Ray Barretto (April 29, 1929 – February 17, 2006) was a Grammy Award-winnin… Read Full Bio ↴Ray Barretto (April 29, 1929 – February 17, 2006) was a Grammy Award-winning Latin/Latin jazz musician of Puerto Rican ancestry.

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

La Pelota
Ray Barretto Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Mamá no quiere
Que yo juegue
A la pelota
Mamá no quiere
Que yo juegue
A la pelota
Mamá no quiere
Que yo juegue

A la pelota

Oye mi mamá no quiere que yo juegue a la pelota
Mamá no quiere que yo juegue a la pelota
Que yo juegue con carlota porque tiene farfallota
Mamá no quiere que yo juegue a la pelota
Hay juega juega conmigo, juega conmigo carlota
Mamá no quiere que yo juegue a la pelota
Mamá no quiere que yo juegue a la pelota

que yo juegue a la pelota

Mira todas las pelotas

Oye mamá no quiere!
Ella no quiere que yo juegue a la pelota
El que no juega no goza
Que yo vacile con rosa
A la pelota
Hay juega juega que está sabrosa
Yo me voy pal parque a jugar
Hay bótala que bótala
A la pelota, a la pelota, la pelota, la pelota
Ella no quiere que yo juegue
Que yo juegue con carlota
Que yo vacile con rosa
No no no no (coro) no no a nonono a la pelota
Nonononono nonononononono me juegue a la pelota
Que rica y que sabrosa
Un jonrón de cuatro esquinas

2
Ahí no ma!

Overall Meaning

The opening lines of Ray Barretto’s song “La Pelota” express a common struggle between parents and their children over playing ball. Despite the excitement and joy that playing ball brings, the singer’s mother does not want her child to play. The song is centered around this conflict, with the recurring chorus “Mamá no quiere que yo juegue a la pelota” (Mom doesn’t want me to play ball) conveying the tension between the child’s desire to play and the mother’s concern for their safety.

The verses expand on the conflict with the mother, as the child interacts with other players, including Carlota (Charlotte) and Rosa. The mother’s objections to her child playing with Carlota are not entirely clear, but possibly due to a perceived danger or bad influence. Despite the obstacles, the singer remains determined to play ball, declaring that “El que no juega no goza” (He who doesn’t play, doesn’t have fun). The song reaches its climax with the exclamation of “¡Ahí no ma!” as the singer hits a home run.

Overall, “La Pelota” is an enjoyable and energetic song that portrays a common struggle between children and their parents. It also highlights the importance of play and having fun, even when faced with obstacles or objections.

Line by Line Meaning

Mamá no quiere
My mother does not want me to

Que yo juegue
play

A la pelota
baseball

Oye mi mamá no quiere que yo juegue a la pelota
Listen, my mother does not want me to play baseball

Que yo juegue con carlota porque tiene farfallota
She does not want me to play with Carlota because she has a loose tongue

Hay juega juega conmigo, juega conmigo carlota
Come on, play with me, play with me Carlota

Mira todas las pelotas
Look at all those baseballs

El que no juega no goza
Whoever does not play does not have fun

Que yo vacile con rosa
That I flirt with Rosa

Hay juega juega que está sabrosa
Come on, play with her, she is delicious

Yo me voy pal parque a jugar
I am going to the park to play