His youngest son, Eric Bobo (Eric Correa), is a percussionist with crew Cypress Hill. He also performed on the Beastie Boys' 1994 album Ill Communication, as well as doing the 1994 Lollapalooza tour with the group
His grandson William Valen Correa, son of Bobo's first son William Gill Correa, is Co-Founder of the music-based non-profit organization HNDP Los Angeles.
Willie Bobo, who grew up in Spanish Harlem, New York made his name in Latin Jazz in the 1960's and 70's, with the timbales becoming his favoured instrument. He met Mongo Santamaria shortly after his arrival in New York and studied with him while acting as his translator, and later joined Tito Puente for 4 years from the age of 19. During the early 50's the nickname Bobo is said to have been bestowed by the jazz pianist Mary Lou Williams. His first major exposure was when he joined George Shearing's band on the album The Shearing Spell. After leaving Shearing, Cal Tjader asked Bobo and Santamaria to become part of the Cal Tjader Modern Mambo Quintet, who released several albums as the mambo craze reached fever pitch in the late 50's. Reuniting with his mentor Santamaria in 1960, the pair released the album Sabroso! for the Fantasy label. He later formed his own group releasing Do That Thing/Guajira with Tico and Bobo's Beat and Let's Go Bobo for Roulette, without achieving huge penetration.
After the runaway sucess of Tjaders Soul Sauce, in which he was heavily involved, Bobo formed a new band with the backing of the Verve label, releasing Spanish Grease, of which the title track is probably his most well known tune. Highly successful at this attempt, Bobo released a further 7 albums with Verve.
In the late 70's he moved out to Los Angeles, where he worked as a session musician for Carlos Santana among others, as well as being a regular in the band for The Bill Cosby Show. In the late seventies he recorded a couple of albums for Blue Note and Columbia records.
He was married to Alicia. He died on September 15, 1983 in Los Angeles, California, USA. After a period of ill health, he died at the age of 49, succumbing to cancer.
Alicia, wife of Willie, said: "He wanted to come to New York...he wanted to come home...he once said that a great artist always gets recognized at the end." Willie, the eldest son spoke: "One of my father's memorable words was 'music is an international language, anyone can follow the music."' Eric, the youngest son: "He wanted everyone to be happy, no sorrow...this is how his life was, happy, smiling, to have a good time."
Discography With Cal Tjader
Latino (Fantasy, 1958)
Cal Tjader's Concert by the Sea (Fantasy, 1959)
Cal Tjader's Latin Concert (Fantasy, 1959)
West Side Story (Fantasy, 1960)
Plays Harold Arlen (Fantasy, 1961)
Live and Direct (Fantasy, 1962)
Breeze from the East (Verve, 1964)
Soul Sauce (Verve, 1965
Discography As leader
Do That Thing/Guajira (Tico, 1963)
Bobo's Beat (Roulette, 1964)
Let's Go Bobo! (Roulette, 1964)
Spanish Grease (Verve, 1965)
Uno Dos Tres 1β’2β’3 (Verve, 1966)
Feelin' So Good (Verve, 1967)
Juicy (Verve, 1967)
Bobo Motion (Verve, 1967)
Spanish Blues Band (Verve, 1968)
A New Dimension (Verve, 1968)
Do What You Want to Do (Sussex, 1971)
Tomorrow Is Here (Blue Note, 1977)
Hell Of An Act To Follow (Columbia, 1978)
Bobo (Columbia, 1979)
Lost & Found (Concord Picante, 2006)
Dig My Feeling (Nacional Records 2016)
With Don Wilkerson
Elder Don (Blue Note, 1962)
As sideman
With Nat Adderley
Autobiography (Atlantic, 1965)
With Dorothy Ashby
The Fantastic Jazz Harp of Dorothy Ashby (Atlantic, 1965)
With Bob Brookmeyer
Trombone Jazz Samba (Verve, 1962)
With Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis
Goin' to the Meeting (Prestige, 1962)
With Miles Davis
Quiet Nights (Columbia, 1964)
Sorcerer (Columbia, 1967)
With Victor Feldman
Latinsville! (Contemporary, 1960)
With JosΓ© Feliciano
Angela (Private Stock, 1976)
With Grant Green
The Latin Bit (Blue Note, 1962)
With Chico Hamilton
Chic Chic Chico (Impulse!, 1965)
El Chico (Impulse!, 1965)
The Further Adventures of El Chico (Impulse!, 1966)
