Ray Barretto, a percussionist extraordinaire and legend in the Salsa & latin Jazz music community has left the music scene with his death in February 2006 at age 76.
Born of Puerto Rican descendence in Brooklyn during the depression, he lived with his mother in East Harlem, The South Bronx and other "boricua" districts before he joined the army, where in the latter 1940's he heard Dizzy Gillespie's hard bebop. The young man was transfixed by Dizzy Gillespie - Manteca," which featured conguero Chano Pozo.
He started sitting in at a Munich jazz club, and after his discharge, by the early 50's he had bought his own Cuban Cnga drum and was playing regularly at clubs like The Bucket of Blood. Soon Mambo was the rage, and Barretto eventually started playing with Tito Puente in 1957, replacing the famed Mongo Santamaria. He became a band leader on his own by 1961, and had a big hit with his group Charanga Moderna and their boogaloo dance craze single called "el Watusi" in 1963 that was the first Latin record to hit the Billboard top 20, and went Gold.
Barretto is credited by some for bringing the African Conga drum into popular music, and had a crossover appeal that transcended the genre boundries of mainstream music categories. He gained recognition beyond the Puerto Rican music scene, ex. played on many Blue Note albums. He beacme associated with the Latin label Fania in the 1960's and played for three decades in the popular ensemble called the Fania All Stars alongsde Willie Colon, Ruben Blades and others. His 1972 album, "Carnaval", is considered a masterpiece amongst latin Jazz afficianados with the songs "Cocinando Suave" and his interpretation of Gershwin's "Summertime".
Highlights of Barretto's run with the Fania All Stars were their tours of spots like Panama, Puerto Rico and Zaire where they played to 80,000 in Kinshasa before the Ali-Foremen fight. Undoubtedly their sell out concerts at N.Y's Yankee Stadium in 1973 & 1975 would have to be included as well.
In 1975 and 1976, Barretto earned back-to-back Grammy nominations for his solo albums "Barretto" (with the prize-winning song "Guarere") and his double "Barretto Live...Tomorrow". By 1976, although he had stopped performing & touring with his live salsa orchestra, he was regularly voted Best Conga Player in music magazine annual polls. He became interested in jazz fusion forms, and pursued this musical passion despite it's lack of commercial appeal. Barretto felt restricted by the Salsa scene, it's conventions and strict danceable format, and did not like the tag Latin Jazz either.
He teamed with singer Celia Cruz in 1983 for the first of several albums, finally winning a 1990 Grammy with her for their 1989 song "Ritmo En El Corazon". In 1992, he formed the ensemble New World Spirit, and was inducted into the International Latin Music Hall of Fame in 1999.
He had recently been named best drummer in the 2005 DownBeat poll, and received the NEA's 2006 Jazz Masters Fellowship before his health declined. His recent albums "Taboo" (1994), "My Summertime" (1998) and his final album 2005's "Time Was - Time Is" all received Grammy nominations for best Latin jazz performance.
Over the years he is said to have recorded more than 70 albums for numerous labels including Riverside, Atlantic, EMI, CTI, Fania, Tico, RCA Victor, Concord Picante, Prestige, Blue Note, Circular Moves, Sunnyside and his last for O+ Music. Amongst his many musical collaborators included Cannonball Adderly, Joe Farrell, Wes Montgomery, Cal Tjader, Charlie Palmieri, George Benson, Lou Donaldson, Dizzy Gillespie, José Curbelo , Adalberto Santiago, Steve Gadd, Hector Lavoe, Yusef Lateef, Gene Ammons, Red Garland, Ray Vega, Oscar Hernandez, Tito Gomez, and even Little Miami Steven Van Zant's Sun City project. At the time of his death in a New Jersey hospital, he was in his late 70's, and had recently had several health setbacks including suffering asthma, compounded by heart attack, bypass surgery, pneumonia , a tracheotomy and just enough damned ailments to take Fuerza Gigante down.
More Barretto Links & Sample MP3'z & Interviews available at
http://lilmikesf.blogspot.com/2006/02/conga-king-ray-barretto-rip.html
Amor Artificial
Ray Barretto Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
cuatro paredes y en dolor cámara de horror,
Así tu vives, si puede llamarse vida,
y a la trizteeeeza hoy por mi sobreentendida
Porque con migo, pooorr que ee conmigo,
porque a mi lado si que tienes el amorrr.
Laboratorio de placer eso no esamor, experimento iba acabar de sexualidad
Así tu vives la muerte de casa día
y yo esperando para darte mi alegría
Por qué conmigo,/
/ por queeee conmigo por que mi lado tienes la felicidad//
ven conmigo es diferente conmino .tiempo
Con toda el alma lo digo es diferente conmigo ...
Es muy sincero el amor que yo te brindo, cariiiiño vente conmigo .
Amor artificial yo no o quiero,
lo que te ofrezco un amor verdadero ...
Yoooo te perdono todo el pasado, cariiño vente a mi lado
Solo, trompe///coro ///:: es diferente conmigo ...
Cariño ven, cariño ven, cariño vente conmigo .
Tú sabes que te quiero y es aaamor lo que te pido...
Ven donde mí, que yo te haré feliz...
Coro:: ////es diferente conmigo////
Vennnte te te conmigo...
Cosita entera mi vida entera yo te dedico ...
Ven a miiii laaa do te lo suplico. ...
