Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Bobby Carcasses was born on August 29, 1938 in Kingston, Jamaica into a Cuban family. He moved with his family back to Cuba when he was four and was surrounded by the various forms of local music. Starting out as an opera singer, he switched to Cuban music and worked as a vocalist at the famous Tropicana nightclub. It was here that he first began to experiment with incorporating scat and bebop influences into his vocal style.

By 1960 he was known as a dancer and athlete, being Cuba’s Long Jump Champion for that year. Bobby was a multi-instrumentalist having mastered the trumpet, bass, congas and drums. Later in the decade he travelled, including a year in Paris playing with resident jazz greats Bud Powell and Kenny ‘Klook’ Clarke.

Returning to Cuba, Carcassés formed his own jazz group, as well as acting in films and television. The 1980s saw him organize the first Jazz Plaza Festival, bringing to Cuba a host of international artists including Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Haden and Airto Moreira. The festival became an annual event, with Carcasses and his band performing each year. 

He toured extensively throughout Europe and the USA, performing alongside Tito Puente, Eddie Palmieri and many other big names of Latin jazz. Jazz Timbero was recorded in Havana in 1997 with an all-star Cuban big band (including members of Irakere and Los Van Van), playing a funky mix of Latin and jazz.

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