SALSA LOUIE RAMIREZ: FANIA GOLD NM "GOOD NEWS" HEAR

$

103

1- Yo No Se Nada
2- El Conde Negro
3- Soy Santiaguero
4- Tres Palabras
5- Noche De Mambo

REMARKS: THIS LP DESERVES THIS REVIEW:

LOUIE RAMIREZ:

"Born 24 February 1938, Manhattan, New York, USA; of Puerto Rican parentage. Probably the most sought after and prolific arranger and producer during salsa's 70s boom years, the versatile Ramírez, who leads his own band, composes and plays timbales, vibraphone and keyboards, has justifiably been compared to Quincy Jones and described as "El Genio de la Salsa" (The Genius of Salsa). The arranger is an important figure in salsa, who is always expected to be creative, original and usually progressive within the strict structure of the genre, the band's style and its front-line (the two are inextricable). Ramírez began classical piano tuition at the age of seven and later studied at the Juilliard School of Music. Seeing the pianist/band leader Noro Morales perform made a great impression on the young Ramírez and he decided to devote his energies to Latin music. He made his professional debut in 1956 when he replaced Pete Terrace as the vibraphonist in a quintet led by his uncle, Joe Loco. Before becoming a leader in 1946, pianist Loco worked with Xavier Cugat, Enric Madriguera and Pupi Campo, among others, and wrote arrangements for artists including Tito Rodríguez, Machito, Noro Morales and Tito Puente. Also in the mid-50s, Ramírez did a stint with the Vicentico Valdés band, which at the time included pianist Eddie Palmieri and percussionist Manny Oquendo.

In 1960, Ramírez co-wrote and arranged the smash hit "El Güiro De Macorina" from Johnny Pacheco's debut Pacheco Y Su Charanga Vol. I on the Alegre label. The album achieved the largest sales in the history of Latin music up to that point. Ramírez played timbales and wrote some of the arrangements on the album, which was described by musicologist John Storm Roberts as " . . . one of the tightest Latin jazz recordings ever made . . . ' (quote from The Latin Tinge, 1979). In 1961 Ramírez was the timbalero on The Latin Jazz Quintet on United Artists Records (reissued by Palladium Records in 1990). The group was led by vibes player Felipe Díaz and featured jazz musician Eric Dolphy on flute, bass clarinet and alto saxophone. Louie wrote songs and arrangements for La Playa Sextet and also recorded with the band. He composed the magnificent 'Pachanga Con La Playa' from their early 60s release La Playa Sextet Vol. 11 on the Mardi Gras label. In the mid-60s Ramírez made his recording debut as a band leader with Introducing Louie Ramírez on Remo Records. 1965"s Good News was his debut on the new Fania Records label, founded in 1964 by Jerry Masucci and Johnny Pacheco. Ramírez performed a superb vibes solo on a descarga (Latin jam) interpretation of the Noro Morales composition "Ponce" on Tributo A Noro (Tribute To Noro Morales) by Kako's New York After Hours Orchestra, which was effectively an Alegre All-Stars album produced by Al Santiago. Santiago produced Ramírez's Vibes Galore on Alegre in c.1966, which featured lead vocalist Willie Torres. Ramírez embraced the boogaloo and Latin soul fad with a vengeance on In The Heart Of Spanish Harlem issued by Mercury Records. He included more Latin soul material on Ali Baba in 1968, his second Fania outing. That year he appeared on the debut recording by the Fania All Stars at New York's Red Garter club and on the Al Santiago-produced Salsa All-Stars.

Between 1965 and 1968, Ramírez did stints with Charlie Palmieri and Joe Cuba. In late 1968 he teamed up with ex-Ray Barretto vocalist Pete Bonet (b. Santurce, San Juan, Puerto Rico; singer, composer, co-band leader, promoter) to co-lead a 12-piece band with a front line of three trumpets and three saxophones (alto, tenor and baritone). For the next two years the band became a regular fixture at New York's Corso club. In 1972 Ramírez and the great singer/band leader Tito Rodríguez collaborated on Algo Nuevo for Rodríguez's own TR label. Ramírez became the company's vice-president. 1974's Tipico (meaning typical, rootsy salsa) on UA Latino (a division of United Artists) featured ex-Charlie Palmieri lead vocalist Victor Velázquez, and was one of Ramírez's strongest albums. His 1976 debut on Cotique Records, which by that time was controlled by the Fania empire, was a bland disco-orientated crossover project called A Different Shade Of Black. He made three more albums on the label between 1978 and 1980. In 1977 he participated in the 17th anniversary recording by the Alegre All-Stars. The melange of styles he employed on his 1978 Cotique follow-up, Louie Ramírez Y Sus Amigos, served to showcase his skill and experimentalism as an arranger and musician. Camilo Azuquita, Adalberto Santiago and Rubén Blades were the album's lead vocalists. The latter composed and sang the smash hit track "Paula C", for which Ramírez wrote a progressive Brazilian tinged arrangement. Isidro Infante arranged one track on Ramírez's final Cotique release, Salsero, in 1980. The two artists had worked on Azuquita's Llego Y Dijo in 1979, and up to the mid-80s, their names appeared together on numerous New York salsa ecordings, including albums by Orlando Watusi, Raúl Marrero, Bobby Rodríguez, Carlos Santos, Conjunto Granada, Junior González and Salsa Latina. Infante worked as Louie's regular pianist between the early and mid-80s, contributing arrangements to Ramírez's albums during that period. From the latter half of the 80s into the 90s, Infante has been one of the busiest and most prolific arrangers, producers and musical directors on the New York salsa scene." LOUIE DIED YOUNG!