The song "Amor Artificial" by Ray Barretto speaks about an artificial paradise that appears to be love. The singer describes a situation where someone is living within four walls, experiencing pain and horror. This life can hardly be referred to as life, and it is filled with sadness that he or she cannot understand. The singer goes on to ask why this person chooses to stay in such an environment even though he offers love.
The singer says that living in the laboratory of pleasure is not love but a sexual experiment, and each day is a death sentence in this situation. However, he is waiting to offer this person his joy because he can offer authentic love, and he wonders why they don't come with him to experience something different. The singer pleads that their love may be artificial, but he offers genuine love, and though they have a past, he forgives all that. He implores the person to come to him because he will make them happy.
Line by Line Meaning
Un paraíso artificial que parece amor
Comparing your life to an artificial paradise that seems like love
Cuatro paredes y en dolor cámara de horror
Living in a room filled with pain and horror
Así tu vives, si puede llamarse vida
This is how you live, if it can be called living
Y a la trizteeeeza hoy por mi sobreentendida
And the sadness today is evident to me
Porque con migo, pooorr que ee conmigo, porque a mi lado si que tienes el amorrr
Why with me? Why, oh why with me? Because next to me, you have love
Laboratorio de placer eso no es amor, experimento iba acabar de sexualidad
Pleasure laboratory is not love, experiment was meant to be about sexuality
Así tu vives la muerte de casa día
This is how you live, experiencing death every day
Y yo esperando para darte mi alegría
And I am waiting to give you my happiness
Por qué conmigo, por queeee conmigo por que mi lado tienes la felicidad
Why with me? Oh why, with me? Because by my side, you have happiness
Ven conmigo es diferente conmino .tiempo, con toda el alma lo digo es diferente conmigo
Come with me, it's different with me. With all my heart I say it's different with me
Es muy sincero el amor que yo te brindo, cariiiiño vente conmigo
The love I offer you is very sincere, my dear, come with me
Amor artificial yo no o quiero, lo que te ofrezco un amor verdadero
I don't want artificial love, I offer you true love
Yoooo te perdono todo el pasado, cariiño vente a mi lado
I forgive you for everything from the past, my dear, come to my side
Solo, trompe///coro ///:: es diferente conmigo ...
Alone, trumpet, chorus: it's different with me...
Cariño ven, cariño ven, cariño vente conmigo
My dear, come, my dear, come, my dear, come with me
Tú sabes que te quiero y es aaamor lo que te pido...
You know I love you and it's love that I ask of you
Ven donde mí, que yo te haré feliz...
Come to me, I will make you happy
Coro:: ////es diferente conmigo////
Chorus: it's different with me...
Vennnte te te conmigo...
Come with me...
Cosita entera mi vida entera yo te dedico...
My whole life I dedicate to you, my dear...
Ven a miiii laaa do te lo suplico...
Come to me, where I implore you...
Writer(s): Catalino Alonso
Contributed by Anna D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@sandrapalominolavoe902
Un paraíso artificial que parece amor,
Cuatro paredes y en dolor cámara de horror,
Así tu vives, si puede llamarse vida,
Y a la trizteeeeza hoy por mi sobreentendida
Porque con migo, pooorr que ee conmigo,
Porque a mi lado si que tienes el amorrr.
Laboratorio de placer eso no es
Un paraíso artificial que parece amor,
Amor, experimento iba acabar de sexualidad
Así tu vives la muerte de casa día
Y yo esperando para darte mi alegría
Por qué conmigo,
Por queeee conmigo por que mi lado tienes la felicidad
Ven conmigo es diferente conmino .tiempo
Con toda el alma lo digo es diferente conmigo ...
Es muy sincero el amor que yo te brindo, cariiiiño vente conmigo .
Amor artificial yo no o quiero,
Lo que te ofrezco un amor verdadero ...
Yoooo te perdono todo el pasado, cariiño vente a mi lado
Solo, trompe es diferente conmigo ...
Cariño ven, cariño ven, cariño vente conmigo .
Tú sabes que te quiero y es aaamor lo que te pido...
Ven donde mí, que yo te haré feliz
es diferente conmigo
Vennnte te te conmigo...
Cosita entera mi vida entera yo te dedico ...
Ven a miiii laaa do te lo suplico. ...
@rubentorres273
Un amor así, yo no lo quiero. Lo que busco es un amor verdadero 💗. Exelente tema de Tite Curet. R/T y su melomania salsera desde Maracay Venezuela 16/04/2023.
@Gaelitro
L'arrivée du dernier montuno est incroyable. Les deux coups en basse congas de Ray dans l'arrangement sont spectaculaires.
@giuseppeantonioponcebenven8873
Lo máximo Ray Barreto...k tal recuerdo...presentación en el auditorio de la feria del hogar en la av la marina ( allá x años del 2003 si no me eguivoco) en cocos para verlo
@julianwrapguy1688
El Gran Ray De Paz Incomparable!
@armandorosado8235
Lindo recuerdo de mi tiempo en New York...como extraño eso bailable y after hours...tiempo inolvidable
@luisdiaz-xf7zw
ahi na ma desde Miami 2019 saludos a todos los rumberos del mundo (Tolima Colombia)y seguimos en salsa vamos pa lla, ahora siii.
@iriviccedeno4490
Sin duda algúna una tremenda combinación Ray de la paz y Ray barreto EL RITMO DE LA VIDA título de esta producción discográfica extraordinaria
@zaettav
DISFRUTANDO DESDE CANADA
@lesterrojas2656
Coro de Néstor Sánchez 'El albino divino' QEPD
@giovannyvelasquezmedina2594
Ufff que coro valla