Eddie Palmieri life and biography

Eddie Palmieri is Puerto Rican pianist, bandleader and musician, best known for combining jazz piano and instrumental solos with Latin rhythms. He is originaly from new York City.

Eddie Palmieri is one of the foremost Latin jazz pianists of the last half of the 20th century, blessed with a technique that fuses such ubiquitous jazz influences as the styles of Herbie Hancock, Thelonious Monk, and McCoy Tyner into a Latin context. No purist, he has also shown a welcome willingness to experiment with fusions of Latin and non-Latin music. However, despite a number of stints with major labels and numerous industry awards and nominations, he has yet to break into the American record scene in a big way.

Like his older brother Charlie, Eddie started playing at an early age (eight) and studied classical piano while also playing drums. He made his professional debut with Johnny Sequi's orchestra in 1955 and eventually joined Tito Rodriguez's popular band in 1958-1960. In 1961, Palmieri formed his highly influential band la Perfecta, whose flute and twin- or triple-trombone front line made American jazz musicians like Herbie Mann take notice; he also scored heavily in an excellent 1966 collaboration with Cal Tjader, El Sonido Nuevo (Verve). After la Perfecta split up in 1968 due to financial problems, Palmieri played with the Tico and Fania All-Stars, recorded with Alfredo "Chocolat" Armenteros, Cachao, and Justo Betancourt, and, like his brother, cut some Latin boogaloo sessions. Around the mid-'60s, Palmieri began formal studies of arranging, and the Monk influence became more pronounced in his piano work. While recording for the Latin Coco label in the mid-'70s, Palmieri started to mix salsa with R&B, pop, rock, Spanish vocals, and jazz improvisation. Brief affiliations with Columbia in the late '70s and Capitol (in league with David Sanborn) in the late '80s failed to produce an American breakthrough hit, though the latter attempt was aimed squarely at the burgeoning "jazz-lite" market. While much of his output as a leader remains out of print in American catalogs, several of his older albums are available on CD; Palmieri has also remained active in the 1990s, recording the jazz-oriented Palmas (1993) for the normally classical Nonesuch label, as well as a series of albums for the RMM label. He returned to his La Perfecta days in April 2002 with La Perfecta II on the Concord Jazz label. Two more albums for Concord followed, Rimo Caliente in 2003 and Listen Here in 2005.

Eddie Palmieri discography:

La Perfecta, 1962
El Molestoso, 1963
Lo Que Traigo Es Sabroso, 1964
Echando Pa'lante (Straight Ahead), 1964
Azucar Pa'ti (Sugar for You), 1965
Mozambique, 1965
El Sonido Nuevo: The New Soul Sound, 1966 (with Cal Tjader)
Bamboleate, 1967 (with Cal Tjader)
Molasses, 1967
Champagne, 1968
Justicia, 1969
Superimposition, 1970
Vamonos Pa'l Monte, 1971
Live at the University of Puerto Rico, 1971
Harlem River Drive, 1971 (as part of Harlem River Drive band)
Recorded Live at Sing Sing, Vol. 1, 1972
Recorded Live at Sing Sing, Vol. 2, 1972
Sentido, 1973
The Sun of Latin Music (with Lalo Rodriguez), 1974
Unfinished Masterpiece, 1974
Eddie's Concerto, 1976
Lucumi, Macumba, Voodoo, 1978
Eddie Palmieri, 1982
Palo Pa Rumba, 1984
Solito, 1985
E.P., 1985
The Truth, La Verdad, 1987
Sueno, 1992
Music Man, 1992
Llego La India via Eddie Palmieri, 1992 (with La India)
Palmas, 1994
Arete, 1995
Vortex, 1996
El Rumbero Del Piano, 1998
Live, 1999
Masterpiece / Obra Maestra, 2000 (with Tito Puente)
En Vivo Italia, 2002
La Perfecta II, 2002
Ritmo Caliente, 2003
Listen Here!, 2005
Simpático ((The Brian Lynch/Eddie Palmieri Project), 2006
Salsa Brothers, 2011 (with Charlie Palmieri)

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