Cándido Camero

Cándido de Guerra Camero (born April 22, 1921), also known simply as Cándido, is a Cuban conga and bongo player. He also plays the tres, drums, and acoustic bass. He has worked in many genres of popular music from pop, rock, R&B and disco to Afro-Cuban dance music and Latin jazz. He is the first player to develop techniques to play multiple conga drums, coordinated independence and the use of multiple percussion, one player playing a variety of percussion instruments simultaneously.

Career
Early in his career, Camero recorded in his native Cuba with many of the early pioneers of the son movement as well as being the conga drummer for the Tropicana night club in Havana from its opening night in 1940 and subsequently for the next eight years. He first appeared in NYC in the musical review, Tidbits, at the Plymouth Theater on Broadway in 1946 backing up the Cuban dance team of Carmen and Rolando. In 1948 he made his first U.S. recording with Machito and His Afro-Cubans on the tune, "El Rey Del Mambo." as well as working with Dizzy Gillespie. During 1953–54, he was in the Billy Taylor Trio and in 1954 he performed and recorded with Stan Kenton.

He also enjoyed success during the disco era of the 1970s, most notably with the Babatunde Olatunji-penned track "Jingo" from his Dancin' and Prancin album, which he recorded for Salsoul Records in 1979. The album has also been acknowledged as an influence and precursor to house music, predating the emergence of the genre by over five years.

Camero was honored with the National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Masters Award in 2008.

Discography
As leader
 Candido featuring Al Cohn (ABC-Paramount, 1956)
 The Volcanic (ABC-Paramount, 1956)
 Latin Fire (The Big Beat of Candido) (ABC-Paramount, 1959)
 In Indigo (ABC-Paramount, c. 1960)
 Conga Soul (Roulette, 1962)
 Candido's Comparsa (ABC-Paramount, 1963)
 Thousand Finger Man (Solid State, 1969, reissued by Blue Note)
 Beautiful (Blue Note, 1970)
 Brujerias de Candido/Candido's Latin McGuffa's Dust (Discos Fuentes, 1971)
 Drum Fever (Polydor, 1973)
 Dancin' and Prancin'  (Salsoul, 1979)
 Giovanni Hidalgo, Candido, Patato Valdes - The Conga Kings (Chesky, 2000)
 Candido & Graciela – Inolvidable (Chesky, 2004)
 Hands of Fire/Manos de fuego (Live) (Latin Jazz USA, 2008)
 The Master (Chesky, 2014)

As sidemanWith Bobby SanabriaAfro-Cuban Dream: Live & in Clave!!! Bobby Sanabria Big Band (Arabesque, 2000)
50 Years of Mambo - A Tribute to Damaso Perez Prado - The Mambo All Stars Orchestra (Mambo Maniacs, 2003)
Kenya Revisited Live!!! Manhattan School of Music Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra conducted by Bobby Sanabria (Jazzheads, 2008)With Benjamin LapidusOchosi Blues - Latin, Soul, Organ Jazz - Benjamin Lapidus & Kari B3 (2014)With Gene Ammons          
The Happy Blues (Prestige, 1956)
The Boss Is Back! (Prestige, 1969)
Brother Jug! (Prestige, 1969)With Art BlakeyDrum Suite (Columbia, 1957)With Ray Bryant 
Ray Bryant Trio (Epic, 1956)With Kenny BurrellIntroducing Kenny Burrell (Blue Note, 1956)With Dizzy GillespieAfro (Norgran, 1954)
Gillespiana (Verve, 1960)
The Melody Lingers On (Limelight, 1966)
With Coleman Hawkins
The Hawk Talks (Decca, 1952-53 [1955])With Billy TaylorThe Billy Taylor Trio with Candido (Prestige, 1955)With Bennie GreenBennie Green Blows His Horn (1955)With Don ElliottThe Don Elliott Octet Featuring Candido - Jamaica Jazz (ABC-Paramount, 1958)With Stan Kenton 
Kenton Showcase (Capitol, 1954)With the Lecuona Cuban BoysDance Along with the Lecuona Cuban Boys (ABC-Paramount, 1959)With Randy WestonUhuru Afrika (Roulette, 1960)
Tanjah (Polydor, 1973)With Sonny RollinsWhat's New? (RCA Victor, 1962)With Norman Granz' Jazz at the Philharmonic'''JatP in Europe with Dizzy Gillespie / J.J. Johnson / Stan Getz / Leo Wright / Art Davis / Chuck Lampkin / Lalo Schifrin / Candido (Verve, 1963)
With Wynton Kelly
It's All Right! (1964)
With Grant Green
His Majesty King Funk (1965)
With Illinois Jacquet
Spectrum (Argo, 1965)
With Gary McFarland
The In Sound (Verve, 1965)
With Wes Montgomery
Bumpin' (1965)
With Tico All-Stars
Descargas at the Village Gate (Tico, 1966)
With Bobby Hutcherson
Now! (Blue Note, 1969)
With Elvin Jones
Poly-Currents (Blue Note, 1969)
Coalition (Blue Note, 1970)
New Agenda (Vanguard, 1975)
With Ellen McIlwaine
Honky Tonk Angel (1972)
We the People (1973)
With Erroll Garner
Mambo Moves Garner (Mercury, 1954)
With Tito Puente
 Top Percussion (RCA, 1957)
With Machito
 Kenya (Roulette, 1958)

References

External links

Candido Camero Interview NAMM Oral History Library (2008)

Category:1921 births
Category:Living people
Category:Afro-Cuban jazz percussionists
Category:Bebop percussionists
Category:Latin jazz percussionists
Category:Cuban jazz musicians
Category:Jazz drummers
Category:Blue Note Records artists
Category:Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners
Category:Chesky Records artists
Category:Conga players
Category:Bongo players