Louis "Sabu" Martinez (July 14, 1930 – January 13, 1979) was an American conguero of Puerto Rican descent. A prominent player in the Cubop movement, Martinez appeared on many important recordings and live performances during that period. Martinez also recorded several Latin jazz albums, now recognized as classics of the genre. Born in

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 ...

, Martinez made his professional debut in 1941 aged 11. He replaced

Chano Pozo Luciano Pozo González (January 7, 1915 – December 3, 1948), known professionally as Chano Pozo, was a Cuban jazz percussionist, singer, dancer, and composer. Despite only living to age 33, he played a major role in the founding of Latin jazz. ...

Dizzy Gillespie John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie (; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy Eldridge but addi ...

's orchestra in 1948, and began performing with

Benny Goodman Benjamin David Goodman (May 30, 1909 – June 13, 1986) was an American clarinetist and bandleader known as the "King of Swing". From 1936 until the mid-1940s, Goodman led one of the most popular swing big bands in the United States. His co ...

's Bebop Orchestra in 1949. Over the next 15 years, Martinez worked with

Charlie Parker Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz saxophonist, band leader and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of bebop, a form ...

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was based ...

, Count Basie,

J. J. Johnson J.J. Johnson (January 22, 1924 – February 4, 2001), born James Louis Johnson and also known as Jay Jay Johnson, was an American jazz trombonist, composer and arranger. Johnson was one of the earliest trombonists to embrace bebop. Biograph ...

, Horace Silver,

Thelonious Monk Thelonious Sphere Monk (, October 10, 1917 – February 17, 1982) was an American jazz pianist and composer. He had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to the standard jazz repertoire, including " 'Round Midnight", "B ...

Charles Mingus Charles Mingus Jr. (April 22, 1922 – January 5, 1979) was an American jazz upright bassist, pianist, composer, bandleader, and author. A major proponent of collective improvisation, he is considered to be one of the greatest jazz musicians and ...

, Mary Lou Williams,

Lionel Hampton Lionel Leo Hampton (April 20, 1908 – August 31, 2002) was an American jazz vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, and bandleader. Hampton worked with jazz musicians from Teddy Wilson, Benny Goodman, and Buddy Rich, to Charlie Parker, Charles M ...

, Noro Morales,

Marcelino Guerra Marcelino Guerra (26 April 1914 – 30 June 1996), nicknamed "Rapindey", was a Cuban singer, songwriter and guitarist. He spent much of his life in the United States and retired in Spain. As a vocalist, his primary role was ''segunda voz'' (ha ...

, Esy Morales, the Lecuona Cuban Boys,

Miguelito Valdés Miguelito Valdés (September 6, 1912 – November 9, 1978), also known as Mr. Babalú, was a renowned Cuban singer. His performances were characterized by a strong voice and a particular sense of ''cubanismo''. Life Miguelito Valdés was born ...

, Tito Rodríguez, and the

Joe Loco José Estevez Jr. (March 27, 1921 in New York City - March 7, 1988), professionally known as Joe Loco, was a Latin jazz and Latin pop pianist and arranger of Puerto Rican ancestry. Life Loco, maybe born José Estevez Jr. but officially known as ...

Trio. He also worked with vocalists Tony Bennett,

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, and

Harry Belafonte Harry Belafonte (born Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.; March 1, 1927) is an American singer, activist, and actor. As arguably the most successful Jamaican-American pop star, he popularized the Trinbagonian Caribbean musical style with an interna ...

. Martinez first recorded with

Art Blakey Arthur Blakey (October 11, 1919 – October 16, 1990) was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. He was also known as Abdullah Ibn Buhaina after he converted to Islam for a short time in the late 1940s. Blakey made a name for himself in the 1 ...

in 1953, and contributed to his '' Orgy in Rhythm'' and ''

Holiday for Skins ''Holiday for Skins'' is a 1959 album by jazz drummer Art Blakey. Recorded for the Blue Note label in November 1958, the album was released in two volumes before being reissued together in a CD set in 2006.Allmusic/ref> Track listing :''All co ...