With Slide Hampton
Explosion! The Sound of Slide Hampton (Atlantic, 1962)
With Herbie Hancock
Inventions and Dimensions (Blue Note, 1964)
With Eddie Harris
Bad Luck Is All I Have (Atlantic, 1975)
With Bobby Hutcherson
Montara (Blue Note, 1975)
With Herbie Mann
Right Now (Atlantic, 1962)
Brazil, Bossa Nova & Blues (United Artists, 1962)
Herbie Mann Live at Newport (Atlantic, 1963)
My Kinda Groove (Atlantic, 1965)
Latin Mann (Columbia, 1965)
Our Mann Flute (Atlantic, 1966)
The Beat Goes On (Atlantic, 1967)
With Les McCann
McCanna (Pacific Jazz, 1964)
Much Les (Atlantic, 1968)
With Gary McFarland
Soft Samba (Verve, 1963)
With Buddy Miles
Chapter VII (Columbia, 1973)
With Wes Montgomery
Movin' Wes (Verve, 1964)
With Oliver Nelson
Skull Session (Flying Dutchman, 1975)
With Dave Pike
Limbo Carnival (New Jazz, 1962)
Manhattan Latin (Decca, 1964)
With Tito Puente
Cuban Carnival (RCA Victor, 1956)
With Ike Quebec
Soul Samba (Blue Note, 1962)
With Terry Reid
River (Atlantic, 1973)
With Dannie Richmond
"In" Jazz for the Culture Set (Impulse!, 1965)
With Charlie Rouse
Bossa Nova Bacchanal (Blue Note, 1963)
With A. K. Salim
Afro-Soul/Drum Orgy (Prestige, 1965)
With Mongo Santamaria
Mighty Mongo (Fantasy, 1962)
Viva Mongo! (Fantasy, 1962)
With Doc Severinsen
Rhapsody For Now! (RCA, 1973)
With Sonny Stitt
Stitt Goes Latin (Roost, 1963)
With GΓ‘bor SzabΓ³
Spellbinder (Impulse!, 1966)
With Clark Terry
Mumbles (Mainstream, 1966)
La Bamba
Willie Bobo Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ba ba bamba
Ba ba bamba
Ba ba bamba
Ba ba bamba
Ba ba bamba
Ba ba bamba
Ba ba bamba
Ba ba bamba
Ba ba bamba
Ba ba bamba
Ba ba bamba
Ba ba bamba
Ba ba bamba
Ba ba bamba
Ba ba bamba
Ba ba bamba
Ba ba bamba
Ba ba bamba
The lyrics of Willie Bobo's song La Bamba consist mainly of the repeating phrase "Ba ba bamba," with no additional lyrics aside from this chorus-like phrase. While this may seem like a lack of substance or depth, it can be interpreted as a celebration of rhythm and music as the universal language that creates a strong sense of unity among people. The repetitive nature of the lyric may emphasize the power of rhythm and the way it can connect people across cultures and languages. Bobo's use of this phrase may also be a nod to the traditional Mexican folk song of the same name, which is often performed with a focus on percussion and rhythm.
Overall, the lyrics of La Bamba can be seen as a celebration of music as a way to bring people together and create a sense of community. The repeating nature of the lyrics emphasizes the power of rhythm and reminds listeners of the importance of music as a universal language.
Line by Line Meaning
Ba ba bamba
This is a repetitive line used to establish the rhythm and melody of the song. There is no direct meaning behind it.
Para bailar la Bamba
This line is an invitation to dance the Bamba, a traditional Mexican dance.
Se necessita una poca de gracia
To dance the Bamba, one needs a little bit of grace and skill.
Una poca de gracia pa' mi pa' ti
The grace is required for both the dancer and their partner to perform the dance well.
Ay arriba y arriba
This line is an exclamation of encouragement for the dancers to continue moving upwards and enjoying themselves.
Ay arriba y arriba
It is repeated to continue expressing encouragement.
Por ti sere, por ti sere, por ti sere
The singer is expressing that they will do anything for their lover, repeating it three times for emphasis.
Yo no soy marinero
The artist is stating that they are not a sailor, which could be interpreted as they are not familiar with boats or maritime activities.
Yo no soy marinero
It is repeated for emphasis.
Soy capitan, soy capitan, soy capitan
The artist is declaring that they are a captain, repeating it three times to emphasize their authority or leadership.
Lyrics Β© Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: RITCHIE VALENS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Scott Shankster
on Spanish Grease
Those aren't the lyrics... It's pretty much the same as " Ain't Got Nobody to Depend On " .