History of Latin Music - The Salsa Revolution (part 2) 

I'm half Polish and only a small amount of Spanish but this music lifts my spirits like almost none can.

Most commercial music puts my brain to sleep.

Never forget there musical father .. 🇩🇴Johnny pacheco ✨️🗽 🇵🇦Rubén Blades and 🇩🇴Johnny pacheco Juanpanchanga One of the best salsa ever created 🙌

Requintos 😊

For sure. I don't know about him ever being referred to as the father of salsa, but he's definitely a huge part of the group of musicians that crafted the sound and, to me, he's the most significant musician of the last 70 years in any genre. Many people compare Fania to Motown, but no label dominated their genre like Fania did, and none was run by the very performer you'd see on stage directing the baddest line up in the game. Even today, new salsa still has the Fania DNA in it and Pacheco set the standard for live performances. You can pull Elvis from pop music, Barry Gordy from soul, but if you pull Pacheco from salsa, the genre might look different today. He had a hand in the career of many greats and because he was so involved in the music, his stamp is all over the genre.

Salsa...made up by 1 to 3 Cubans or Dominicans and thousands of Boricuas.

@@ricpr Wow, I think your opinion is a little over the top. Why do you think they were regarded the "Motown of Salsa?" Which is a term concocted and repeated years later by writers. Motown dominated the R&B/Pop genre during the 1960s. Usurping Stax Records. If you remove Johnny from the equation you get the same 98% output and sound. Composers like Tite Curet Alonso, Justi Barreto, Raul Marrero, Ramon Rodriguez, and a good chunk of the Cuban Popular Music songbook, and arrangers like Bobby Valentin, Marty Sheller, Luis Cruz, Jr, Louie Ramirez, Perico Ortiz, Jose Febles, Sonny Bravo, Oscar Hernandez and so many others, are who were responsible for developing the "sounds" for then-modern 1970s Salsa. Which is nothing more than a new generation expressing Afro-Cuban Son dance music outside of Cuba.

What was his unique and creative technique comprised of? What exactly was "new" in terms of the sound that hadn't been produced previously?

The creator and founder of the Fania All-Stars was Jerry Masucci. Pacheco was its musical director. Masucci's money is what lured Bobby Valentin, Larry Harlow, Ray Barretto, Willie Colón, Joe Bataan, Roberto Roena, Santos Colón, Ralph Marzan, Bobby Quesada, and other musicians to join Johnny Pacheco as label mates.

Why do you hate puertoricans? I have seen all your comments and you never mention puerto rico. Only Cuba and Dominican republic. Like we had nothing to do with Salsa. As a matter of fact we had more to do with Salsa than the Dominican republic and that's a fact. Just mention the great Salsa stars from D.R abd for everyone that you mention I will give you 10 Puerto Rican mega stars. Why the hate towards Puerto ricans? 🇵🇷

@ivancolon3519 I don't hate nobody... I hate liars.....

Back in the 1960s, Pello El Afrokan incorporated trombones to his band in Cuba, where Elio Reve also added trombones to his charangon.Even before then, Benny Be

Continuation...Benny More emphasized Generoso Jimenez's trombones as a solo instrumentos in his Banda Gigante

@@luistamargo3736 completely agree about More. Great band, but More had a big band style and yes, Jiminez's trombone was definitely great. Pello is a bit closer, but still more of a 50s style bigger band. Great band as well. I was referring to the trombone only line that Mon had. You can see the striking difference between the three bands in Mon's El Gallo Espuelérico video of the same era. No trumpet....all trombone, and it significantly changes the sound into a much deeper and powerful brass line. Much like turning a family car into a hot rod. He's literally kicking off salsa dura in those old videos.

I could hear about this history for DAYS and it never gets old. We really need a podcast on this.

@luistamargo3736 The difference is that neither Pello El Afrokan's or Benny More's ensembles were conjuntos. Palmieri's was.

Izzy!!! Good to see you here man. God bless

Exactamente. Y un punto de vista pobre.

