Sabu Martinez

Louis “Sabu” Martinez was probably one of the most prolific conga players in the annals of Afro-Cuban music. Furthermore to his personal albums, Martinez documented with such important jazz music artists as Dizzy Gillespie, Horace Metallic, Friend DeFranco, J.J. Johnson, Louis Bellson, Artwork Farmer, and Artwork Blakey, and jazz vocalists including Tony Bennett and Sammy Davis, Jr. Emigrating to Sweden in 1967, he continuing to use his extremely melodic rhythms to an extended set of recordings by top-notch Swedish performers. A indigenous of New York’s Spanish Harlem, Martinez spent his child years defeating rhythms on tin cans on 111th Road. By age 11, he was carrying out every third night time on 125th Road for 25 cents a night time. He was still in his early teenagers when he started using Latin rings including those led by Marcelino Guerra and Catalino Rolón. In 1944, he spent a protracted period surviving in Puerto Rico. After providing a year within the armed service, at age 17, Martinez resumed his musical profession as an associate of mambo originator Joe Loco’s trio. Within several weeks, his playing drawn the eye of jazz music artists. In 1946, he started an extended association with drummer Artwork Blakey. Martinez and Blakey continuing to periodically interact until 1959. Furthermore to leading the tempo section on Blakey’s groundbreaking recording Orgy in Tempo in 1954, he was presented around the Jazz Messengers albums Cu-Bop and Text messages in 1957. Martinez stayed a much-in-demand program player. Furthermore to playing traditional Latin music using the Lecuono Cuban Young boys, he collaborated with Charlie Parker and Utmost Roach throughout a 13-week stint at the brand new York membership the Three Deuces. In Apr, 1949, he performed with golf swing clarinetist Benny Goodman. The high stage of Martinez’s profession emerged in 1948 when he became a member of Dizzy Gillespie’s music group, following murder of important conga participant Chano Pozo. Through the nine a few months that he performed using the group, he performed on five albums: Dizzy, Dizzier and Dizzier, 16 Rare Shows, When Be-Bop Met the best Music group, and Diz. In exchange, Gillespie nicknamed Martinez “Sabu” when he observed a resemblance to well-known Indian professional Sabu, the “Elephant Boy.” Despite his popularity, Martinez battled with heroin craving. In the middle-’50s, he briefly still left music to perform a remove joint in Baltimore. Although he overcame his craving in 1956, it got many years for him to be “psychologically free of charge” through the grasp from the medication. Forming his very own quintet, Martinez documented three unforgettable albums: the Afro-Cuban masterpiece Palo Congo in 1957, and two, Safari and Sorcery, in 1958, which have been referred to as “the wildest exotica information ever.” In 1960, Martinez collaborated with Louie Ramirez to record the history-making Latin jazz recording Jazz Espagnole. Four years later on, he relocated briefly to Puerto Rico, where he performed with many bands like the Johnny Conquet Orchestra and fulfilled his potential wife, Agneta. In 1967, these were wedded and relocated to Agneta’s homeland in Sweden. Martinez continued to be there for the others of his existence. Shortly after shifting to Sweden, Martinez required a gig with Lill Lindfor’s Musical Revue. This started a long participation with Swedish music artists. Furthermore to posting his understanding of music as well as the conga like a instructor, he performed and documented with such performers as Cornelius Vreeswick, Merit Hemmingson, Radiojazzgruppen, Björbobandet, the Eero Koisvistoinen Music Culture, the Peter Herbolzheimer Tempo Mixture and Brass, Gugge Hedrenius’ Big Music group, and Ivan Oscarsson. Whilst in Sweden, he sometimes collaborated with American music artists including Kenny Clarke, Artwork Farmer, and George Russell. In 1973, he shaped his own music group, New Burnt Glucose, and released a reserve of conga exercises. His last recording sessions emerged while focusing on Debbie Cameron and Richard Boone’s record Short Encounter in 1978. Martinez passed away on January 13, 1979, of the gastric ulcer.