Please Follow The Shipping Rates Below:

LPs

1 Item

Xtra Item

Air Mail Media U.S.A

$3.50

Add $0.25

Air Mail Priority U.S.A

$8.00

Add $1.00

Air Mail Canada

$6.75

Add $2.00

Air Mail Europe

$13.00

Add $2.50

Air Mail Asia

$13.50

Add $3.00

Air Mail Caribbean

$12.00

Add $2.00

Air Mail South America

$12.50

Add $2.50

If Buying More Than 3 Records We Will Inform You The Shipping & Handling....We do combine shipping for multiple purchases.
Insurance Available - Domestic Only:
$1.75 ................ $0.01 to $50
    $2.25 ................ $50.01 to $100
      $2.75 ................ $100.01 to $200

* We offer a money back + shipping costs guarantee on our records (unless otherwise noted) if you feel the LP was not graded properly. We will issue a full refund upon its return, once our mistake has been verified. We are not responsible for items that get damaged or lost during shipping.  Althouh this seldom happens (damage of lost) we have available the insurance option.

Record Grading: Standard guidelines for grading records comes down to a subjective judgment that may vary from person to person. We grade records and LP covers visually AND (when possible) play-tested. We make every effort to give full disclosure (remember that the LP has at least 12 tracks and the grading may vary between each other)  and your satisfaction is guaranteed. Don't assume that our vinyl determination of "Very Good+" is the same as yours!

RECORD OR COVER GRADED VG or LESS WILL BE "SOLD AS IS"

MINT: Unplayed, still sealed.
 

NM RECORDS: are shiny, with no visible defects, they might have one or 2 minor superficial scuff and they should play without any noise. Writing, stickers or other markings cannot appear on the label, nor can any “spindle marks” from someone trying to blindly put the record on the turntable. Major factory defects also must not be present; a record and label obviously pressed off center is not Near Mint. If played, it will do so with no surface noise. (NM records don’t have to be “never played”; a record used on an excellent turntable can remain NM after many plays if the disc is properly cared for.)

NM COVERS:

have no creases, ring wear or seam splits of any kind.

Picture Sleeves: should look as if they never housed a record. This is a great reason to remove your 45s from their picture sleeves and keep them separate. Just keeping the 45 inside the sleeve will cause damage than can reduce the grade of the sleeve. 

VG++ (Excellent) RECORDS: 
Barely noticeable play wear and background noise. May have surface scuffs and/or superficial marks, which will be inaudible or indiscernible from the background, no scratches. Very nice, flaws noted.

VG++ COVERS:
Artwork is still as close to perfect as can be. Some impression to the cover (minor outer ring wear) but no ink wear! Some slight creases to the corners, but not wrinkled and obtrusive to the eye. The corners can show white (where the artwork pasted slick was) meaning, slight wear. No seam splits or writing on the cover or taped repairs can make this grade.  

VG+ RECORDS:

may show some slight signs of wear, including light scuffs or very light scratches that do not affect the listening experience. Slight warps that do not affect the sound are OK. Minor signs of handling are OK, too, such as telltale marks around the center hole, but repeated playing has not misshapen the hole. There may be some very light ring wear or discoloration, but it should be barely noticeable.

VG+ COVERS:
should have only minor wear. A VG+ cover might have some very minor seam wear or a split (less than one inch long) at the bottom, the most vulnerable location. Also, a VG+ cover may have some defacing, such as a cut-out marking. Covers with cut-out markings can never be considered Near Mint.

VG+ PICTURE SLEEVES:
might show some very light creasing where it is obvious that a record once resided (or still does reside). A VG+ picture sleeve might have some very minor seam wear or a split (less than one inch long) at the bottom, the sleeve’s most vulnerable location. 

VG RECORDS:

They have more obvious flaws than their counterparts in better shape. They lack most of the original gloss found on factory-fresh records. Groove wear is evident on sight, as are light scratches deep enough to feel with a fingernail. When played, a VG record has surface noise, and some scratches  may be audible, especially in soft passages and during a song’s intro and ending. But the noise will not overpower the music otherwise. Minor writing, tape, or a sticker can detract from the label. Many collectors who have jukeboxes   will use VG records in them and not think twice. They remain a fine listening experience, just not the same as if it were in better shape.

VG COVERS and PICTURE SLEEVES:
will have many signs of human handling. Ring wear  in the middle or along the edges of the cover where the edge of a record would  reside, is obvious, though not overwhelming. Some more creases might be  visible. Seam splitting will be more obvious; it may appear on all three sides,  though it won’t be obvious upon looking. Someone might have written or stamped  a price tag on it, too.

RECORDS GRADED VG OR BELOW WILL BE "SOLD AS IS"

Items are to be paid within 7 days (if not paid by that time it will be subject for relisting) of auction close and will be shipped within 48 hours of receipt of payment. Paypal is the preferred method of payment.
 
Carlos A. Flores 25830 Crippen Dr. Land O' Lakes, FL  34639