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 (b
22 Oct. '50, Manhattan, NYC, of Puerto Rican parentage) Salsa
bandleader, pianist, percussionist, producer, arranger, composer,
label boss Wayne Gorbea started studying violin and orchestration
at high school '65; soon switched to trumpet; played conga
in street rumbones (rumba percussion and vocal jam sessions);
did amateur gigs. Became disillusioned with school; joined
US Army '69-71; taught himself piano by copying Charlie and
Eddie Palmieri and Richie Ray; learnt to read music while
serving in Korea; after discharge married Korean girlfriend
Myong '71. Returned to NYC, there organised short lived Orquesta
Cuda; changed to conga and founded band La Nueva Comparsa;
switched back to piano and formed Conjunto Salsa '73 (with
lineup of two trombones, trumpet and Latin rhythm section),
making album debut with Salsa Boricua on SMC. "The album
was recorded on a hot summer day in June 1974 in Gabriel Oller's
studio in Queens, off Woodhaven Boulevard," recalls Wayne.
"It was about 90 degrees outside and at least 10 degrees
hotter in the studio with only fans to cool us off. The band
had just finished playing four gigs and hadn't had any sleep.
We started at 9:00 a.m., but were gung ho and eager to record!"
 Besides
producing and co-arranging, he wrote most of La Salsa del
Conjunto Salsa con Wayne Gorbea '78 on Disco International
incl. the dark, brooding "Los Rumberos"; the lineup
comprised two trombones, one trumpet and rhythm. Follow-up
on that label La Salsa y Charanga c '79 introduced a charanga
flavour by adding flute and violin to two trombones, trumpet
and rhythm. Issued 12 inch single "Ariñañara"
(composed by Chano Pozo)/ "The Night Is Still Young"
'80, his first release on his own Wayne Go label. Dedicated
Sigan Bailando '86 on Wayne Go to Myong; future Libre member
and Los Soneros del Barrio co-leader Frankie Vázquez
provided lead vocals and played güiro. Album incl. a
remake of Justi Barreto's composition "Lo Que Dice Justi"
(previously recorded on Salsa Boricua ), arr. by Wayne's longtime
collaborator: arranger, composer, percussionist and coro singer
Ramón "Ray" Rosado (b 26 Nov. '51, NYC, of
Puerto Rican Parentage). "I was travelling once with
Grupo Niche from Colombia," recalls Frankie. "When
their vocalist Charlie Cardona found out I was the singer
on Sigan Bailando , he sang the whole of 'Lo Que Dice Justi.'
all the soneos and everything. My hairs were sticking out,
because I couldn't believe that this kid knew all the song.
The timbalero came up to me and tells me: 'You know that it
is like an icon in Colombia. All the bands that start. 'Lo
Que Dice Justi' is a song that they all study. It's like what
you have in New York: 'Bilongo.' For us it's 'Lo Que Dice
Justi' in Colombia. All those young trombone bands, they're
doing that tune. You can't find a band that doesn't do that
tune." (excerpt from Frankly Frankie, The Reluctant Sonero
Del Barrio by John Child and David Barton, Descarga website,
26 Dec. '99)
 Conjunto
Salsa's mus. dir. and bassist Harry Justiniano departed '87
(also taking along his brother, conguero Angel Justiniano,
and Vásquez) to become mus. dir. of the Bronx-based
charanga Charanson led by pianist/ prod./ composer Héctor
Serrano. For the next couple of years mus. dir. duties were
shared by trombonist/ arrangers Dave Chamberlain and Rick
Davies (b 9 Mar. '51, Albuquerque, New Mexico; a Gorbea sideman
since '85; became full-fledged mus. dir. '89 following Chamberlain's
move to Cruz Control; leader of Jazzismo and college professor).
Gorbea opted for a three trombone frontline for Conjunto Salsa
on El Condimento '88 on Martínez Records; Orlando Avilés
sang lead vocals, played güiro and wrote three tunes
incl. the title track (Avilés had contributed compositions
to Gorbea's earlier albums and sang on Salsa Boricua ). One
of the album's highlights was Chamberlain's tough and funky
arrangement of the '48 Arsenio Rodríguez classic "Tumba
Palo Cucuye."
 Gorbea
and Conjunto Salsa often performed live on Al Angeloro's WBAI
radio show Montuno (started '86; later evolved into his eclectic
world-beat show New York International broadcast on WBAI until
'91); Angeloro chose Gorbea to lead an on-air jam session
in honour of the recently deceased Charlie Palmieri Sept.
'88, from which emerged a stunning version of "Tumba
Palo Cucuye" by the Wayne Gorbea All-Stars, the most
popular track chart-wise on the compilation The Montuno Sessions
- Live From Studio 'A' '95 on Mr Bongo, which also incl. Charanson's
"Descarga (Around Midnight)" of Dec. '87. Gorbea
made his UK debut guesting on claves and coro (chorus) with
Libre Mar. '92.
A successful once a week residency for two months at SoHo's
González y González club '96 inspired Gorbea
to take his band, re-christened Salsa Picante by Libre's leader
Manny Oquendo and returning to a two trombone/one trumpet
combination, into the studio to make the solid swinging Cogele
El Gusto '97 on Wayne Go. Frank Otero (b 29 Apr. '54, NYC,
of Puerto Rican parentage) sang lead vocals, having replaced
Avilés a few years earlier. (Otero was lead singer
on the '70s album Andy Suárez And His Orchestra on
J.R. Melody.) "Their sound oozes with Bronx sassiness,"
wrote Libre's mus. dir. Andy González. The album became
an instant hit in UK Latin clubs. Re-release on Shanachie
in late '98 provided wider distribution. In March '99 Wayne
and Salsa Picante provided further testimony of their UK popularity
by completing a sellout national tour.
He followed-up on Shanachie with the cracking Saboreando
'00, described by UK deejay/ columnist Dave Hucker as "the
first major Latin release of the 21st century." It contains
10 tunes and every cut swings incl. the sure fire dance floor
filler "El Yoyo," previously done by Cortijo (incl.
in Invites You To Dance/ Los Invita A Bailar on Seeco), and
an almost 10 minute killin' remake of Eddie Palmieri and La
Perfecta's "Estamos Chao" (from Mozambique '65 on
Tico). "Gorbea's piano solo on this track amply demonstrates
why he has developed into one of the finest piano soloists
currently performing in the Afro-Cuban/ salsa tradition. Eschewing
the technical glibness of many of his fellow keyboardists,
Wayne goes straight to the heart and swing of the matter,"
writes Salsa Picante's mus. dir. and first trombonist Rick
Davies.
Wayne's recordings have involved regular sideman Rubén
Borgas (b 4 Aug. '49, Puerto Rico) on timbales or bongo (he
appears on the reissue CD Exitos by Paul Ortiz y su Orquesta
Son on Ghetto Records); other notable contributors incl. trombonist/
arrangers Ronnie Williams and Rubén Lebron and trumpeter/
arr. Junior Vega. Personnel of Wayne Gorbea's Salsa Picante
in 2000 incl. Otero, vocals; Gorbea, piano/leader/coro; Richie
Sanquintin (b 5 Aug. '55, Dominican Republic), bass; Davies
(mus. dir.) and Rafi Malkiel (b 14 Apr. '72, Jerusalem, Israel),
trombones; Tomer Levy (b 21 Oct. '72, Tel Aviv, Israel) and
Mike Lewis, trumpets; Borgas, timbales; Juan Rodríguez
(b 2 Nov. '46, Puerto Rico), bongo/coro; Frank Reyes (b 16
Mar. '45, Puerto Rico), conga (he played on Ray Rodríguez
y su Orquesta c '70 on Cotique); and Rosado, güiro/coro.
Listen to Salsa Picante
El Yoyo
Clavo y Martillo
Fiesta En El Bronx
Rumba Nortena
Sabor Sabor
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-This is a revised version of one of over 130 Latin music
entries written by John Child for The Penguin Encyclopedia
of Popular Music, 2nd Edition, edit. Donald Clarke; Penguin
Books; 1998; 1524 pages; US$22.95, UK£16.99.
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