Not really. In fact, they were never signed to Fania directly. Richie & Bobby were TICO artists signed to Morris Levy in 1968 when they both appear on the first Fania All Star recordings ("Live at the Red Garter") and the 2nd appearance of the big band ("Live at the Cheetah") they did so as "special invited guests." By 1973 Morris Levy had already sold the TICO record label and catalog to Jerry Masucci. Giving Masucci control over Ricardo Ray & Bobby Cruz. But Jerry was out of luck because both Richie & Bobby were out of the Salsa game by the time the film "Salsa: Live at Yankee Stadium" was released to the public. They had "found God" and quit the commercial Latin music dance scene. Their association with the Fania label and the FAS orchestra comes by way of their participation the first 2 times the band performed. But they were never officially FAS members. Years later, in the late 1990s, promoters included them as part of the Fania concert presentations thanks to their willingness to perform non-religious music. Which they had not done since the mid-1970s all the way to around 1997. Richie Ray never originally released anything under Fania. It was the Victor label (under his real name Richard Maldonado), then RCA, then TICO, then... that's it. Everything else they did was independently produced. The one recording in the 1990s they're on as part of the artists on the Fania "Bravo '97" album was under the JMM Record label.

Larry reconocia que lo que se identificaba como "Salsa" en los EE.UU, y en el exterior de Cuba, era musica Afro-Cubana, reinterpretado por una vieja guardia y una nueva generacion de interpretes, colaborando con los unos a otros, hacia una marqueta consistiendo de audiencias veteranas y audiencias juveniles. La cultura musical, al igual que los bailes correspondientes, resulto en un cambio de marca (en ingles se expresa como "re-branding") que capturo a la imaginacion de los nuevos consumidores de la musica y el baile asociado con la musica Afro-Cubano. Ese cambio de marca fue el termino "Salsa." En el contexto de la marqueta en que Larry Harlow sobrevivio, hizo su carrera, y llego a tener exito al inicio de su carrera, la comunidad Puertorriqueña en los EE.UU y Puerto Rico lo apoyaron grandemente. Asi que, cuando el habla de que la "Salsa" no existiera sin los Boricuas, el se esta refiriendo a su relevancia como una industria viable, adentro de esas marquetas que le brindaba trabajo, oportunidades, promocion en la radio, en los medios de prensa, etc.

@@richieblondet2310 por una vieja música o Celia?

@@bl00dline360 La respuesta esta en lo que escribi. Gracias.

Si no fuera por Cuba, PR no tendría la misma cultura que hoy.

@@richieblondet2310....bla bla bla. La musica de Cuba se quedo estancada con la revolucion. PR con mejores arreglistas, mejores compositores, mejores cantantes, y mejores.musico llevo la Salsa al sitial que tiene hoy. Cuba creo loa origenes pera ya...hasta ahi llego. Visite cualquier discoteca del mundo y escuchara que el 90% de lo que tocan ea Salsa de PR.

Joe Bataan is FILIPINO AFRICAN... his Filipino father is retired navy and musician...

@@yvonnieseguis2928his father was Black American

TY! Thats the genre i was looking for

@@MaskedMenace94 His father was Filipino. East Harlem had an early Filipino community in place in the 1920s & 1930s. His father was born in Manila, Phillipines. Nitollano, which is Joe Bataan's real surname, is of Filipino origin. His mom was African American, and was born in Newport News, VA.

The spread of Salsa music throughout Americana Latina was attributed by artists from the Fania not Ruben Blades.

@@daniellevin3056 Ruben Blades was contracted to the Fania label since his days with Barretto and later joining Willie Colon. He was also a member of the Fania All-Stars. With this said, the notion that "Salsa" was spread throughout the planet specifically due to the FAS is exaggerated and propaganda. They were one of many entities interpreting Afro-Cuban music who toured throughout the Americas, Asia, Europe and Africa. For a cultural phenomenon to emerge, it takes a collective. It HAS to be more than one to become "popular."

@@richieblondet2310 I agree! When I was younger, my Father was in the military. On the bases where we lived, he was always the older of the men when groups of Puerto Ricans would gather together. He was higher ranking, so he had the money to spare on what ended up being an awesome record collection. The man should've been a DJ at a radio station, as his knowledge of the players was very deep. He spent a chunk of time in NYC in the 60s and spent a ton of time experiencing live music. Once you leave the umbrella of Fania, which was an awesome label, you get into bands like El Gran Combo, the Lebron Brothers, and a ton of others that were equally as good as Fania acts. Many of those acts just didn't have the promotional backing that Fania had, but they all toured and were great ambassadors. I never saw a Fania act on a military base, but I did get to see Luigi Texidor and El Gran Combo play at Fort Hood.