'' projects from 1957 to 1958. Martinez became a

bandleader A bandleader is the leader of a music group such as a rock or pop band or jazz quartet. The term is most commonly used with a group that plays popular music as a small combo or a big band, such as one which plays jazz, blues, rhythm and blues or ...

in 1957, recording his debut album, '' Palo Congo'', for the Blue Note label. He followed it up with releases on Vik and

Alegre Records Alegre Records was a New York City record label specialized in latin music. It was founded in 1956 by Al Santiago who owned a 1950s record store at 8522 Westchester Avenue in The Bronx named ''Casalegre'' and co-founded by clothing businessman B ...

. Martinez moved to

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

in 1967 and recorded with the

Francy Boland François Boland (6 November 1929 – 12 August 2005) was a classically trained Belgian jazz composer and pianist. He first gained notice in 1949 and worked with Belgian jazz greats like Bobby Jaspar, and in 1955 he joined Chet Baker's quintet. M ...

- Kenny Clarke big band, releasing two albums. Subsequently, he led the group Burnt Sugar, which was active into the mid 1970s. On January 13, 1979, he died in Sweden at the age of 48 from a gastric ulcer.

Discography

As leader/Co-leader

* '' Palo Congo'' ( Blue Note, 1957) * ''Safari With Sabu'' (Vik, 1958) * Sabu And His Percussion Ensemble, ''Sorcery!'' ( Columbia, 1958) * ''Sabu's Jazz Espagnole'' ( Alegre, 1961) * Sabu Martinez Och Björbobandet, ''Aurora Borealis'' (Coop, 1971) * ''Afro Temple'' (Grammofonverket, 1973) * ''Burned Sugar'' (Mellotronen, 2008) - recorded in 1973 and 1974 * Sabu Martinez and Sahib Shihab, ''Winds & Skins'' (Mellotronen, 2008) - recorded in 1967 and 1978

As contributor

- ''

The Complete RCA Victor Recordings ''The Complete RCA Victor Recordings'' is a 1995 compilation 2-CD set of sessions led by Jazz trumpeter and composer Dizzy Gillespie recorded for the RCA Victor label between 1937 and 1949. Reception Writing for Allmusic, Richard S. Ginell stat ...

'' (Bluebird, 1937-1949,

995 Year 995 (Roman numerals, CMXCV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Japan * 17 May - Fujiwara no Michitaka (imperial regent) dies. * 3 June: Fujiwara no ...

* * Horace Silver,

- '' Horace Silver Trio and Art Blakey-Sabu'' (Blue Note Records, 1953) * * Louis Bellson - ''

The Driving Louis Bellson ''The Driving Louis Bellson'' (also released as ''The Hawk Talks'') is an album by American jazz drummer Louis Bellson featuring performances recorded in 1955 for the Norgran label.

'' (Norgran, 1955) *

- ''

Drum Suite ''Drum Suite'' is an album by drummer Art Blakey with The Jazz Messengers and the Art Blakey Percussion Ensemble, recorded in late 1956 and early 1957 and originally released on the Columbia label. It was the first of several albums recorded by ...

'' (Columbia, 1957) *Art Blakey - '' Orgy in Rhythm'' (Blue Note, 1957) *Art Blakey - '' Cu-Bop'' (Jubilee, 1957) *Art Blakey - ''

'' (Blue Note, 1959) * * * Kenny Clarke/Francy Boland Big Band: ''

Latin Kaleidoscope ''Latin Kaleidoscope'' is an album by the Kenny Clarke/Francy Boland Big Band featuring performances recorded in Germany in 1968 and released on the MPS label in Europe and also released in the US on Prestige Records. Reception AllMusic awarded ...

'' (MPS, 1969) * * * * * * * * * *

References

External links

all about jazz article

discogs article

Sabu Martinez Memorial
{{DEFAULTSORT:Martinez, Sabu 1930 births 1979 deaths Jazz percussionists Latin jazz percussionists Afro-Cuban jazz percussionists Blue Note Records artists Conga players 20th-century drummers