Ramon mongo santamaria biography
Mongo Santamaria: Life Of A Living Legend - DRUM! Magazine!
Born Ramon "Mongo" Santamaria on April 7, 1922, in Havana, Cuba; raised in the city's Jesus Maria district.
Ramon mongo santamaria biography
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Afro-Cuban conga player, percussionist, and bandleader Mongo Santamaria is one of the most influential players of his generation. A popular performer since 1963, the year the Herbie Hancock-penned "Watermelon Man" reached the pop charts in the United States, Santamaria has explored his own Cuban musical roots throughout his career and has blended elements of jazz, rhythm and blues, rock, and popular music with the traditional sounds of his homeland.
A "mesmerizing spectacle for both eyes and ears" in concert, the master percussionist "creates an incantory spell rooted in Cuban religious rituals, quietly seating himself before his congas and soloing with total command over the rhythmic spaces between the beats while his band pumps out an endless vamp," asserted All Music Guide contributor Richard S.
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