Nope i know its alive somewhere😩

Looks like them dudes (Masuccis) raped those artists I understand they had to make money but goddam be fair

Not true! It was happening and happened

@johnjesus I am not guided by surveys, influential or non-influential media, or what a segment of society in Latin America deems offensive. I abide by my own convictions. I have and will continue to use the term Latinx. If someone has a problen with the term, that's their issue for not being educated over it.

​@@richieblondet2310 So even tho only 3% of Hispanic people use that term you'll still continue to use it? Why? Because you feel superior using it? Even tho that term was probably created by white people in America grammatically is not even how Spanish is used? Fascinating.

@@stark4614 Because in THIS country, the United States, we have the right to express ourselves. The term is used out of respect to the non-binary community. It has nothing to do with a superiority complex. But your protest does, and is revolved around supremacy. Among Latinx Americans (and not "Hispanics" as you reference non-spanish speaking Spaniards, which is worse than your whining over the use of a single letter "X" added to the term Latino or Latina) it is known as "Machismo." Which endorses misogyny and oppression towards the LGBTQ community. Furthermore, U.S. based or born spanish-speaking members of academia are who coined the term "Latinx." Educated people with compassion. Who are endorsing inclusivity. And not exclusivity, such as the programmed 87% you believe are to be followed. You know who came up with the term "Hispanics?" Los blanquitos en los Estados Unidos. Who in their wisDUMB, assumed anyone who spoke spanish was "Hispano." That's Spanish culture from Spain. A sordid part of Latinx history when the mAsses deemed Spain as "La Madre Patria." We are far less ignorant in the 21st century. Well, at least, 3% are. Don't be a slave to your U.S. public school conditioning. Your REAL education begins AFTER you graduate. The underground railroad (aka your local public library) is THAT way. 👉🏼

All over the world

Colombia, Peru, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Panama y la ciudad de Nueva York fueron los centros primarias. Hoy en dia, en mi opinion personal, diria que el Peru y Colombia ha sido el pais que se ha mantenido la mas fiel hacia la "Salsa Clasica." Aunque esos paises tiene su segmento que consumen la musica urbana latinoamericana, reggaeton y musica norte americana popular.

history the music afro born in america continent in cuba whit the laguage in spanish the salsa is an son

Because Afro Cuban is raw music...just percusion. Salsa is much more elaborated.

@@elgrande178 No es cierto. Much of the "Salsa" catalog is re-recorded standards by composers from Cuba or its diaspora, mainly in the U.S.A. The fact is every single composer or arranger within the "Salsa" category is writing or adapting to Afro-Cuban based music. Some of the most elaborate and compelling popular dance music has been produced in Cuba, or by Cubans outside of Cuba. This music is spawned from their natural born culture. Others who are contributing to it are adding to its canon or practicing its traditions. It's Afro-Cuban dance music identified by our generation as "Salsa." The only distinctions are who the individual interpreters are. Which is what makes all music have its own "signature" style or sound. But the genre itself is Son. With musicians using it's varying sub-genres to draw from. Today, in 2022, "Salsa is Guaracha (including "Salsa Romantica"), Son Montuno & Mambo. Genres like guajiras, cha-cha-cha's, boleros, or even folkloric styles like guaguanco are rarely performed for today's dancer. A majority of whom are taught to specifically express themselves to progressive uptempo Afro-Cuban sounds (guaracha, son montuno, mambo).

That's because the rhythms are the same. Salsa IS Afro-Cuban music. The history of Cuban Popular Music in the United States has always been to identify "Son," which is the Afro-Cuban musical genre a "Salsero/a" dances to, by another name. At the turn of the century, when Cuba became a U.S. possession (later granted its independence, though not without the occasional U.S. government intervention) Cuban Son was identified by U.S. media as "Cubanola." Just before WW1, the term "Rumba," introduced to U.S. audiences by White Cuban dance professionals, began making the rounds and became associated with a type.of Cuban dance expression for its time. The latter term resurfaced in the 1930s on a popular level among dance-oriented cognoscenti, and throughout the 1940s when Cuban music had it's 3rd renaissance or " 3rd Wave" of popularity in the USA during the 20th century. In the late 1940s, as more and more bands began to interpret "Mambo" oriented music, the dancers that emerged then began to identify all Afro-Cuban music, no matter the style, as "Mambo." That went on until the next generation that emerges as part of the dance culture begin to identify what they were doing as "Salsa." The recording industry, never one to shy away from exploiting any trends and keeping an ear to the street, followed suit with all of these terms and applied them as commercial markers for their recording product. The most recent example of this trend was record label owner Ralph Mercado, Sr., utilizing the term "Tropical" to identify the music. Globally, the term "Salsa" is what communities everywhere identified it as. But RMM Records, in particular, forced this term into the recording industry, that it also became what the musical category in the Grammys was known as. "Best Tropical" Album or Song categories. Since his passing, so too has the "Tropical" tag to define Afro-Cuban dance music become inactive. Especially now that there is no longer a viable recording industry for music in general. But, especially, for "Salsa."

