Alex Henderson

Poncho Sanchez
 
By Alex Henderson
 
Poncho Sanchez was only 12 when he first heard The Jazz Crusaders, an intensely swinging unit that epitomized hard bop on the West Coast in the 1960s. Now, at 45, the Latin jazz and salsa percussionist celebrates the bands legacy with Freedom Sound, which features two of its founding members: trombonist Wayne Henderson and tenor saxophonist Wilton Felder.

“Working with The Jazz Crusaders was something I had in the back of my mind for about seven years,” explains the one-time Cal Tjader sideman, who has been recording for Concord Picante Jazz as a leader since 1982. “The first time I heard them, I thought, ‘Man, these cats are tight.’ They were bad. They were throwin’ down. And they had such a fat sound.”

It was a sound that was unique and instantly recognizable, thanks in part to the striking combination of Henderson’s trombone and Felder’s tenor. In hard bop, “front lines” have often consisted of trumpet and sax, but tenor/trombone front lines that excluded the trumpet were quite a rarity. Though The Jazz Crusaders had been greatly influenced by Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, there was no confusing the two.

“I never forgot that big, bright sound they had,” Sanchez recalls. “When I was in high school in the mid-1960s, I used to go see them at The Lighthouse, a famous nightclub in Hermosa Beach. I wasn’t old enough to get into clubs; so I’d look through the window and listen from outside.”

The story of The Jazz Crusaders starts in 1954, when Felder, pianist Joe Sample (best known for the jazz-pop albums he’s been recording on his own since the 1970s) and drummer Stix Hooper formed a group called The Swingsters in their native Houston. With the addition of Henderson, flutist Hubert Laws and bassist Henry Wilson, they changed their name to The Modern Jazz Sextet.

It was in 1960 that Henderson, Felder, Sample and Hooper moved to Los Angeles and became The Jazz Crusaders (a name inspired by The Jazz Messengers). After specializing in acoustic hard bop and post-bop on their classic Pacific Jazz albums of the 1960s, the band changed its name to simply The Crusaders in 1971 and reinvented itself by taking up electric jazz-funk and fusion. But Sanchez would always remember them for their contributions to hard bop.

 “When we did Freedom Sound,” the conga player asserts, “I told Wayne and Wilton I only wanted to do their old shit—not the stuff they did as The Crusaders, the stuff they did as The Jazz Crusaders.” Sanchez explains. “And Wayne said, ‘Damn, I haven’t done those songs in a long time.’”         

Most Jazz Crusaders aficionados will recognize classics like Henderson’s “Scratch” and Sample’s “Freedom Sound,” both among their best known offerings. Kenny Cox’s “Latin Bit” was first recorded on the band’s mid-1960s date Chile Con Soul (which was also the title of an album Sanchez recorded for Concord in 1989), while the Brazilian number “Aleluia” was heard on their Lighthouse ‘66 album as well as on Cal Tjader’s La Onda Va Bien (featuring Sanchez) on Concord Picante.

Sanchez first worked with Henderson and Felder when they revived the name Jazz Crusaders for 1995’s Happy Again. The Angelino notes: “They asked me to be on that album, and after we finished recording, I told them, ‘Now that I’ve done one with you, you’ve gotta do one with me.’ And they went for it.”

Like most of Sanchez’s Concord albums, Freedom Sound focuses primarily on instrumental Latin jazz but also  contains a few salsa numbers with vocals. Sanchez sings lead on “Prestame Tu Corazon” (a classic he often heard growing up in L.A.) and his original, Eddie Palmieri-influenced cha-cha “(Baila El) Suave Cha.” Another highlight of the CD (which employs such long-time Sanchez regulars as pianist/musical director David Torres, trumpeter Sal Cracciolo, timbale player Ramón Banda and bassist Tony Banda) is “You Don’t Know What Love Is,” a ballad and standard Sanchez transforms into a Latin-style bolero.

