Tito Puente Festival
at LatinJazzClub Magazine

Remembering Tito Puente

Trevor Salloum (Toronto, Canada)
Fun with Bongos, The Bongo Book, Bongo Drumming, Afro-Latin Polyrhythms, Afro-Cuban Rhythms Vol.1&2 (Mel Bay Pub.) Endorser for LPmusic

Tito Puente was the Buddy Rich of the timbales. He was both a great musician and and a master showman. He will always remain a titan in the field of Latin music. Tito was a great band leader who understood the technical, traditional and human elements of music. His music is classic, a legacy for generations to come.

Rae Arroyo (Los Angeles, CA)
Radio host: The Latin Connection show heard on WZRU 88.5 FM in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina on Saturday, April 19 at 8PM Eastern Time and on KUNV 91.5 FM in Las Vegas, Nevada Saturday at 12 noon Pacific time.

I first met Tito Puente back in 1951. My dad took me to the Palladium on 53rd St. and Broadway where Tito had been playing. I was only 13 years old at the time. I first heard Tito Puente on the radio long before I got to see him. Seeing and hearing Tito Puente live at such a tender age filled me with so much emotion and so much joy, I could only stand in front of the bandstand and cry from sheer pleasure. That was when I first met Tito Puente. We remained friends from then on.

I often dreamt about presenting Tito Puente to the world. Back then as far as I knew the only people who had ever heard of Tito Puente were my fellow New Yorkers and perhaps some Jerseyites. My dream was to make the whole world aware of Tito Puente. Many years later I became a D.J. I was now able to share Tito with whomever wanted to listen. In time I was able to bring the band to Southern California and Las Vegas so sometimes dreams really do come true.

I last spoke to Tito on Monday, May 29, the day before he entered the hospital. Although he said he had water on the lungs he was sure that problem would be cleared up before the actual surgery. He also told me he was anemic. Through it all, he remained very positive and very up-beat and was looking forward to returning to our fair city of Las Vegas. He was thoroughly thrilled about playing with a symphonic orchestra and asked me if I had any ideas for Latin music that would go well with a symphonic orchestra. I did indeed have a very good idea. I had him listen to one of his own compositions, a number he did several years ago and had completely forgotten about. He agreed. It was a good one. I gave him all the information he asked for from the album cover but on Wednesday May 31 after a thirteen hour surgery my old friend Tito Puente left this world and left it a much better place for having lived in it. Many things have been said about Tito Puente but I knew him well. Tito was not only the most talented but also the kindest and nicest person you'd ever want to know.

READ MORE:

Noted musicians, Jazz Journalists, radio hosts reflect on the life and times of the "King of Latin Music" Tito Puente: Larry Harlow, Sonny Bravo, Jose Madera, John Santos, Arturo O'Farrill, Howard Mandel, Victor Mendoza, JC Johnny Conga, Ruben Rodriguez, Rudy Mangual, Ralph Irizarry, Mark Levine, Erik Chico Manqueros, Vicki Sola', Cuban Pete & Barbara Craddock, Chembo Corniel, Luis Moreno, Bob DeSena, Ramiro Burr, Dr. Jazz, Kevin Espinosa, Nina Olson, Andrea Brachfeld, Mark Weinstein, Richie Gajate, Michael Bongard, Jesse "Chuy" Varela, Memo Acevedo, Norberto Rivera, Richard John Cadena, Trevor Salloum, Rae Arroyo, Mark Holston, Thomas Peña, Yosvany Terry Cabrera, Tomas Algarin

BUY TITO PUENTE MUSIC

This interview was edited by
Bobby Ramirez
br@latinjazzclub.com

Photo by Jorge Garcia from the album: Tito Puente Mambo Birdland