Look at videos of El Gran Combo de PR...that is Salsa. Good Salsa. Melody, good arrangements, a mix of great singing, percussion, saxophone, trumpets, trombone, piano, timbales, bongos, maracas, bass.....Cuban music is mostly percussion y lots of noises.

Yes.

@@ren4327 Yes

Me

Nope, salsa dancer here. Learning about the history because pandemic.

@@stephenshortnacy Pick up the recently released NEW YORK AND THE INTERNATIONAL SOUND OF LATIN MUSIC, 1940-1990.

Haitians have nothing to do with this so shut it

Do better research

If you're referring to what has been labeled as the first Cuban styled Son ever written ("El Son de la Ma Teodora") which is supposed to be about a slave f4om Hispaniola, aka Haiti & the Dominican Republic, that first emerged in the 1990s, that has since been proven to be a made up legend. Besides, the song itself was musically a Danzon. So it can't very well be the first "Son" ever. The rhythms we dance to are Cuban, created by Cubans of African descent. Since tge advent of the recording industry in the United States (the only nation at the time to have such an industry, prior to WW2), Son Cubano went international and was adopted by local communities and became part of their own distinct cultures.

It's also less misconstrued. The English narrator conveys the music of Willie & Hector as "Music from the Underworld." Which is way off. It was music that included a segment comprising of social content. Only their promotional image was influenced by a street culture gangsterism "look." But lyrically, their most memorable tunes were about life in the 'hood. Comparing their music to the "underworld" is akin to suggesting "The Message" by Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five was "Gangsta Rap." Not accurate at all.

Where are you getting this from? Did you watch this at all? They clearly covered how black and Latino are connected by this music that originated in Africa.. did you even watch this?

@@R2TheM Did you watch it- did you comprehend what you watched? There is no such people as Latinos- that's the attempt to try to erase Africa or make it ambiguous- there is no ambiguity.

@@nguzoloveinlofi3832 oh ffs.. the world knows that humans originated from africa. I mean what do you want? More notoriety? More “props”? Lol being born into this life is a dice game.. taking pride in something that happened completely by chance is dumb af.. we’re all humans on this planet. Fuck the labels

@@R2TheM It's not about humans originating from Africa- it's about the culture- so called "Latino" culture originating in Africa. Everything of note from this so called "Latino" culture- everything you like came from Africa: The Clave- from Africa The various rhythms- Africa The dances- Arica The Swag- Africa The Culinary style- Africa Santaria, Candomblé, Palo, Vodoo- Africa Even the guitar came from Africa. And that Spanish heritage you are so proud of- the Africans (Moors) were in Spain for almost 800 yrs.,from 711-1492- so the Spanish heritage is already a mixed heritage. But they don't tell you that do they?

@@nguzoloveinlofi3832 it’s common knowledge that all the music and rhythms are African, there is no denial of that.. what is it that you want? What’s the goal of you getting worked up about menial things like getting “credit”? It’s HUMAN culture.. we are all one in the same.. those continental borders divided by oceans has you thinking and believing it’s all separate, it’s not. Your culture, your roots, your skin tone is yours BY CHANCE.

Words always convey or possess multiple levels of significance. It begins as slang only to become part of the everyday vernacular. The term "Latin" was embraced by the Spanish speaking Americas ("Latino/a") and is how both U.S. based Latinos/as and those from Latin America ("Latino Americanos") identify as. Someone like yourself doesn't get to decide that. You're just another fucking colonizer doing the same thing your ancestors did. Imposing your bullshit on a culture.