Mongo Santamaría

Ramón "Mongo" Santamaría Rodríguez was a Cuban percussionist and bandleader who spent most of his career in the United States. Primarily a conga drummer, Santamaría was a leading figure in the pachanga and boogaloo dance crazes of the 1960s. His biggest hit was his rendition of Herbie Hancock's "Watermelon Man", which was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998. From the 1970s, he recorded mainly salsa and Latin jazz, before retiring in the late 1990s.

7 April 1922

Born on the same birth day (7 April): Andrew Hampsten • Anthony Caruso (actor) • Brian J. Doyle • Gang Qiang • Iris Johansen • Jace Alexander • James White (author) • Julia Phillips • KC Concepcion • Leif Ove Andsnes • Richard Gomez • Vanessa Olivarez

Born in the same month (April 1922): Barbara Hale • Carl Amery • Charles Mingus • Doris Day • Erich Hartmann • Harry Freedman • Heinz Baas • Jeanne Sauvé • John Braine • Kingsley Amis • Marc-Adélard Tremblay • Michael Ansara • Parren Mitchell • Simon Kapwepwe • Yevhen Bulanchyk