Louie Ramirez (1938-1993)
Profile: Louie Ramirez
by Al Santiago
If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away.
It’s not that Louie did not keep pace with his companions, it’s that they did not keep pace with him. He set the pace and he did hear a different drummer.
Louie Ramirez not only followed a different drummer, but he was his own different drummer. While other arrangers were writing seventh chords, Louie was writing ninths and when they wrote ninths he was writing elevenths and when they wrote elevenths he was writing thirteenths and when they were writing thirteenths Louie reflected and said, “hey, unison isn’t demeaning, let’s alternate between the various type chords and unison.” Hip? You bet your ass.
His humor was only surpassed by his musical talents...and what talents! Musician, composer, arranger, bandleader, conductor, percussionist, pianist and record producer. He championed the vibes, he collaborated with Puente, Pacheco, Rodriguez, the Palmieris, Ruben Blades and many more.
Louie loved people and they loved him. At any hang out session, Louie was at the center, telling jokes, imitating people, making up and exaggerating stories... cracking everybody up. His imitation of Ray Barretto was a classic. His dual imitation, says Andy Gonzalez, of father Johnny Rodriguez Sr. and son Dandy was hilarious. Louie could have been a professional comedian but music was his thing.
In the fifties, he played with Joe Loco and in the sixties he would join Joe Cuba. He was a major contributor to Johnny Pacheco’s first charanga album in 1960 co-writing and arranging El Guiro de Macorina. Louie also was arranger and timbalero on Sabu’s classic Jazz Españole (also 1960).
Over the years he joined forces with Ozzie Torrens, Pete Bonet and in the last decade, Ray De La Paz. I think this was to share some of the responsibilities with a bandmember buddy promoted to co-leader, so he could have time for his many arrangements. He recorded many LP’s for various labels with different instrumentations from big band to conjunto to septet. He became a senior member of the Allegre All-Stars doing everything from clave to vibes to arranging to co-leader status with Charlie Palmieri, Kako and myself.
In ‘63 or ‘64 I produced Louie’s LP Vibes Galore for my Alegre label. Charlie Palmieri supervised one of the sessions. Johnny Rodriguez Sr. is very proud of his timbal solo on "El Titere," Louie of course was on vibes... and yes, "El Titere" is autobiographical. Louie wrote a very funny sidebar for the backliner of Vibes Galore in the form of a resume.
In the middle sixties, I was recording supervisor for Pete Bonet and Louie’s Beautiful People LP on Fania. Pacheco supervised the first session and gave in to Louie that I finish the LP and supervise the mixing. Pacheco was V.P. of the label and he could, and did, make that decision. Louie busted Johnny’s chops so much about this that Johnny finally said, “Well, let him do it — I’m outta here.” It was a big band session that included the Latin-Jazz instrumental "Joe Gaines Express." Louie’s arrangements were brilliant and Pete was in relatively top form. In the late sixties Louie, with Pete Bonet, formed a steady big band working as house band at the “Corso”. Eddie Martinez and Ray Maldonado were part of that band. Tito Puente was very pleased to have some competition again. (Tito Rodriguez had moved to Puerto Rico).
In the early seventies Louie co-lead and arranged an LP with Tito Rodriguez and got his picture on the cover with "The Rajah of the Mambo." I remember they kicked off the promotion of the album with an appearance at the Village Gate.
Louie was Staff Producer and arranger for the Fania family of labels and had the title of President of Allegre records in the seventies and eighties. I had sold Alegre to Tico in ‘66..
Source - http://www.descarga.com/cgi-bin/db/archives/Profile9
