Ray Barretto

Raymundo "Ray" Barretto Pagán
Barretto in 1982
Background information
Born	(1929-04-29)April 29, 1929 Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Died	February 17, 2006(2006-02-17) (aged 76) Hackensack, New Jersey, U.S.
Genres	Afro-Cuban jazz salsa son cubano boogaloo pachanga
Occupations	Musician bandleader
Instruments	Congas drums percussion
Years active	1949–2006
Labels	Tico Riverside United Artists Fania Atlantic CTI Concord Jazz Zoho Music
Formerly of	The Blackout All-Stars, Fania All-Stars, Adalberto Santiago
Military Service[1]
Allegiance	United States
Service / branch	United States Army
Years of service	1946-1949
Rank	Private First Class

Raymundo "Ray" Barretto Pagán (April 29, 1929 – February 17, 2006) was an American percussionist and bandleader of Puerto Rican descent.^[2] Throughout his career as a percussionist, he played a wide variety of Latin music styles, as well as Latin jazz. His first hit, "El Watusi", was recorded by his Charanga Moderna in 1962, becoming the most successful pachanga song in the United States. In the late 1960s, Barretto became one of the leading exponents of boogaloo and what would later be known as salsa. Nonetheless, many of Barretto's recordings would remain rooted in more traditional genres such as son cubano. A master of the descarga (improvised jam session), Barretto was a long-time member of the Fania All-Stars.^[3][2] His success continued into the 1970s with songs such as "Cocinando" and "Indestructible". His last album for Fania Records, Soy dichoso, was released in 1990. He then formed the New World Spirit jazz ensemble and continued to tour and record until his death in 2006. He is the father of American vocalist and saxophonist Chris Barretto, best known for his work with Periphery and Monuments.