Mongo Santamaria : Watermelon Man! (LP, Vinyl record album) -- Dusty Groove is Chicago's Online Record Store
Skip navigation
Scripting is disabled or not working. dustygroove.com requires JavaScript to function correctly.
Style sheets are disabled or not working. dustygroove.com requires style sheets to function correctly.
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
Enlarge       Note

Watermelon Man!

LP (Item 8034) Battle, 1962 — Condition: Very Good-
A seminal moment in the career of Mongo Santamaria – and probably the first record to show that he was destined for greatness! As you might guess from the title, the set features Mongo's key recording of Herbie Hancock's "Watermelon Man" – served up here in a sharp-edged Latin jazz version that pushed the tune into a whole new audience, and which was one of the first big groovers of its type in the pre-Latin Soul years! The group here is totally great – with players that include funky flautist Mauricio Smith, baritone genius Pat Patrick, and the always-great Bobby Capers – all key players who illustrate Santamaria's genius for picking horn players. Titles include "Watermelon Man", "Yeh Yeh", "Funny Money", "Go Git It", "Sauvito", "Cut That Cane", and "Bayou Roots".  © 1996-2024, Dusty Groove, Inc.

Very Good - (minus)

  • Vinyl may be dirty, and can lack a fair amount of luster.
  • Vinyl can have a number of marks, either in clusters or smaller amounts, but deeper.
  • This is the kind of record that you'd buy to play, but not because it looked that great. Still, the flaws should be mostly cosmetic, with nothing too deep that would ruin the overall record.
  • Examples include a record that has been kept for a while in a cover without the paper sleeve, or heavily played by a previous owner and has some marks across the surface. The record should play okay, though probably with surface noise.

Additional Marks & Notes

If something is noteworthy, we try to note it in the comments — especially if it is an oddity that is the only wrong thing about the record. This might include, but isn't limited to, warped records, tracks that skip, cover damage or wear as noted above, or strictly cosmetic flaws.



You might be interested


Willie Rodriguez with Leo Casino

Heat Wave
Fonseca, 1965. Near Mint-
An excellent early album from Latin leader/trumpeter Willie Rodriguez – one of his gems for the Fonseca label, with vocals from Leo Casino – a tight mix of Latin Soul, descarga, and salsa tracks that hit hard from the start and don't let up! Rodriguez leads a great band, and they're ... LP, Vinyl record album
Fiesta, Late 50s. Very Good
Sure, Monchito's name makes you think that he might be Machito – but the groove here is quite different, a snapping hard take on the cha cha that made Fiesta one of the greatest labels at the genre! Percussion is nice and hard, horns are plenty tight, and there's lots of interesting ... LP, Vinyl record album
Fonseca, Mid 60s. Very Good
Amazing early work from Ricardo Ray – material that's got a lot more fire than some of his better-known sides from the 70s! The album's a stone cooker all the way through – played by a tight young group with lots of descarga energy in their blood, and some of the pre-Latin Soul styles ... LP, Vinyl record album

Oscar Aviles & Arturo Zambo Cavero

Zambo Cavero & Oscar Aviles
Odeon (Peru), 1973. Very Good
(Cover has light wear & aging, with a bit of pen on the back.) LP, Vinyl record album

Nacha Guevara

Amor De Ciudad Grande
Hispavox (Spain), 1977. Near Mint- Gatefold
(Cover has light wear.) LP, Vinyl record album

Joe Loco

Mambo Moods
Tico, 1956. Near Mint-
Seemed like Joe was always in a mambo mood at the time he was making these sides for Tico – but that's A-OK with us, as the record's a corker – tight little grooves in Joe's best percussion/piano format! A few tracks even have some vibes, which makes for a nice sound – and titles ... LP, Vinyl record album

Pete Rodriguez & His Orchestra

Hot & Wild/Yo Vengo Soltando Chispas
Alegre, 1968. Very Good+
Hot and wild – two of the best words you could use to describe the late 60s Latin Soul material of Pete Rodriguez – especially on an album like this! This album has Pete and his combo at their best – stepping effortlessly between English-language, soul-based tracks – and ... LP, Vinyl record album
Vik, 1957. Very Good-
Titles include "Vacilon", "Negra Soy", "Mujer", "Samba Roll", "El Gato Montes", "Noche De Ronda", and "La Mocura". LP, Vinyl record album
Tropical, Late 1950s. Very Good-
(Orange label pressing with deep groove. Cover has a split bottom seam, splitting on the top seam, clear tape remnant, light wear & aging.) LP, Vinyl record album

Gene Ammons

Boss Is Back!
Prestige, 1969. Very Good
A great comeback for tenor legend Gene Ammons – not just in a musical sense, but also because Jug had spent most of the past few years in prison – as part of the usual trumped-up drug charges that were filed against musicians at the time! At the time of this album, Ammons had not ... LP, Vinyl record album

Bobbi Humphrey

Fancy Dancer
Blue Note, 1975. Very Good
Sublime genius from funky flute player Bobbi Humphrey – a record we'd rank right up there with her classic Blacks & Blues set – and like that one, another fantastic collaboration with producer Larry Mizell! The groove here is tremendous throughout – a heady mix of Bobbi's ... LP, Vinyl record album

Stan Getz & Astrud Gilberto

Getz Au Go Go
Verve, 1964. Very Good Gatefold
A beautiful dreamy album that's quite different from the classic Getz/Gilberto collaboration – but which also shares much of that set's lyrical beauty! This album was recorded live, in 1964, when Stan Getz was playing with his quartet that included Gary Burton on vibes – an incredible ... LP, Vinyl record album
 



⇑ Top