Andrés Montañez Rodríguez (born May 7, 1942), better known as Andy Montañez, is a Puerto Rican singer and songwriter.

Early life

Montañez is a native of the ''Tras Talleres'' area of Santurce,

San Juan, Puerto Rico San Juan (, , ; Spanish for "Saint John") is the capital city and most populous municipality in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2020 census, it is the 57th-largest city under the ...

. He is known by the nicknames "El Godfather de la Salsa" and "El Niño De Trastalleres".

Musical career

Montañez first gained fame as a member of the internationally successful El Gran Combo group, with songs like "Hojas blancas" (White Leaves), "Un verano en N.Y." (A Summer in NY), "El barbero loco" (The Crazy Barber), "Julia", "Ponme el alcolado, Juana" (Rub Me With the Bay Rum, Juana), "Vagabundo" (Bum), "El Swing", etc. He stayed for approximately 15 years, producing 37 LPs. He left El Gran Combo to pursue a career with Venezuelan group La Dimension Latina, creating a feud between the two groups. After leaving El Gran Combo, he enjoyed considerable success on an international scale with his own orchestra, touring

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived ...

and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

several times. He represented Puerto Rico at the 1992

World's Fair A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition or an expo, is a large international exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specif ...

Seville, Spain Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...

Recent years

In recent years, he had teamed up with fellow salsa singer Ismael Miranda to produce some

boleros Bolero is a genre of song which originated in eastern Cuba in the late 19th century as part of the trova tradition. Unrelated to the older Spanish dance of the same name, bolero is characterized by sophisticated lyrics dealing with love. It has ...

and bohemian music. By 2005-06 he began creating a new blend between salsa and

reggaeton Reggaeton (, ), also known as reggaetón and reguetón (), is a music style that originated in Panama during the late 1980s. It was later popularized in Puerto Rico. It has evolved from dancehall and has been influenced by American hip hop, ...

, called salsaton. In April 2006, he released a new album titled ''Salsatón - Salsa con Reggaetón'', which was produced by

Sergio George Sergio George (born May 23, 1961) is an American pianist, arranger, and record producer, known for working with many famous performers of salsa music, although he has worked in other genres of the music industry as well. He has worked with some ...

and featured reggaeton rappers

Daddy Yankee Ramón Luis Ayala Rodríguez (born February 3, 1976), known professionally as Daddy Yankee, is a Puerto Rican rapper, singer, composer, and actor. Known as the " King of Reggaetón" by music critics and fans alike, he is the artist who coined ...

Julio Voltio Julio Voltio (born as Julio Irving Ramos Filomeno on June 11, 1977 in Santurce, Puerto Rico) is a Puerto Rican former reggaeton artist. A pioneer of the reggaeton genre, Voltio retired from music in 2014 and dedicated himself to preaching Christi ...

La Sista La Sista (Maidel Amador Canales) is a female reggaeton singer.Gutierrez, Evan C.La Sista Biography, Allmusic, retrieved December 16, 2010 From Loíza, Puerto Rico, several members of her family are also musicians. She got a big break at the ag ...

, and John Eric. In 2007, he filmed various television advertisements on nutrition for the Puerto Rico Department of Family Affairs (including one in which he sang a rhumba to a dancing carrot). On November 2, 2006, Montañez won his first

Latin Grammy The Latin Grammy Awards are an award by The Latin Recording Academy to recognize outstanding achievement in the Latin music industry. The Latin Grammy honors works recorded in Spanish or Portuguese from anywhere around the world that has been ...

for Best Traditional Tropical Album, together with

Pablo Milanés Pablo Milanés Arias (24 February 1943 – 22 November 2022) was a Cuban guitar player and singer. He was one of the founders of the Cuban nueva trova, along with Silvio Rodríguez and Noel Nicola. His music, originating in the Trova, Son and ...

. Montañez was selected to form part of a benefit concert titled “Somos Haití”, where funds would be gathered to support

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and s ...

after the 2008 hurricane season. In 2015, Montañez appeared on Puerto Rican singer

Ivy Queen Martha Ivelisse Pesante Rodríguez (born March 4, 1972), known professionally as Ivy Queen, is a Puerto Rican singer, rapper, songwriter, and actress. She is considered one of the pioneers of the reggaeton genre, commonly referred to as the Qu ...

