Jimmy Sabater Sr.
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Jimmy Sabater (April 11, 1936 – February 8, 2012) was an American musician of Puerto Rican ancestry. A three-time winner of the ACE Awards, he was a singer and
timbales Timbales () or pailas are shallow single-headed drums with metal casing. They are shallower than single-headed tom-toms and usually tuned much higher, especially for their size.Orovio, Helio 1981. ''Diccionario de la música cubana: biográfico ...
player. He gained international fame thanks to his work with the Joe Cuba Sextet in the 1960s and '70s, and later became the lead singer of various groups including
Charlie Palmieri Carlos Manuel "Charlie" Palmieri (November 21, 1927 – September 12, 1988) was an American bandleader and musical director of salsa music. He was known as the "Giant of the Keyboards". Early years Palmieri's parents migrated to New York from Po ...
's Combo Gigante. His son, Jimmy Sabater Jr., is a trumpeter and bandleader.


Life and career


Early life

Sabater was the son of Néstor Sabater and Teresa González of
Ponce, Puerto Rico Ponce (, , , ) is both a city and a municipality on the southern coast of Puerto Rico. The city is the seat of the municipal government. Ponce, Puerto Rico's most populated city outside the San Juan metropolitan area, was founded on 12 August 1 ...
. Born Jaime Sabater in Harlem Hospital,
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
,Thedeadrockstarsclub.com
- accessed February 12, 2012
he grew up in East Harlem, the Spanish Quarter of
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
known as "El Barrio". Like most teenagers in the neighborhood, he played stickball, flew kites, and harmonized the tunes of the popular R&B groups and vocalists of the day such as
Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...
. He was inspired by percussionists such as
Willie Bobo William Correa (February 28, 1934 – September 15, 1983), better known by his stage name Willie Bobo,Biography ''AllMusic'' was an American Latin jazz percussionist of Puerto Rican descent. Bobo rejected the stereotypical expectations of Lat ...
, Uba Nieto, Papi Pagani, Monchito Muñoz, and Willie Rodríguez. With encouragement from many of these same drummers who were from "El Barrio", Sabater practiced playing the
timbales Timbales () or pailas are shallow single-headed drums with metal casing. They are shallower than single-headed tom-toms and usually tuned much higher, especially for their size.Orovio, Helio 1981. ''Diccionario de la música cubana: biográfico ...
, the standing drum kit made famous by the "Rey del Timbal", Tito Puente. It was during a 1951 stickball game between the Devils and the 112th Street Viceroys that Sabater's life would make a historic turn. A young man named Gilberto Calderón of the Devils met Sabater and invited him to a party. The two became fast friends. They had a lot in common. Both wanted to be musicians after being influenced by the music of Machito, Marcelino Guerra,
Noro Morales Norosbaldo Morales (January 4, 1911 – January 15, 1964) was a Puerto Rican pianist and bandleader. Biography Morales was born in the subbarrio Puerta de Tierra of San Juan, Puerto Rico, and learned several instruments as a child. He played ...
,
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 ...
and
Tito Rodríguez Pablo Rodríguez Lozada (January 4, 1923 – February 28, 1973), better known as Tito Rodríguez, was a Puerto Rican singer and bandleader. He started his career singing under the tutelage of his brother, Johnny Rodríguez. In the 1940s, both m ...
.


