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El Gran Combo is a Puerto Rican Salsa music orchestra. It is one of Salsa's most famous groups across Latin America, and many of the genre's legendary singers have been members of the orchestra.
History
El Gran Combo was founded by Rafael Ithier in May of 1962. Ithier is still, as of 2004, one of the orchestra's members. Ithier had been a member of Rafael Cortijo's "Combo" orchestra, travelling to the eastern United States before forming El Gran Combo. For their first gig, the orchestra was signed by the legendary Cuban comedian, writer and businessman Alvarez Guedes, who hired El Gran Combo to support Dominican singer Joseito Mateo on one of his albums.
On May 21, 1962, El Gran Combo was heard for the first time on Puerto Rican radio. Later on, they became the on-studio musicians of the live television show, "La Taverna India", sponsored by India Beer.
El Gran Combo by then was already associated with some of Puerto Rico's better known Salsa personalities: Sammy Ayala, who had also played with the Cortijo orchestra, kept his friendship with Ithier; he would be instrumental in the hiring of Andy Montanez. Pellin Rodriguez and Chiqui Garcia, two of the most famous Salsa singers of the era, were already singing for El Gran Combo. Felipe Rodriguez, another legendary Salsa singer, also followed the group's career closely, sometimes even making suggestions to Ithier.
El Gran Combo released their first album, "Acangana", with Rodriguez and Montanez as leading voices. The album became a number one hit in New York, Panama and Puerto Rico.
Other members of El Gran Combo included, at the time, singer Roberto Rohena and musician Elias Lopez. These two members caused a void in the group when they left the band to pursue their own professional interests, soon after the orchestra had been let go by Guedes' recording company, GEMA Records.
Regardless of the problems these events caused, the orchestra continued experiencing success in Latin America through the 1960s and into the 1970s. A peculiar event happened early in 1970, when, returning to Puerto Rico from Curacao, the group had to stop at Las Americas International Airport in Santo Domingo; One of the band's members had a bad feeling about the flight they were about to embark in, and the orchestra decided not to take that flight, which would turn out to be the Dominicana Airlines DC-9 that crashed off the Caribbean coast.
By 1971, El Gran Combo had found a new recording company, Fania Records, which also had the likes of Celia Cruz, Ruben Blades and Roberto Rohena himself in the company's star line-up. Tuhis same year, El Gran Combo introduced the trombon to their list of instruments. The trombon was played by Fanny Ceballos. Soon after, their second production was released, named "De punta a punta" ("From Coast to Coast").
In 1973, Pellin Rodriguez left the group to continue on as a Salsa singer elsewhere. His death of heart related complications in 1984 made headlines all over Puerto Rico.
Legendary Salsa musician Jerry Concepcion and the well known sportscaster Rafael Bracero, friends of Ithier, helped Ithier decide to replace Rodriguez with Charlie Aponte. In 1975, El Gran Combo sang in front of 50,000 fans at the famous Yankee Stadium in New York City.
Montanez left the orquestra in 1977 and went to live in Venezuela, where he replaced Oscar De Leon in another orchestra, "Dimension Latina". Jerry Rivas was then chosen to join the orchestra. Rivas is still a member of El Gran Combo.
In 1977, "El Gran Combo en Navidad", a Christmas album, was released, with Martin Quinones appearing as Santa Claus in the album's cover. After a car accident, Quinones was replaced in the band by his son, Martin Quinones Jr. Quinones Jr. lasted until 1979, being replaced by Luis Diaz.
During the 1980s and 1990s, such singers as Gilberto Santa Rosa and Tony Vega formed part of the group's line-up.
The orchestra has released over 20 albums or CD's, and it has received many awards, including golden albums, a "Calendario de Plata" in Mexico, a "Golden Combo" in Colombia, a "Paoli Award" in their natal Puerto Rico, a honorable distinction in Spain and countless others.
See also
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