's ninth studio album ''

Vendetta Vendetta may refer to: * Feud or vendetta, a long-running argument or fight Film * ''Vendetta'' (1919 film), a film featuring Harry Liedtke * ''Vendetta'' (1950 film), an American drama produced by Howard Hughes * ''Vendetta'' (1986 film), an ...

''. The album was split into four separate albums, one being an album composed entirely of only salsa music. On the album, Montañez dueted with Queen on a re-recording of his 1988 hit, "

Casi Te Envidio "Casi Te Envidio" ('' English: I Almost Envy You'') is a song by Puerto Rican salsa recording artist Andy Montañez, from his eleventh studio album, ''El Eterno Enamorado'' (1988). It was composed by Maestro Moncada, produced by Paco Cepero, and ...

Personal life

Andy has three children, one daughter and two sons. Montañez's children, Andy Jr. and Harold, and his daughter Lisa have gone on to become salsa singers and have worked with their father for over 25 years, occasionally serving as back-up vocalists at his concerts. His older son, Andy Montañez Jr., died on July 24, 2019, at the age of 54.

Discography

''El Gran Combo'' (1962–1976)

*''Meneame los Mangos'' (1962) *''De Siempre'' (1963) *''Acángana'' (1964) *''Ojos Chinos-Jala Jala'' (1964) *''El Caballo Pelotero'' (1965) *''El Swing de El Gran Combo'' (1966) *''En Navidad'' (1966) *''Maldito Callo'' (1967) *''Esos Ojitos Negros'' (1967) *''Fiesta con El Gran Combo'' (1967) *''Boogalaoos'' (1967) *''Tú Querías Boogaloo?...Toma Boogaloo!'' (1967) *''Pata-Pata, Jala Jala, Boogaloo'' (1967) *''Tangos'' (1968) *''Los Nenes Sicodélicos'' (1968) *''Latin Power'' (1968) *''Smile! It's'' (1968) *''Éste Si Que Es'' (1969) *''Estamos Primeros'' (1970) *''De Punta a Punta'' (1971) *''Por el Libro'' (1972) *''En Acción'' (1973) *''Número 5'' (1973) *''Disfrútelo Hasta el Cabo!'' (1974) *''Número 7'' (1975) *''Los Sorullos'' (1975) *''Mejor Que Nunca'' (1976)

La Dimensión Latina (1977–1980)

*''Los Generales de la Salsa'' (1977) *''Inconquistable'' (1978) *''Una Dimensión Desconocida'' (1978) *''Tremenda Dimensión'' (1978) *''Combinación Latina'' (1979) *''En el Madison Square Garden'' (1980)

Y Su Orquesta (1980–present)

*''Salsa Con Caché'' (1980) *''Para Ustedes...Con Sabor!'' (1981) *''Trovador del Amor'' (1981) *''Sólo Boleros'' (1982) *''Hoy...y Ayer'' (1982) *''Tania y Andy'' (1984) *''Versátil'' (1984) *''Andy Montañez'' (1985) *''Mejor Acompañado Que Nunca'' (1987) *''El Eterno Enamorado'' (1988) *''Todo Nuevo'' (1990) *''El Catedrático de la Salsa'' (1991) *''El Swing de Siempre'' (1992) *''Cantando Voy Por el Mundo'' (1994) *''Quien No Se Siente Patriota'' (2006) *''Salsatón - Salsa con Reggaetón'' (2006) *''El Godfather de la Salsa'' (2007) *''Andy y Atabal'' (2008) *''De Andy Al Combo'' (2010)

References

External links

* *Biography i
Music of Puerto Rico
*Interview with Andy Montanez o
CorrienteLatina.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Montanez, Andy 1942 births Living people People from Santurce, Puerto Rico 20th-century Puerto Rican male singers Salsa musicians 21st-century Puerto Rican male singers Fania Records artists Latin Grammy Award winners Singers from San Juan, Puerto Rico Rodven Records artists Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners