MUSICIAN

Ray Barretto

1929 - 2006

Photo of Ray Barretto

Icon of person Ray Barretto

Raymundo "Ray" Barretto Pagán (April 29, 1929 – February 17, 2006) was an American percussionist and bandleader of Puerto Rican descent. Throughout his career as a percussionist, he played a wide variety of Latin music styles, as well as Latin jazz. His first hit, "El Watusi", was recorded by his Charanga Moderna in 1962, becoming the most successful pachanga song in the United States. In the late 1960s, Barretto became one of the leading exponents of boogaloo and what would later be known as salsa. Read more on Wikipedia

His biography is available in different languages on Wikipedia. Ray Barretto is the 1,317th most popular musician (down from 1,157th in 2019), the 6,780th most popular biography from United States (down from 5,663rd in 2019) and the 480th most popular American Musician.

Memorability Metrics

Loading...

Page views of Ray Barretto by language

Loading...

Among MUSICIANS

Among musicians, Ray Barretto ranks 1,317 out of 3,175Before him are Bonnie Raitt, Stan Kenton, Mike Mangini, Paweł Mąciwoda, Jack Nitzsche, and Issay Dobrowen. After him are Chrisye, Big Bill Broonzy, Patti Scialfa, Lee Kerslake, Prince Buster, and Mark Lanegan.

Most Popular Musicians in Wikipedia

Go to all Rankings

Contemporaries

Among people born in 1929, Ray Barretto ranks 346Before him are Avet Terterian, Klara Rumyanova, Walter Schleger, Ulu Grosbard, Ken Henry, and James Shigeta. After him are Klausjürgen Wussow, Sebastian Koto Khoarai, Birgitta Trotzig, Dmytro Pavlychko, Eberhard Jäckel, and Zbigniew Messner. Among people deceased in 2006, Ray Barretto ranks 242Before him are Elizabeth Allen, Leon Niemczyk, Lou Rawls, Pjetër Arbnori, Theodore Levitt, and Runer Jonsson. After him are Paul Arizin, Wolfgang Unzicker, Jaroslav Pelikan, Frank Beyer, Jimmy Johnstone, and Eugene Lazowski.

Others Born in 1929

Go to all Rankings

Others Deceased in 2006

Go to all Rankings

In United States

Among people born in United States, Ray Barretto ranks 6,782 out of 20,380Before him are Gregory Olsen (1945), Scott Patterson (1958), Almon Brown Strowger (1839), Jerry Schatzberg (1927), James Shigeta (1929), and Courtney B. Vance (1960). After him are Duane Hanson (1925), Erik Olin Wright (1947), Gina Torres (1969), Debra Jo Rupp (1951), Jane Bowles (1917), and Bob Backlund (1949).

Among MUSICIANS In United States

Among musicians born in United States, Ray Barretto ranks 480Before him are Kenny Burrell (1931), Nancy Wilson (1954), Bonnie Raitt (1949), Stan Kenton (1911), Mike Mangini (1963), and Jack Nitzsche (1937). After him are Big Bill Broonzy (1903), Patti Scialfa (1953), Mark Lanegan (1964), Timbaland (1972), Alan Wilson (1943), and Sonny Stitt (1924).