History of Latin Funk and Rock

El barrio is the Spanish word for neighborhood. El barrio is the neighborhood where Latinos live. That is to say Puerto Ricans, Cubans, Nicaraguans, Mexicans, Dominicans, etc.

In New York, El barrio has for a long time been Spanish Harlem: East Harlem 97th St. to 120th St., east of fifth Avenue up to The East river. this is where in the 1920's Puerto Ricans came to settle and make their home. As future generations of Puerto Ricans grew up they became Puerto Ricans from New York (Nuyoricans). Here the chemists are botanicas, the bakeries are panaderias and the music is Salsa! In Los Angeles, El Barrio is East L.A. where Mexicans came to live. As future generations of Mexicans grew up in east L.A. they became Mexican Americans (Chicanos). Here La Raza (the Mexican race) live. where "The Pachucos" an early version of Cholos or neighborhood gang established the image of Latino rock and Lowrider culture.

In San Francisco there is the Mission district or as is commonly known as "La Mision" where Nicaraguans settle and became "San Franicans" or simply short "Nicas" Here the corner store are ventas, the restaurants are comiderias and the girls are senoritas.

In Miami there is Little Havana where Cuban Americans live. In fact in every U.S. city there is an area where Spanish is the first language heard. El barrio is the poorest area where the most recent immigrants come to. Consequently it is in a constant state of flux depending on who is coming in. In New York, East Harlem used to be home to the Irish and then it was the poor Jewish area. As new immigrants find their way in their new society many can eventually afford to move out into better neighborhoods. Next to East Harlem is Harlem! Harlem has for many years been predominantly home to African-Americans. In Los Angeles the south central L.A. district is part inhabited by African-Americans and part by Latinos.

Latin music in the USA has many different forms: Salsa, Mambo, Boogaloo, Charanga, Merengue, Son Montunos, Latin Jazz, Nortenas, Guajiras, Guaguancos, Guarachas, Rancheras etc.. The same is also true of African-American music: Blues, Jazz, Funk, Soul, Hip Hop, R'n'B, Gospel etc..

Many American musicians, both Latinos and African-Americans, share a dual heritage of both of these musical cultures, specially in El Barrio where the proximity to other neighborhoods means that a child can be brought up absorbing healthy doses of Latin and Black music at the same time: Tito Puente and James Brown, Eddie Palmieri and John Coltrane, Machito and Dizzy Gillespie! The styles mentioned share in some way dual ownership: develop in the late sixties in New York, Boogaloo (Bugalu) was a new style played by Latinos in East Harlem. That was their take on Black R'n'B. With the same musical structure as sixties R'n'B, Boogaloo was played by Latin musicians and sung in both Spanish and English, indicating the birth of a new culture. Similarly, Latin Jazz is exactly what it is; a marriage of Latin rhythms, instrumentation etc. mixed with the improvising techniques of Jazz music.

Latin Jazz its only one of the examples of a form of music that has always been played by both Latin and Black musicians, showing that the musical exchange is mutual rather than one simply influencing the other. The same goes for the other areas of music that developed out of this union: Latin Soul, Latin Rock, Latin Disco and Latin Funk!

The seventies was the era of New York Salsa, but some Hispanic musicians based in East Harlem and the Bronx were intrigue with marrying Latin grooves to Afro-American funk just as Soul and Latin rhythms gave birth to Latin Boogaloo in the sixties. It was inevitable that Funk would permeate the Hispanic Barrios of New York in the 70's. It wasn't recorded in such copious quantities as Latin Jazz and Boogaloo. But when it was, the result was a potent, thrillingly visceral hybrid.

Latin funk artist lucidly illustrated the dynamic collision of funk and Latin with killer versions of Sly and the Family Stone, Kool and the Gang and others. Other musical work radiates with the influence of Blaxplotation soundtracks and other more obscure but no less explosive work. These musicians blur the parameters of Black and Brown music, riding the spectrum from pure, tough Latin funk to funky Latin Jazz grooves and Descargas.

Mambo King Perez Prado and other Mambo Royals like Tito Puentes, Mongo Santamaria and Tito Rodriguez dramatically lifted the funk era of the seventies, influencing not only the music industry but the way movie writers were creating a new kind of rebellious Barrio heroes and the result was the massive popularity of films like "Shaft", "Superfly", "Across 110th St." and countless others, it relates the manic pace of Spanish Harlem, full of the drama of the streets, and the music they created sounds like a blaxplotation movie chase - Latin style. Imagine a wild-eyed Latin dude on film -in flares- jumping down fire scapes, diving across bonnets of Cadillacs and sprinting through the litter-strewn streets of Spanish Harlem

But it'd be a mistake to think - as many do - that the whole phenomenon was confined to War and Santana. There were as many takes on Latin funk as there were on Latin or funk individually and there still are today. Out of this crossover combination some of the Latin bands became classic Latin Barrio funky party monsters! and some of the music were adopted as sweet hot Barrio block party classics! if there ever was one on 21st St. on a long-ago summer's night with the hydrants open full and the steady pop of beer ring-pulls tipico of '73.