Rudy Calzado
Profile by John Child
Profile of the great Cuban vocalist, composer and bandleader.
(b
Pedro Calzado, 27 Nov. '29, Santiago de Cuba, Oriente province, Cuba; d 11
May '02, NYC) Versatile singer, percussionist, prolific composer, arranger,
bandleader. He was one of the rare breed of singers, who was also an
accomplished composer and arranger, and could ably apply himself in any Latin
format or idiom. Rudy was born into a family of professional musicians and grew
up listening to Pedro Vargas and Toña La Negra. He played guitar and started
singing in school with a guitar trio. He made his professional debut in '47 with
Pancho Portuondo's orchestra, featuring his cousin, the singer Fernando Alvarez
(b 4 Nov. '28, Santiago de Cuba), who later worked with Beny Moré
and Conjunto Casino. He relocated to Havana in '50, where he worked with the
18-piece Esteban Antunes band. Two years later he joined José Fajardo's
All-Stars; performing with them at the Montmartre Cabaret. While with Fajardo
(1919-2001), in '53 or '55 (accounts vary) cha cha cha creator Enrique Jorrín
(1926-1987) invited Rudy to join his Mexico-based charanga group to help him
promote his rhythm there. He toured widely with Jorrín's orchestra (as well as
shuttled back and forth to Cuba) and recorded with them for RCA. Recordings by
Enrique Jorrín y su Orquesta from this period are collected on Danzón
Cha Cha Cha Vols. 1 & 2 '95-6 on BMG/RCA Tropical Series, including
Rudy's trademark composition, the much covered standard "Kikiriki".
Two self-penned songs he recorded with Orquesta Kubavana in the late '50s are
compiled on A Toda Cuba Le Gusta '95 on Caney.
Rudy remained in Mexico after Jorrín's return to Cuba, and from there he
relocated to Chicago in '58 or '59 (again, accounts differ) to become a member
of the charanga Orquesta Nuevo Ritmo de Cuba, which its founder, Cuban conguero
Armando Sánchez (1920-1997), claimed he organised in '51-2 (in an interview in Aché
magazine, Spring '96). Personnel included other prominent names, such as
vocalist Pellín Rodríguez (1926-1984), violinist Pupi Legarreta, flautist
Rolando Lozano, timbalero Cuco Martínez, pianist René "El Latigo"
Hernández and bassist Victor Venegas. With Nuevo Ritmo, Rudy made his
performing debut in NYC at the legendary Palladium Ballroom, played in Puerto
Rico and accompanied Celia Cruz at California's Hollywood Palladium.
Johnny Pacheco saw Rudy perform with Nuevo Ritmo in NYC and hired him to sing
with Elliot Romero (d '90) in his newly formed charanga, which made
the first ever album, Pacheco y su Charanga Vol. I '60, on
the Alegre label founded in '56 by Al Santiago (1932-1996). The record was a
best seller and contained the Feb. '61 Farándula NYC chart topper "El Güiro De Macorina".
Rudy sang on Pacheco's next two Alegre volumes, Pacheco
y su Charanga Vol. II '61 and Pacheco y su Charanga Vol. III:
Que Suene La Flauta '62, as well as on Las
Charangas - Pacheco, Palmieri, Fajardo '61 on Alegre, also featuring the
charangas of Charlie Palmieri and Fajardo. Pacheco's was the most successful
band during the '60-4 charanga/pachanga craze, a trend to which Rudy extensively
contributed. For instance, Rudy, his brother Luis and Sergio Calzado comprised
the trio of vocalists with The Cuban All Stars (aka Orquesta Estrellas Cubanas)
for the early '60s pachanga set Charanga Vol. 2 on Seeco (reissued
in '02 as Charanga Cuban All Stars: Cuban Classic, Vol. 14 on WS
Latino); he sessioned on Ray Barretto's Pachanga With Barretto '61
and the descarga/jazz oriented Latino '62 on Riverside (LPs
repackaged '73 as 2-disc Carnaval on Fantasy, reissued '93 as CD);
he worked on A Bailar La Pachanga '61 (aka Pachangas Vol. 1
, reissued in the early '90s) and Pachangas Vol. 2 , both '61 on
Ansonia, by Belisario López y su Charanga; sang coro on Pachanga at the
Caravana Club '61 on Alegre by Charlie Palmieri and his Charanga "La
Duboney"; provided vocals to Lou Pérez's best-selling LPs on Ajay: Para
La Fiesta Voy '61 and the significant African hit Bon Bon de
Chocolate! , both reissued on Montuno '92; contributed vocals to Héctor
Rivera's early '60s classic Charanga & Pachanga! on Epic; sang
on Just For Fun '63 on Gema (reissued on Disco Hit '97 and Edenways
'98) by Charles Fox and his Charanga, featuring Pacheco, Romero and Louie Ramírez
(1938-1993); and supplied lead vocals and the hit compositions "Quimbia"
and "Mama Calunga" to La Playa Sextet's Pachanga Everybody
on Mardi Gras, said to have been originally issued as late as '66.