Afro-Cuban music and jazz have been among Sanchez’s obsessions since his pre-teen years. Born in Laredo, Texas on October 30, 1951 but raised in L.A., he was the youngest of eleven kids--some of them hardcore jazz enthusiasts, and all of them devoted salseros. For Sanchez, it wasn’t hard to  be exposed to such Latin greats as Tito Rodriguez, Tito Puente, Machito, Celia Cruz and Ray Barretto (along with heavy doses of Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Clifford Brown and Thelonious Monk) on a daily basis. Mambo, son, cha-cha, rhumba, guaracha—Sanchez quickly absorbed all of these Afro-Cuban styles (which fall under the umbrella term “salsa”) as well as the art of jazz improvisation.

“All my brothers and sisters were into the mambo and the cha-cha-cha,” he points out. “They were into the pachanga, man. I heard that music every day in my house. And growing up in a Chicano neighborhood, I also heard plenty of doowop and soul music.”

Sanchez named two of his sons after his heroes—Tito Sanchez is named after Tito Puente, while his son Xavier Mongo is named after Xavier Cugat and Mongo Santamaria.

One of Sanchez’s primary inspirations was the late vibist Cal Tjader, who did so much to popularize Latin jazz in the 1950s. After idolizing Tjader most of his life, a 23-year-old Sanchez ended up joining his band in 1975—and would remain with him until his death in Manila in the Philippines on May 5, 1982 at the age of 56.

“When you play with a guy that you’ve idolized all your life, it’s a dream come true,” Sanchez stresses. “I dug his music so much, and then, I got a gig with him. I was with Cal when he died in Manila, and 14 years later, I still miss him. I’m still close to his family. Cal’s influence will always be there.”            

Tjader spent his last years recording for Concord, and in fact, it was 1979’s La Onda Va Bien that launched Concord’s Picante label (which has also boasted Tito Puente and Ray Barretto). Sanchez (who paid tribute to his mentor on 1995’s Soul Sauce) was in Tjader’s employ when he recorded his first two dates as a leader, Poncho in 1979 and Straight Ahead in 1980, for the Discovery label. Only a few months after Tjader’s death, Sanchez delivered his first Concord Picante album (and third overall) Sonando. That album and subsequent dates like 1983’s Bien Sabroso, 1985’s El Conguero and 1986’s Papa Gato helped establish him as one of the most respected figures in Latin jazz. Over the years, his albums would employ some distinguished guests, including Tito Puente on 1989’s Chile Con Soul, Freddie Hubbard on 1990’s Cambios and the late Eddie Harris on 1993’s Para Todos. Sanchez’s salsa offerings were gathered on the 1995 compilation Baila Mi Gente: Salsa!               

“Not once has Concord ever told me what to do,” Sanchez stresses. “Never. They made suggestions, but they never pressured me. That’s why I’ve had a great relationship with them—they’ve never tried to pressure me.

Because he has so thoroughly mastered Afro-Cuban rhythms, many listeners are surprised to learn that Sanchez isn’t of Cuban or Puerto Rican descent, but is in fact, a Mexican-American who has lived in the Southwest all his life. Sanchez laughs: “People still ask me, ‘Are you sure you aren’t from Cuba? Or Puerto Rico?’ And I tell them, ‘No, I’m a Chicano. I was born in Laredo, Texas and raised in a Chicano neighborhood in L.A.’ If you feel Latin jazz in your heart and love it as much as I do, it doesn’t matter where you’re from.”

After recording 13 studio albums for Picante (as well as a live date, 1990’s A Night At Kimball’s East), Sanchez still has many different types of projects in mind—including a bossa nova album with strings and tributes to Tito Rodriguez, percussionist Big Black and soul legend James Brown. (Sanchez recorded The Godfather’s “Cold Sweat” as part of a ‘60s soul medley on Chile Con Soul).

“James Brown is one of my heroes—I’ve got everything he ever recorded,” Sanchez asserts. “A lot of people don’t know that he played jazz organ.”

Another project he has in mind is an album featuring an organist. Rarely has the Hammond B-3 been united with Latin rhythms. Sanchez notes: “Growing up, I really dug guys like Jimmy Smith, Jack McDuff and Richard ‘Groove’ Holmes. I’ve got so many ideas. I can go all the way on the Latin side or all the way on the jazz side.”

“Latin jazz was such a big fire burning in my heart,“ Sanchez continues. “It’s been an uphill battle, and I feel like I’ve finally made it to the top of the mountain. I’m looking down, saying, ‘Man, it was a hell of a road getting here.’”♦♦♦