed in the Albums of the Year category.
Jul 17, 2025 12:44 PM
You see before you what we believe is the largest and most comprehensive Critics Poll in the history of jazz. DownBeat…
Galper was often regarded as an underrated master of his craft.
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Hal Galper, a pianist, composer and arranger who enjoyed a substantial performing career but made perhaps a deeper…
Chuck Mangione on the cover of the May 8, 1975, edition of DownBeat.
Jul 29, 2025 1:00 PM
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“Hamiet was one of the most underrated musicians ever,” says Whitaker of baritone saxophonist Hamiet Bluiett.
Jul 8, 2025 7:30 AM
At 56, Rodney Whitaker, professor of jazz bass and director of jazz studies at Michigan State University, is equally…
Jul 17, 2025 11:35 AM
The DownBeat Critics Poll provides a wonderful snapshot of the jazz scene today, with much to explore and many great…