Joe Cuba Sextet

1954 saw the Joe Panama Sextet as one of Spanish Harlem's most popular music groups. When Panama's conguero, or conga drummer, left the group, Sabater recommended his friend Gilberto for the job. Soon after, bandleader Joe Panama fired his sidemen and replaced them with others. The now unemployed musicians, which included vocalist Willie Torres and pianist Nick Jiménez, formed a group which included bassist Roy Rosa, vibraphonist Tommy Berríos, Sabater, and conguero Gilberto Calderón (who had been selected by the musicians to direct the band). One evening, the group appeared at La Bamba Club in midtown Manhattan under the name of "The Joe Panama Sextet". When Panama's mother threatened to sue Gilberto if he continued using the name, promoter Catalino Rolón recommended that the group change its name to "The Joe Cuba Sextet". They played gigs in the clubs of "El Barrio", as well as upstate New York venues such as The Pines Resort. The popularity of Cuba's sextet began to rise when José "Cheo" Feliciano joined the group. This occurred when José Curbelo's vocalist Santitos Colón replaced Gilberto Monroig in Tito Puente's band. Willie Torres then left Joe Cuba's Sextet, and replaced Santitos in Curbelo's orchestra. This opened the door for Cheo with Joe Cuba. This worked out perfectly for Cuba. Feliciano was selected to sing songs with Spanish lyrics, while Sabater was selected to sing songs with English lyrics. From the late 1950s and into the early 1960s the Sextet recorded on the Mardi Gras label, constantly increasing their popularity. In 1962, Seeco Records recorded
Joe Cuba Joe Cuba (April 22, 1931 – February 15, 2009), was an American conga drummer of Puerto Rican descent widely regarded as the "Father of Latin Boogaloo". Early years Joe Cuba (birth name: Gilberto Miguel Calderón) was born in Harlem, New York ...
's album "Steppin' Out". This album would become a "monster hit", and Sabater would become part of history, as on the album he sang "To Be With You", by Willie Torres, and also wrote and sang the song "Salsa y Bembe", which may be the first known reference to "Salsa" as a music genre. Nick Jimenez composed the melody, but Cuba's decision to have Sabater sing the lyrics thrust him into almost immediate international recognition. Cuba's sextet signed with Tico Records in 1964. By showcasing the smooth vocal style of Sabater, the group had achieved tremendous fame, both in the United States and around the world. In 1966, they recorded two albums, ''We Must Be Doing Something Right'', and ''Wanted Dead or Alive''. ''…Something Right'' scored big because of the hit composition "El Pito (I'll Never Go Back to Georgia)". ''Wanted…'' was a landmark recording because it was the first "boogaloo" style album to sell one million records. This happened largely because of another smash composition of Sabater and Jiménez called "Bang Bang". Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Sabater also had a flourishing career as a soloist, releasing the albums ''The Velvet Voice of Jimmy Sabater'', ''El Hijo de Teresa'', and ''Solo''.


New projects and solo work

In 1977, Sabater left the Joe Cuba Sextet. From 1977 to 1981, he was the lead vocalist for Al Levy. In 1980 Sabater recorded ''Gusto'' on the Fania Records label. In 1982, he co-led "El Combo Gigante" with
Charlie Palmieri Carlos Manuel "Charlie" Palmieri (November 21, 1927 – September 12, 1988) was an American bandleader and musical director of salsa music. He was known as the "Giant of the Keyboards". Early years Palmieri's parents migrated to New York from Po ...
until the latter's death in 1988. On November 12, 1997, Sabater became the recipient of an award from the City of New York for his contributions to the quality of life in the city, and in appreciation of his work since 1956. He was also the recipient of the "Outstanding Musician of the Year" award from the Comptroller of the City of New York, Alan G. Hevesi. In 1998, Sabater became the lead vocalist of the Latin Septet " Son Boricua", led by Maestro José Mangual Jr. Their first album, called ''Son Boricua'', was the winner of the ACE Award as best new Latin release of that year. A second, and recently, a third ACE Award were awarded for the albums ''Homenaje a Cortijo y Rivera'' and ''Mo!''. Later albums were ''Clasicos 60s'', released in 2002, and ''Fabulosos 70s'', released in 2004, which included renewals of salsa classics songs, originally by José Mangual Jr., Eddie Palmieri and others. Actually, in 2002 Sabater recorded two versions of the classics "Mama Guela" – one with his band Son Boricua, and one as a guest singer with
Spanish Harlem Orchestra Spanish Harlem Orchestra is a Latin dance music orchestra based in the United States, founded by Aaron Levinson and Oscar Hernandez. Their debut album was released in October 2002. The orchestra often tours worldwide. Discography ''Un Gran ...
.


Death

Sabater died in February 2012, aged 75. The cause was complications of heart disease, according to his son, Jimmy Sabater Jr.


Discography

*''The Velvet Voice of Jimmy Sabater'' (Tico, 1967), with
Joe Cuba Joe Cuba (April 22, 1931 – February 15, 2009), was an American conga drummer of Puerto Rican descent widely regarded as the "Father of Latin Boogaloo". Early years Joe Cuba (birth name: Gilberto Miguel Calderón) was born in Harlem, New York ...
*''Solo'' (Tico, 1969), with Ray Barretto *''El Hijo de Teresa (Teresa's Son)'' (Tico, 1970) *''Mano a Mano Melódico'' (Tico, 1971), with Bobby Cruz *''To Be With You (Mucho Love & Lotsa Boogie)'' (Salsa Records, 1976) *''Gusto'' (Fania Records, 1980) *''Mo!'' (Cobo, 2001) with José Mangual Jr.


References


External links


Musicofpuertorico.com

Findarticles.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sabater, Jimmy 1936 births 2012 deaths American musicians of Puerto Rican descent American salsa musicians Timbaleros People from Harlem 20th-century American singers 20th-century American drummers American male drummers 20th-century American male musicians