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
Préstame tu mujer
Ray Barretto Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Al lado de aquel colmado
Que está en la esquina
La última mulata que tuve yo...
Si mi socio.si mi hermano.
Aquella mulata.echá pa′lante.
Eso que te está.porque vive con Bartolo el vigilante
Vengo a pedirte un favor
Y como tu eres mi amigo
Vengo a pedirte un favor
Que me prestes tu mujer
Pa' tirarle un plante
Que me prestes tu mujer
Pa′ tirarle un plante.
PRESTAME TU MUJER MI HERMANO PARA TIRARLE UN PLANTE PRESTAME TU MUJER MI HERMANO PARA TIRARLE UN PLANTE PRESTAME TU MUJER MI HERMANO PARA TIRARLE UN PLANTE
La mami que yo queríaes la mujer del vigilante
PRESTAME TU MUJER MI HERMANO PARA TIRARLE UN PLANTE Préstame tu mujer pa' bailar con ella
Préstame tu mujer pa' bailar con ella
PRESTAME TU MUJER MI HERMANOPARA TIRARLE UN PLANTE
Y tu que dices que eres mi amigo
Préstame tu mujer te lo pido
PRESTAME TU MUJER MI HERMANOPARA TIRARLE UN PLANTE
Que yo no quiero que ella diga
Que no pude echar pa′ lante
PRESTAME TU MUJER MI HERMANOPARA TIRARLE UN PLANTE
Yo quise a esa negra que te parece
Eso es una trampa que nadie merece
PRESTAME TU MUJER MI HERMANOPARA TIRARLE UN PLANTE
Oh oh oh oh pa′ bailar con ella
Oh oh oh oh pa' bailar con ella
PRESTAME TU MUJER MI HERMANOPARA TIRARLE UN PLANTEA
Y Marcelino lo que te pido
Si solo yo quiero es que salga conmigo
Yo quiero que ella me vea bien elegante
PARA TIRARLE UN PLANTE
Para que ella sepa que yo echopa′ lante y pa' lante
PARA TIRARLE UN PLANTE
Si me haces el favor no hay quien me aguante
PARA TIRARLE UN PLANTE
Oh oh oh oh pa′ bailar con ella
Oh oh oh oh pa' bailar con ella
Ay Marcelino!...
PARA TIRARLE UN PLANTE
Porque eres mi amigo!...
PARA TIRARLE UN PLANTE
Te lo pido!...
PARA TIRARLE UN PLANTE
Pero que préstame tu mujer Marcelino
PARA TIRARLE UN PLANTE
The lyrics of Ray Barretto's song Préstame tu mujer are about a man named Marcelino who is approached by the singer, his friend, to ask for a favor. The singer tells Marcelino that the woman he wants, who happens to be the wife of a security guard named Bartolo, lives next to the corner market. The singer then asks Marcelino to lend him his wife to make a pass at the woman he desires. He repeats the request in the chorus, asking for Marcelino's wife to borrow for a dance and to make a move on his crush. He explains that he wants to impress the woman with his looks and skills to show her that he is someone she should take a chance on.
The lyrics of the song are sung in a about a humorous tone, particularly in how the singer repeatedly asks for Marcelino's wife. At the same time, the song touches on themes of jealousy and infidelity, as well as the idea of men treating women as objects to be used for pleasure. The lyrics show a certain boldness in the singer's pursuit of what he wants. Overall, the lyrics of Préstame tu mujer reflect the machismo culture that was prevalent in Latin America during the time the song was written.
Line by Line Meaning
Marcelino.Oye amigo tu sabes quien se mudó
Hey Marcelino, my friend, do you know who moved in next to the corner store?
Al lado de aquel colmado
They are next to the corner store
Que está en la esquina
Which is on the corner
La última mulata que tuve yo...
The last mulatta I was with...
Si mi socio.si mi hermano.
Yes, my friend. Yes, my brother.
Aquella mulata.echá pa′lante.
That mulatta who is forward and energetic.
Eso que te está.porque vive con Bartolo el vigilante
That's the one I'm talking about, because she lives with Bartolo the security guard.
Y como tu eres mi amigo
And because you're my friend,
Vengo a pedirte un favor
I come to ask you a favor
Que me prestes tu mujer
That you lend me your wife
Pa' tirarle un plante
To make a move on her
PRESTAME TU MUJER MI HERMANO PARA TIRARLE UN PLANTE
Lend me your wife, my brother, to make a move on her
La mami que yo queríaes la mujer del vigilante
The lady I want is the security guard's wife
Préstame tu mujer pa' bailar con ella
Lend me your wife to dance with her
Y tu que dices que eres mi amigo
And you, who say you're my friend,
Préstame tu mujer te lo pido
Lend me your wife, I'm asking you
Que yo no quiero que ella diga
I don't want her to say
Que no pude echar pa′ lante
That I couldn't move forward
Yo quise a esa negra que te parece
I was into that Black woman you know,
Eso es una trampa que nadie merece
That's a trap no one deserves
Oh oh oh oh pa′ bailar con ella
Oh oh oh oh, to dance with her
PARA TIRARLE UN PLANTE
To make a move on her
Y Marcelino lo que te pido
And Marcelino what I'm asking of you
Si solo yo quiero es que salga conmigo
Is that she goes out with me, that's all I want
Yo quiero que ella me vea bien elegante
I want her to see me looking elegant
PARA TIRARLE UN PLANTE
To make a move on her
Para que ella sepa que yo echopa′ lante y pa' lante
So she knows that I'm moving forward
Si me haces el favor no hay quien me aguante
If you do me this favor, nothing can stop me
Ay Marcelino!...
Oh Marcelino!...
Porque eres mi amigo!...
Because you're my friend!...
Te lo pido!...
I'm asking you!...
Pero que préstame tu mujer Marcelino
But lend me your wife, Marcelino
Writer(s): Remberto Becker
Contributed by Natalie R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@alexguadalupe7867
Me encanta como suena la orquesta, la clave, ray barretto un maestro y claro la interpretación de rey saba demaciado buena Dios lo tenga en su gloria mi papa rey saba
@angelpino5621
A monster on conga.