Jesus Caunedo: the musical flights of a tropical crane

Latin Beat Magazine, August, 2003 by Luis Tamargo

LT: Is it true that the venerable trumpeter Alfredo "Chocolate" Armenteros was mostly responsible for facilitating your departure from Havana by the end of 1960?

JC: Yes. He produced a phony contract with Machito's orchestra that enabled my wife and I to leave the island and settle in New York, where I did work briefly with Machito (on the LP The Sound of Machito) and became aware of the need to study the flute, which is the last instrument that I learned, after Chocolate referred me to a pertinent instructor, the maestro Alberto Socarrás. In 1961, I left Machito's band and went to work with Emilio de los Reyes at New York's Chateau Madrid and the Catskills. Then I was invited by Julio Gutierrez to travel to Puerto Rico" where I had a marvelous time. After a quarrel with Gutierrez at San Juan's Tropicolo, I packed my suitcases and went back to New York, where I was immediately hired by Tito Puente, to whom I was recommended by Palau. I traveled extensively with Puente to diverse U.S cities (Boston, Washington, Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego) and Caribbean countries (Bahamas, Barbados, Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Venezuela). Working with Puente, from a musical perspective, was a really cool experience. He was a good friend of mine, although my name (or the names of the other sidemen involved) never appeared on any of his album covers.

LT: Was there an after-hours place in New York where the local musicians got together at that time?

JC: Yes. I remember that Julio Gutierrez played at a place called "El Torero," where we jammed after hours. Julio, Chombo Silva and I were the only old-timers. The test of the players were unknown young cats that Julio had brought, for the most part, from Miami: Willy Chirino, Carlos Oliva and Bobby Valentín. I also played at the Apollo, accompanying such stars as Dionne Warwick and Joe Williams, before moving to La Isla del Encanto (The Island of Enchantment) in 1966. My first gig in Puerto Rico involved a quartet at the Dorado Beach Hotel, an exclusive place that attracted multiple millionaires at that time.

LT: How many albums did you record with Tito Rodríguez's band in Puerto Rico?

JC: About five or six, including the one titled 25th Anniversary, which featured a voice-over gimmick designed to pretend that it was recorded in Perú, although it was really recorded in Puerto Rico. Needless to say, such fraud was conducted without our authorization, and we were never monetarily compensated ... I initiated my band-leading career in Puerto Rico at the Caribe Hilton, fronting a quintet that featured Bol Vivar (El Negro's brother) on bass.

LT: Back in those days, you were fortunate to depend on the pianistic support of René Hernández.

JC: That's right. René was one of Cuba's musical glories. He was well known among his professional peers, but never sufficiently recognized by the general public. In 1973, I organized a group to play at Club Luau, a San Juan venue owned by a Cuban named Joaquín Soler. It was a true trabuco (all-star band) comprised of characters such as René Hernández, Bobby Valentín and Camilo Azuquita. Club Luau's became El Condado's descarga epicenter. A year later, I replaced Sacassas as leader of the San Juan Hotel's houseband. This hotel featured such stars as Sammy Davis Jr., Peggy Lee and Nancy Wilson. I was making plenty of money and everything was going marvelously until the local musicians went on strike and ruined everything. Then I went to work for Jimmy Stevens Productions, providing groups of all sizes to the island's hotel conventions. During my 37-year stay in Borinquen, I have recorded with such Puerto Rican musicians as Gilberto Monroig, Lucecita Benítez and José Lugo, among others, while releasing various albums (including Fire and Sugar and Puerto Rican Jazz) as a leader.