SUBVERSIVE SALSA

Grammy-Winning Jazz Legend Dies at 88

Eduardo “Eddie” Palmieri was a dynamic jazz artist who helped pave the way for Latin artists during the golden age of salsa.

Eddie Palmieri, a legendary Latin jazz artist and salsa pioneer, died on Wednesday at 88. His daughter, Gabriela Palmieri, informed The New York Times that he passed after “an extended illness.” Palmieri is remembered as a firebrand experimentalist who fundamentally shaped Latin music during the golden age of salsa in the 1960s and ’70s. Palmieri was raised by Puerto Rican immigrants in the South Bronx, New York, and developed a passion for Afro-Caribbean dance music and jazz. Palmieri dropped out of high school and cut his teeth as a keyboardist and timbales drummer in the New York tropical club circuit. In 1961, he founded the band La Perfecta, where he blended salsa and Latin jazz with funk, psychedelia, and Puerto Rican folk music. Music critics credit his willingness to change traditional instrument lineups to save on expenses with his role in bringing salsa to new heights. Palmieri became the first Latino to earn a Grammy with his 1974 session, The Sun of Latin Music. He went on to win seven more. In 2013, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Latin Grammys and was named a Jazz Master by the National Endowment for the Arts. Palmieri is survived by his four daughters and four grandchildren.

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