Cándido de Guerra Camero

Notable percussionist of Cuban music and Afro-Cuban jazz.

Born in the Havana neighborhood of El Cerro, Cándido Camero began playing bongos at 4 years old when his father made him a pair of tumbadoras from two condensed milk cans; later his father also taught him to play the tres, an instrument with which he played in the Septeto Gloria Habanera and accompanied great figures such as Ramón Mongo Santamaría and Luciano Chano Pozo, with whom he played the famous song 'Manteca'.

While most of us remember him as an excellent percussionist, we must recognize that, in bygone times, his contact with music came through playing guitar, bass, and tres in his native Cuba.

As a teenager, he replaced his friend Andrés Hechavarria Callava, known as "Niño Rivera," as tresero in the Septeto Bolero. His father formally taught him to play the tres, an instrument with which he performed in the Septeto Gloria Habanera and accompanied those who would become greats of Cuban percussion such as: Ramón "Mongo" Santamaría and Luciano "Chano" Pozo (whom he accompanied in the performance of his masterwork "Manteca").

In 1940 he began playing congas in Havana, joining various jazz ensembles. From age 18 onward he dedicated himself to playing congas, influenced by an uncle of his, which allowed him to reach the famous Tropicana, joining the stellar orchestra directed by Armando Romeu, and traveled to the United States.

In July 1946, under contract to accompany the dance couple Carmen and Rolando for a performance at the Havana-Madrid in Manhattan, the only Cuban-Spanish restaurant in America at that time, where Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis were performing in a show, he began his musical life in the United States.

He returned to Havana and worked with the Orquesta Sabor de Cuba directed by Bebo Valdés, participating in the creation of the rhythm "Batanga," and later joined the famous quintet of blind British pianist George Shearing.

In 1946 he settled in the United States, where, in the nineteen-fifties, he began playing with Dizzy Gillespie and replaced Jack Constanzo in Stan Kenton's orchestra, with whose big band he played three congas at a time when conga players typically played only one. Cándido felt he could play melodies with several congas, an instrument that with Arsenio Rodríguez became a permanent fixture in his ensemble and gradually in all groups, whereas before Arsenio it was used only occasionally.

In 2016, at 95 years old, Camero officially said goodbye to the stage, though he assured that he would continue "playing my three congas until God says enough, because it is my great passion."

Cándido Camero played throughout his long career with figures such as Machito, Billy Taylor, Dizzy Gillespie, Stan Kenton, Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Lionel Hampton, Charlie Parker, Dinah Washington, Israel López Cachao, George Shearing, Quincy Jones, Charlie Mingus, Ray Charles, Tony Bennett, Tito Puente, Chico O'Farrill, Sonny Rollins, Coleman Hawkins, Fania All Stars, Celia Cruz, Carlos Patato Valdés, Mongo Santamaría, Gloria Estefan, and many more.

Cándido was a true celebrity of Cuban percussion. At the beginning of the 20th century, playwright and director Iván Acosta dedicated the documentary film "Cándido Manos de Fuego" to him.

His most recent and remembered work was alongside Graciela Pérez, recalling epic musical campaigns during the times of Machito and Bauza, which showcased his life and the history of Afro-Cuban jazz. He was then 96 years old with almost 70 years of artistic career.

Cándido passed away in November 2020; he was based in the Bronx in New York City. While a farewell from the stage was organized in 2016, Cándido Camero had actually expressed the year before: "I will continue playing my three congas until God says enough, because it is my great passion."

American soil welcomed him until his passing, seventy-four years later; he had five months remaining to celebrate his CENTENNIAL; he was the only Afro-Cuban percussionist to win the "Jazz Master Award," which the National Endowment for the Arts grants, one of the highest honors in the United States.

Discography
The Billy Taylor Trio* And Cándido - The Billy Taylor Trio And Candido - 1954
Cándido Featuring Al Cohn – Cándido - 1956
Cándido Calipso Dance Party ABC - Paramount, 1957
Cándido the Volcanic ABC - Paramount, 1957 (Includes el Manisero and Tintindeo)
Cándido In Indigo ABC - Paramount, 1958
Latin Fire ABC - Paramount, 1959
Conga Soul Roulette Records, 1962
Cándido's Comparsa ABC - Paramount, 1963
Cándido ABC - Paramount, 1965
Beautiful Blue Note, 1970
Candido 1000 finger man Solid State, 1970
Brujerías de Candido Tico Records, 1971
Candido Drum Fever Polydor LP, 1973
Dancin and Pracin Saulsoul, 1979
Candi's Funk Saulsoul, 1979
Jingo Saulsoul, 1983
The Conga Kings 2000