A teenage wonder who
played with Conjunto Casino, Orquesta Riverside, and other celebrated
bands in Fifties Havana, he was hired as a house musician at the
Fontainebleau when he came to Miami in the early Sixties. During the
hotel's heyday, he accompanied Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis, Jr., and a
host of other American entertainers in the famed Boom Boom Room. He left
Miami to play Caesars Palace and later returned. In the mid-Eighties,
he formed Grupo Wal-Pa-Ta-Ca with bassist Israel "Cachao" Lopez and
percussionists Walfredo de los Reyes and Tany Gil. (The group's name was
formed from the first syllable of each member's name.) The foursome
recorded several Latin jam sessions in Miami well before Andy Garcia
"discovered" mambo innovator Cachao. (In the wake of Cachao's
Grammy-winning comeback, the Wal-Pa-Ta-Ca descargas, with songs composed
by Hechavarria, have been reissued on CD by Tania Records.)
Known among fellow musicians for his cascading chord work and a repertoire that ranges from jamming Latin jazz to saccharine pop with an Afro-Cuban beat, Hechavarria has been enlisted as a session man on recordings by artists as varied as Mongo Santamaria, Nestor Torres, Barry Manilow, and Gloria Estefan. His most recognizable riff is in the introduction to the Miami Sound Machine's crossover anthem "Conga."
Known among fellow musicians for his cascading chord work and a repertoire that ranges from jamming Latin jazz to saccharine pop with an Afro-Cuban beat, Hechavarria has been enlisted as a session man on recordings by artists as varied as Mongo Santamaria, Nestor Torres, Barry Manilow, and Gloria Estefan. His most recognizable riff is in the introduction to the Miami Sound Machine's crossover anthem "Conga."
Video by antoni ansarov
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