Meanwhile, following some problems in Nuevo Ritmo, Sánchez departed and Mongo
Santamaría took over the reins of leadership, adding violinist/tenor
saxophonist Jose "Chombo" Silva (1913-1995) and timbalero Willie Bobo
(1934-1983). Based on the US West Coast, Rudy performed on six Fantasy label
recordings by Santamaría's charanga (including one with pianist/leader Joe
Loco, 1921-1988): Sabroso! , Pachanga con Joe Loco (reissued
as half of the CD Loco Lotion '94), Arriba! La Pachanga
, Más Sabroso , Viva Mongo! and Mighty Mongo
(reissued with Viva Mongo! on the CD At The Blackhawk
'94) '61-2. The latter two albums, made with a decidedly jazz oriented octet of
personnel drawn mainly from his charanga, effectively marked the cusp between
Mongo's hitherto more typical material and his future Latin/jazz/R&B fusion
direction.
In '61 Rudy sung on the first of the revered Alegre All-Stars Latin jam session
albums, which kick-started a number of other NYC descarga recordings during the
decade, including the notable Latin Cuban Session Vol. 2 c
'67 on Fonseca by Osvaldo "Chi Hua Hua" Martínez (b c
1920, Cuba; d early '80s, NYC), on which he sang coro. This album
is coupled with Chi Hua Hua's '66 Fonseca album Descarga Cubana Vol. 1
on Descarga Cubana '91 on Palladium.
He made his bandleading debut with Pachanga Time '61 on Gema, which
took off in Paris. This led to a contract to tour France and Morocco with his
own eight-piece charanga, returning to NYC to do a 12 week solo residency at the
Chateau Madrid. Following an eight week stint with the 17-piece house band at
Los Angeles' now defunct Club Havana, he returned to NYC. While on the West
Coast, he played güiro and cencerro alongside timbalero Cuco Martínez in the
rhythm section on keyboardist Clare Fischer's Latin jazz set Manteca!
'65 on Pacific Jazz. Fischer had previously worked with Rudy and Cuco in
Orquesta Nuevo Ritmo de Cuba.
He had the distinction of working and recording with NYC's entire trinity of
Mambo Kings: Machito, Tito Puente and Tito Rodríguez. Though uncredited, he
appeared on many of Rodríguez' early '60s albums for United Artists; recorded
with Puente on a number of his albums for Tico, including some with Celia Cruz;
and sang coro on a number of recordings by Machito and Graciela, particularly
his compositions. Rodríguez even put him in charge of his orchestra for 15 days
at NYC's Palladium Ballroom while he recovered from an illness.
During NYC's boogaloo/Latin soul fad '66-9, he shared vocals with Vitín López
on Jala Jala Con Boog-A-Loo (aka Salsa ) mid-'60s on
Remo by Pupi (Legarreta) y su Charanga; sang on Louie Ramírez' In
The Heart Of Spanish Harlem c ' 67 on Mercury and Ali Baba '68
on Fania; and was credited as a vocalist on Puente's The King Tito
Puente/El Rey Tito Puente '68 on Tico. The boogaloo era had virtually
blown over, when Eddie Palmieri asked Rudy to supply a hit tune for his
penultimate studio album for Tico. He gave him "La Malanga", which
received its defining interpretation on Superimposition '70 on Tico,
featuring Rudy on percussion. Back on the West Coast, he featured prominently on
the Chano Martínez Sextet release A Bailar Señores '69 on Decca
(reissued on Palladium '89), an excellent album mixing typical and Latin jazz
material.
