Legendary
Percussionist Pete Escovedo is an artist who broke down the barriers between
Smooth Jazz, Salsa, Latin Jazz and contemporary music. His name has been
synonymous in the music industry for more than 50 years.
Born in
Pittsburg, CA, July 13th, 1935, he began his musical journey while attending
high school in Oakland, CA. At the age of sixteen, he began playing the
saxophone and then discovered percussion which became his love of rhythm and
his dream of playing Latin Jazz music.
After performing
with various bands, in 1960 Pete and his brothers, Coke and Phil Escovedo
formed the Escovedo Brothers Latin Jazz band, performing around the San
Francisco Bay Area.
In 1970 Pete and
Coke formed the band “Azteca” that toured the United States with Stevie Wonder
and The Temptations. They recorded two albums on Columbia records which are now
considered collectors items, “Azteca” and “Pyramid of the Moon”.
In 1972 Pete
toured and performed with the Carlos Santana band and recorded three major
albums, “Moonflower”, “Oneness” and “Inner Secrets”.
In 1978 Pete and
daughter Sheila E. recorded two albums on Fantasy records “Solo Two” and “Happy
Together” which were produced by Billy Cobham.
Pete’s
versatility as a Percussionist has been featured in performances and recordings
by a wide range of Artists such as Carlos Santana, Tito Puente, Herbie Hancock,
Mongo Santamaria, Bobby McFerrin, Cal Tjader, Woody Herman, Stephen Stills,
Billy Cobham, Anita Baker, George Duke, Boz Scaggs, Andy Narell, Al Jarreau,
Ray Obiedo, Dionne Warwick, Marlena Shaw, Barry White, Angela Bofill, Arturo
Sandoval, Poncho Sanchez, Chick Corea, Dave Valentine, Najee, Gerald Albright,
Prince, and the list goes on.
As a solo
artist Pete has recorded 7 acclaimed albums on Concord Records:
·
Yesterday’s Memories, Tomorrow’s Dreams - Live
in Concert (1987)
·
Mister E (1988) - nominated for a Grammy
·
Flying South
(1996)
·
E - Street (1997)
·
E - Music (2000)
·
Pete Escovedo Live (2003)
·
Live From Stern Grove (2012)
Pete has also
received numerous awards for:
·
1983 Jammie Jazz Musician Of The Year
·
1984 Bammie Latin Musician Of The Year
·
1989 Grammy Nomination for Mister E
·
San Francisco State College Purple Globe Award
·
Ronald Dellums Congressional Award
·
National Recording Academy Governors Award San
Francisco Chapter and Chicago Chapter
·
California Arts and Council Award
·
ABC Television Profile of Excellence Award Has appeared in the following movies:
·
Jack (1996)
·
Chasing Papi (2003) Nightclubs:
·
Escovedo's - Oakland, CA
·
Mister E.'s - Berkeley, CA
·
Mr. E.'s Spotlight on the Square - Alameda, CA
·
Pete Escovedo's Latin Jazz Club - San Jose, CA
Pete Escovedo believes that there is healing through music and has
donated his time to numerous charity events to help children around the world
by teaching the importance of music.
Today Mr. Pete Escovedo leads one of the top Latin-Jazz Orchestras in the
country performing his own unique sound and continues to deliver his music
throughout the world.