Barengue Manengue - Bobby Valentín

During the heyday of the boogaloo and shing-a-ling era, Fania released an album titled Bad Breath by Bobby Valentín, who at the time was a trumpet player. It was Valentín’s third album, following his debut with El Mensajero, which he recorded for Fonseca Records, and the 1966 release of his first Fania LP, Young Man With A… Valentín, who formed his own orchestra after playing and recording with Joe Quijano, Tito Rodríguez, Willie Rosario and Charlie Palmieri, was the third artist recruited by Fania Records, following the releases of Johnny Pacheco’s debut and the LP Heavy Smokin by Orchestra Harlow.

In 1967, Valentín was still living in New York. Even though he tried to adapt his orchestra to the boogaloo style that reigned supreme at the time with tracks like “Bad Breath” and “Love Me So,” the experiment was a commercial failure. Dancers preferred the hit singles by pianist Pete Rodríguez, the genius responsible for gems such as “I Like It Like That” and “Micaela.” And yet, Valentín showcased his talent as an arranger from the very beginning of his career. In 1967, his band was made up of Cookie Mattero on sax, trombonist Glen John Miller, John Rivera on bass, Joe Torres on piano, Fred Pagani on timbales, Jimmy Maeylen on congas and George Del on bongos. All of them remained in New York when Bobby moved to Puerto Rico in 1969. The combination of tenor sax, trumpet and trombone created harmonies that echoed the aesthetic of the big orchestras led by masters like Tito Puente, Machito and Tito Rodríguez – in fact, Valentín has covered songs from their repertoire throughout his career.

Art Direction – Izzy Sanabria
Bass – John "Flaco" Rivera
Bongos – George "Chu" Del
Congas – Jimmy Maeylen*
Directed By – Johnny Pacheco
Leader, Trumpet – Bobby Valentin
Liner Notes – Harvey Averne
Piano – Joe Torres*
Producer – Jerry Masucci
Saxophone – Cookie Mattero
Timbales – Fred "Poppy" Pagani
Trombone – Glen John Miller
Vocals – Marcelino "Junior" Morales