Mongo Santamaria

• LIMITED EDITION CLASSIC LPs

• HIGH-DEFINITION PREMIUM VINYL

• 180 gr. VINYL–AUDIOPHILE PRESSING

• INCLUDES 1 BONUS TRACK

Presented here is the complete original Mongo Santamaría LP La Bamba, containing Santamaría’s second version of his hit “Watermelon Man”, which peaked at #10 in the Billboard charts. Born in Cuba, Santamaría moved to New York in the 1950s, where he became an integral figure in the fusion of Afro-Cuban rhythms with R&B and soul, paving the way for the boogaloo era of the late 1960s. The LP also contains such classics as La Bamba and Fatback, as well as readings of standards such as Summertime and Manha de Carnaval. As a bonus, this edition adds the first version of “Watermelon Man”.

PERSONNEL:

• Mongo SantaMaría - bongo drums & leader
• Marty Sheller - trumpet & arranger
• Hubert Laws - flute and tenor sax
• Bobby Capers - alto and baritone sax, flute
• Carmelo Garcia - timbales and drums
• Rodgers Grant - piano
• Victor Venegas - bass

New York, early 1960s.

• (*) BONUS TRACK
• Mongo Santamaría & His Orchestra:
• Marty Sheller (tp), Pat Patrick (as, fl), Bobby Capers (ts, fl), Rodgers Grant (p), Víctor Venegas (b), Frank Hernández, Kalil Madi (d), Mongo Santamaría (Conga drums), Kako, Joseph Gorgas (percussion), Osvaldo “Chihuahua” Martínez (percussion & vocals).
• Plaza Sound Studios, New York City, December 17, 1962.

TRACKS:

• SIDE A:
• 01 LA BAMBA
• 02 FATBACK
• 03 SUMMERTIME
• 04 MANHA DE CARNAVAL
• 05 JOSÉ OUTSIDE
• 06 COCONUT MILK

• SIDE B:
• 01 WATERMELON MAN
• 02 DO IT TO IT
• 03 RICKY TICK
• 04 STREAK O’LEAN
• 05 JUST SAY GOODBYE
• 06 FROM ME TO YOU ALL
• 07 WATERMELON MAN [first version] (*)