Estranged from and disenchanted with the Fania dominated NYC Latin music scene,
at the beginning of the '70s Rudy took a four week contract in Spain and
remained there two years. After opening in Madrid, he toured across the country
with his own band. He contributed the composition "Ya Yo" and
sessioned on Celia Cruz y Tito Puente en España c '71
on Tico, made at Madrid's Columbia Studios. He returned to the USA and based
himself in Los Angeles. There he made his second album as a leader, Salsa
y Alegria '74 on Sonotropic, containing his important hit "Tumba La
Caña". The 14-piece band he convened for the date including flautist
Rolando Lozano and conguero José (Perico) de la Caridad. These musicians also
performed on Típica Antillana '74 on Sonotropic (reissued as La
Charanga Antillana on Music Art Productions '98) by the charanga Típica
Antillana, organised in '74 by timbalero Armando Díaz; with Lozano directing
and Rudy providing lead vocals. During this period Rudy worked on two notable
West Coast Latin jazz recordings: he provided chorus vocals to a '72 Willie Bobo
date reissued in '99 as Latin Jazz Legend and played percussion on
vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson's Montara '75 on Blue Note,
featuring an interpretation of his "La Malanga". Personnel on Montara
included the luminaries Eddie Cano (1927-1988) on piano and percussionist Bobby
Matos.
In '77 he was invited to return to NYC to participate in the Alegre All-Stars'
17th anniversary reunion album Perdido (Vol. 5 or 6?) on Alegre,
produced by Al Santiago, and perform with the band at Madison Square Garden. He
co-wrote Parts 2, 3 and 4 of the ambitious Salsa Suite with Larry Harlow and
Tito Puente for Orchestra Harlow's Grammy nominated La Raza Latina - A
Salsa Suite '77 on Fania, with Rubén Blades singing lead vocals on
"Salsa Suite - Pt. 2 Caribbean (continued)". The album's coro singers
included the trio of vocalists from the all-woman band, Latin Fever, whose only
album, Larry Harlow Presents Latin Fever '78 on Fania, contained
three songs penned by Rudy. In '79 Orchestra Harlow became the first to record
another landmark Calzado composition, "La Reina del Café",
interpreted by sonero Nestor Sánchez on Rumbambola on Fania.
In '80 Rudy was hired to organise the house band for the opening of Club
Infiernos in Mexico City. He toured the band throughout Mexico, recorded for
Orfeón and appeared with Celia Cruz on the TV show Alegrias Con Bacardi
. In '83 he was contracted to perform 64 concerts at Madrid's La Cia, and toured
Spain, Portugal and elsewhere in Europe. Following his wife's death, Rudy
returned to NYC, via Venezuela, in '85. There he hooked-up with another widower,
Mario Bauzá (1911-1993), who he'd first met in '60 when Mario was the musical
director for the Machito band. Mario invited him to join his Afro-Cuban Jazz
Orchestra project and move into his apartment at 944 Columbus Avenue, where he'd
lived for 40 years. Rudy stayed there for five years.
In '86 Sergio Bofill and Humberto Corredor
commissioned Rudy to make Rica Charanga for their Caimán label
(issued in the UK on GlobeStyle '87). The album featured Mario on clarinet,
Graciela singing coro, Pupi Legarreta playing flute and violin and Alfredo Valdés
Jr. on piano. Rudy co-directed with Mario, sang lead vocals, played güiro,
wrote four arrangements and composed all eight tracks, including a fine
reworking of "La Reina del Café" arranged by veteran Cuban
pianist/arranger Javier Vázquez.
After seeing Mario and his Afro-Cuban Jazz Concert Orchestra (featuring Calzado
and Graciela) performing with Dizzy Gillespie for Bauzá's 80th Birthday Tribute
at NYC's Symphony Space Apr. '91, German Messidor label boss Götz A. Wörner
signed him up. Rudy sang lead vocals on Mario's Messidor debut Tanga
'92, voted album of the year in the downbeat critics' poll. The CD
included a special concert arrangement by Ray Santos (b 28 Dec.
'28, El Barrio, NYC) of his composition "Gangá (Palo En Gangá)",
which he previously recorded as "Y Yo Gangá" with the Alegre
All-Stars on Perdido '77. One of his three daughters, Tatiana
Calzado, was among the background vocalists on this track and another cut. Rudy
appeared with Mario and the orchestra in The Cosby Show '92,
performing an excerpt from "Gangá (Palo En Gangá)", and toured the
USA and Europe with them.
Mario's '93 Messidor follow-up, My Time Is Now , contained two
Calzado compositions arranged by Santos: "Así No, Papá", sung by
Graciela, and "Ifá" with Rudy on lead vocals. He also provided lead
vocals to the perennial "El Manisero", arranged by Chico O'Farrill.
The month after My Time Is Now was released, Mario died of cancer
in his apartment, the address of which provided the title of the posthumous
release 944 Columbus '94 on Messidor, recorded in May '93. Rudy
supplied lead vocals to his composition "La Clave De La Ya Ya",
arranged by Santos, and the Chano Pozo tribute, "Chano", co-written
and arranged by the orchestra's bassist Joe Santiago. "This is the last
thing I'm going to do for the new generation," Mario told Calzado, who
inherited leadership of the orchestra.
