Andy Hernandez (born January 3, 1950), better known by his stage name Coati Mundi, is an American musician,

percussionist A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Ex ...

, notably playing the

vibraphone The vibraphone is a percussion instrument in the metallophone family. It consists of tuned metal bars and is typically played by using mallets to strike the bars. A person who plays the vibraphone is called a ''vibraphonist,'' ''vibraharpist,' ...

, and a member of Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band, then of

Kid Creole and the Coconuts Kid Creole and the Coconuts is an American musical group created by August Darnell with Andy Hernandez and Adriana Kaegi. Its music incorporates a variety of styles and influences, in particular a mix of disco and Latin American, Caribbean, an ...

. He scored the Top 40 UK hit "Me No Pop I" in 1981, just before the release of ''

Tropical Gangsters ''Tropical Gangsters'' is the third album by Kid Creole and the Coconuts, released on May 10, 1982. Originally conceived as a solo album by band leader August Darnell and titled ''Wise Guy'', his label ZE Records pressured him to change it to a Ki ...

''. He produced and arranged an album by "

Don Armando Armando Bonilla Jr. (August 9, 1946 – November 16, 2002), known as Don Armando, was an American musician. He formed the Second Avenue Rhumba Band with vocalist Fonda Rae and scored a #1 hit on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart with " Deputy ...

Second Avenue Rhumba Band", which spurred the disco hit song "Deputy of Love".

Early life

Hernandez is a first-generation Puerto Rican who grew up in

Spanish Harlem East Harlem, also known as Spanish Harlem or and historically known as Italian Harlem, is a neighborhood of Upper Manhattan, New York City, roughly encompassing the area north of the Upper East Side and bounded by 96th Street to the south, Fif ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. As a young teenager, the first band he played and recorded with was called Eddie Hernandez & his Orchestra. He learned to play the vibes from George Rodriguez of The New Swing Sextet.

Career

Hernandez has worked with assorted musical groups and artists including

Ralfi Pagan Ralfi Pagán (born Rafael Pagán; 1946–1978) was a Bronx, New York-based Latin soul and salsa singer of Puerto Rican and Cuban parentage who was active from the mid-1960s until his death in 1978. He specialized in soul ballads sung both in Spa ...

Joe Bataan Joe Bataan (also spelled Bataán) (born Bataan Nitollano; November 15, 1942) is a Latin soul musician from New York. Early life Joe Bataan was born Bataan Nitollano and grew up in the 103rd Street and Lexington Avenue part of East Harlem in New ...

Vernon Reid Vernon Alphonsus Reid (born 22 August 1958) is an English-born American guitarist and songwriter. Reid is the founder and primary songwriter of the rock band Living Colour, Reid was named No. 66 on ''Rolling Stone'' magazine's 2003 list of the ...

N'Dea Davenport N'Dea Davenport (born September 22, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer and producer. She was the lead vocalist in the UK acid jazz band the Brand New Heavies and made pioneering contributions to the genre of acid jazz. Career Her ...

Nona Hendryx Nona Bernis Hendryx (born October 9, 1944) is an American vocalist, record producer, songwriter, musician, and author. Hendryx is known for her work as a solo artist as well as for being one-third of the trio Labelle, who had a hit with "Lady ...

Tito Puente Ernest Anthony Puente Jr. (April 20, 1923 – June 1, 2000), commonly known as Tito Puente, was an American musician, songwriter, bandleader, and record producer of Puerto Rican descent. He is best known for dance-oriented mambo and Latin jazz c ...

Manny Oquendo Manny Oquendo (January 1, 1931 – March 25, 2009) was an American percussionist of Puerto Rican ancestry. His main instruments were the timbales and the bongos. He was a long-time member of Eddie Palmieri's Conjunto La Perfecta, which he lef ...

& Conjunto Libre,

Hall & Oates Daryl Hall and John Oates, commonly known as Hall & Oates, are an American pop rock duo formed in Philadelphia in 1970. Daryl Hall is generally the lead vocalist; John Oates primarily plays electric guitar and provides backing vocals. The two ...

and

Machito Machito (born Francisco Raúl Gutiérrez Grillo, December 3, 1909 – April 15, 1984) was a Latin jazz musician who helped refine Afro-Cuban jazz and create both Cubop and salsa music. Ginell, Richard S. ''Biography''. Allmusic, 2011/ref> He wa ...

. He was known as Sugarcoated Andy while in Dr. Buzzard's band and played vibes, marimba and percussion for them. He credits Stony Browder,

August Darnell Thomas August Darnell Browder (born August 12, 1950), known professionally as August Darnell and under the stage name Kid Creole, is an American musician, singer and songwriter. He co-founded Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band and subsequently ...

and Cory Daye of Dr. Buzzard's band as major influences. In 1979, along with

Adriana Kaegi Adriana Kaegi (born March 17, 1957) is a Swiss-born American actress, producer and former singer. Career Kaegi co-founded the band Kid Creole and the Coconuts together with August Darnell and Coati Mundi, both formerly of Dr. Buzzard's Original ...

, he helped create

. Hernandez was the musical director and arranger for the Coconuts band until his departure in 1989. His single "Me No Pop I" reached #32 on the British charts in summer 1981. The song was ranked at #3 among the top ten "Tracks of the Year" for 1981 by ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

''. Hernandez is a self-taught musician. His main instrument is the

but he also plays piano, percussion, and flute, and is a music

arranger In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orches ...

and

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

. He once said in an interview, "I have never let the lack of talent stop me from doing anything." He cited an example of this regarding the "Gichy Dan and Beachwood 9" record produced by

Ron Rogers Ronald Bruce Rogers (born November 5, 1952), better known as Ron Rogers or Ronnie Rogers, is a songwriter, composer, recording artist and record producer from New York City. His career spanned from the late 1970s until the 1990s. Life and career ...

and August Darnell. He was being interviewed for the job of arranger-orchestrator by the head of A&R at RCA records. Asked if he knew how to arrange for strings, he replied without hesitation, "Of course", and convinced them to give him the job. In actuality, he did not know a thing about string arrangements. Immediately after the interview, he bought a book on arranging for strings and woodshedded day and night. The result was a successful arrangement job; his work was complimented by the great violinist

Harry Lookofsky Harry Lookofsky (1 October 1913 – 8 June 1998) was an American jazz violinist. He was also the father of keyboardist-songwriter Michael Brown, who most notably was a founding member of The Left Banke and Stories. History Harry Lookofsky w ...

who served as concertmaster on the date. In 1983, he released a solo album titled ''Little Coati Mundi The Former 12 Year Old Genius''. Mundi composed, produced and provided the lead vocals. It contained a version of

Captain Beefheart Don Van Vliet (; born Don Glen Vliet; January 15, 1941 – December 17, 2010) was an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and visual artist best known by the stage name Captain Beefheart. Conducting a rotating ensemble known as Th ...

's "Tropical Hot Dog Night" featuring salsa singer

Rubén Blades Rubén Blades Bellido de Luna (born July 16, 1948), known professionally as Rubén Blades (, but in Panama and within the family), is a Panamanian musician, singer, composer, actor, activist, and politician, performing musically most often in th ...

. The album also featured former Kid Creole & The Coconuts singer Lori Eastside. Coati Mundi had several appearances on the TV show ''

Miami Vice ''Miami Vice'' is an American crime drama television series created by Anthony Yerkovich and produced by Michael Mann (director), Michael Mann for NBC. The series stars Don Johnson as James "Sonny" Crockett and Philip Michael Thomas as Ricardo ...

'' including the episode "No Exit" with Bruce Willis and "Everybody's in Showbiz" with Benicio del Toro (see

List of Miami Vice guest appearances The list of ''Miami Vice'' guest appearances is a list of actors/actresses to have appeared on the popular 1980s American television series, ''Miami Vice''. The show included actors and actresses as well as musicians, celebrities, and athletes. Th ...

). Hernandez appeared as an actor in the film ''

Who's That Girl Who's That Girl? may refer to: Film and television * ''Who's That Girl'' (1987 film), an American film starring Madonna * ''Who's That Girl'', a Philippine film of 2011 * "Who's That Girl?", an episode of ''Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!'' Music * Who's Tha ...

'' starring

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

and

Griffin Dunne Thomas Griffin Dunne (; born June 8, 1955) is an American actor, film producer, and film director. Dunne studied acting at The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre in New York City. He is known for portraying Jack Goodman in '' An Amer ...

. He wrote and performed a song for the soundtrack album called: "El Coco Loco". Mundi has acted in several

Spike Lee Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee (born March 20, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. His production company, 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, has produced more than 35 films since 1983. He made his directorial debut ...

films, including '' Mo Better Blues'', ''

He Got Game ''He Got Game'' is a 1998 American sports drama film written, produced and directed by Spike Lee and starring Denzel Washington and Ray Allen. The film revolves around Jake Shuttlesworth ( Denzel Washington), father of the top-ranked basketball p ...

'' and ''

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''. He can also be seen in the film '' We Own the Night''. He is credited as one of the music supervisors for the Miramax film '' 54'' and as producer of several of the film's songs. Hernandez has composed music for various films, including ''Spike of Bensonhurst''. He is also the composer and sound designer for a series of educational DVDs for children produced by

Karyn Parsons Karyn Parsons Rockwell (born October 8, 1966) is an American actress, author and comedian. She is best known for her role as Hilary Banks on the NBC sitcom ''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'' from 1990 to 1996. Parsons also starred in the 1995 film ' ...

(''

Fresh Prince of Bel-Air ''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'' is an American television sitcom created by Andy and Susan Borowitz for NBC. It aired from September 10, 1990, to May 20, 1996. The series stars Will Smith as a fictionalized version of himself, a street-smart t ...

''). In December 2010 he released a new solo CD ''Coati Mundi Is Dancing For The Cabana Code In The Land Of Boo-Hoo'' (Rong Music). The recording has garnered favorable reviews and praises by the ''New York Times'', ''Time Out'' magazine, ''Village Voice'' and others. On December 16, 2010, he appeared in the line-up on the BBC music/comedy show ''

Never Mind the Buzzcocks ''Never Mind the Buzzcocks'' is a British comedy panel game show with a pop music theme. It has aired on Sky Max since September 2021, having originally aired between November 1996 and January 2015 on BBC Two. The original series was first hoste ...

''.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''The Former 12 Year Old Genius'' (

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman. It grew to be a worldwid ...

, 1983) * ''Dancing for the Cabana Code in the Land Of Boo-Hoo'' (Rong Music, 2010)

Singles

* "Que Pasa" / "Me No Pop I" (Island/ZE, 1981) UK #32, NL #48 * "¿Como Esta Usted?" (Virgin, 1983) * "Oh! That Love Decision" (Virgin, 1983) * "No More Blues" (Rong Music, 2009)

References

External links

*
Coati Mundi 2015 interviewCoati Mundi

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Coati Mundi

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channel {{DEFAULTSORT:Coati Mundi 1950 births Living people Salsa musicians Virgin Records artists ZE Records artists Kid Creole and the Coconuts members American vibraphonists People from East Harlem