On 17 June '96 Rudy participated in a reunion of the Alegre All-Stars (or Nearly
New Alegre All-Stars as Al Santiago called them) for a successful gig at NYC's
S.O.B.'s club to celebrate their 35th anniversary. The same year, he provided
vocals to the track "Maral" on Gombo Salsa ' 96 on
Stern's, the third volume in the successful Senegal meets New York salsa Africando
series.
No doubt assisted by the Buena Vista Social Club phenomenon, his solo career
underwent somewhat of a renaissance at the beginning of the new millennium. The
German label Connector contracted him to make two albums, both released in '00.
The first, A Tribute to Mario Bauzá , was made in NYC with the
Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra, renamed Rudy Calzado and Cubarama. It contained a
remake of "Kikiriki", arranged by Santos, plus his composition,
"La Jícara", arranged by the orchestra's musical director, famed
reedman Paquito D'Rivera. He returned to Cuba after 40 years in exile to record
the second CD, La Musica Típica de Cuba . The project was
effectively a stocktaking exercise of his career up to that point. All but one
of his 10 compositions on the album had been previously recorded, either by him
or other artists. However, instead of completely rehashing earlier arrangements,
Rudy took the opportunity to rework material from his distinguished portfolio,
such as "La Malanga"; "La Reina del Café", sung in duet
with Pio Leyva; and "Tumba La Caña", with lead vocals by Leyva. Two
songs originally from Larry Harlow Presents Latin Fever '78, "Qué
Te Pasa Corazón?" and "Canción De La Alegria", were sung by
Anais Abreu. Musical direction was handled Los Van Van's pianist César Pedroso,
who played on two tracks, wrote one chart and co-arranged "Descarga José"
(originally recorded for Rudy's Pachanga Time '61) along with Rudy
and trombonist Hugo Morejón, also from Los Van Van.
Also recorded in Cuba, Rudy shared lead vocals with Leyva and Luis Frank on a
rendition of the Beny Moré classic "Maraicabo Oriental" and supplied
lead vocals to two of his self-penned songs on A Buena Vista: Barrio De La
Habana '01 on Narada by the Soneros De Verdad; and sang lead vocals on
two cuts on Generoso Que Bueno Toca Usted '01 on Termidor by
Generoso Jiménez and his Gran Afro Cuban Orchestra.
Back in the USA, he sessioned on Los Originales '01 on Universal/MusicHaus
by the Cuban Masters, an all-star ensemble directed by trombonist Juan Pablo
Torres, featuring Fajardo, bassist Cachao, trumpeter Alfredo
"Chocolate" Armenteros, conguero Carlos "Patato" Valdez,
pianists Alfredo Valdés Jr. and Alfredo Rodríguez, sonero Héctor Casanova and
10 others. In addition to recording Los Originales in Hialeah,
Miami, the Cuban Masters gave a concert at the James L. Knight International
Center in Downtown Miami.
Rudy was a highly productive composer, who wrote everyday. He composed over 600
tunes, most of which haven't been recorded. Besides those already mentioned,
some of his other notable songs are: "Con Su Bataola" (from Pacheco
y su Charanga Vol. II '61); "No Hay Manteca" (from Celia Cruz's Son
Con Guaguancó '66 on Tico); "Yo Soy La Voz" and "En El
Cafetal" (from Celia Cruz and Tito Puente's Quimbo Quimbumbia
'69 on Tico); the title track of Puente's Pa'Lante!/Straight! '70
on Tico; "Cuyi" (from Cruz and Puente's Alma Con Alma '71
on Tico); "La Llave Y El Candao" (from Charlie Palmieri's El
Gigante Del Teclado '72 on Alegre); "No Me Reproches" (from
Graciela's Esa Soy Yo, Yo Soy Asi '74 on Mericana, reissued with Machito
'72 in the two-CD set Machito y Graciela '00 on Salsoul/Sony); and
"La Botija De Abuelito" (recorded on Típica 73's The Two Sides
Of Típica 73 '77 on Inca).
In '02 Rudy was hospitalised with
diabetes. His leg became infected and was amputated. He died the next day.
In today's Cuba, Rudy's nephew, timba master David Calzado, directs Charanga
Habanera and another nephew, Manolo, is a member of La Charanga Forever.
This
profile is published on Latinjam On Line by permission of the author, Mr. John Child.
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