- Joe Bataan
Joe Bataan (also spelled Bataán) (born 1942 Fact|date=June 2008 in
Spanish Harlem ,New York City ) is anAfro-Filipino American Latin R&B musician from New York. He was born Bataan Nitollano and grew up in the 103rd and Lexington part of East Harlem where he briefly lead the Dragons, a local Puerto Rican street gang before being sent to theCoxsackie Correctional Facility to serve time for a stolen car charge.Upon his release in 1965, he turned his attention to music and formed his first band, Joe Bataan and the Latin Swingers. Bataan was influenced by two musical styles: the Latin
boogaloo and African Americandoo-wop . Though Bataan was neither the first nor only artist to combine doo-wop-style singing with Latin rhythms, his talent for it drew the attention ofFania Records . After signing with them in 1966, Bataan released "Gypsy Woman," in 1967. (The title track is a Latin dance cover of "Gypsy Woman" byThe Impressions .) He would, in full, release eight original titles for Fania which included the gold-selling "Riot!". These Fania albums often mixed energetic Latin dance songs, sung in Spanish, with slower, English-language soul ballads sung by Bataan himself. As a vocalist, Bataan's fame in the Latin music scene at the time was only rivaled byRalfi Pagan andHarvey Averne .Disagreements over money with Fania head
Jerry Masucci lead Bataan to eventually leave the label. While still signed to Fania however, Bataan secretly startedGhetto Records , a Latin music label which got its initial funding from a local Harlem drug dealer,George Febo . Bataan produced several albums for other artists on the imprint, includingPapo Felix ,Paul Ortiz andEddie Lebron .In 1973, he helped coin the phrase "salsoul," lending its name to his first post-Fania album. Along with the Cayre brothers, he co-founded Salsoul label, though later sold out his interest. He recorded three albums for Salsoul and several singles, including "Rap-O Clap-O," from 1979 which became an early
hip hop hit. After his 1981 album, "Bataan II," he retired from music-making to spend more time with his family and ended up working as a youth counselor in one of the reformatories he himself had spent time in as a teenager. In 2005, Bataan broke his long hiatus with the release of "Call My Name," a well-received album recorded for Spain's Vampisoul label.Bataan is also the father of
Asia Nitollano , winner of theIn the 2006 game Driver: Parallel Lines by Atari, Joe Bataan's song Subway Joe was included in the soundtrack.
Discography
* 1967 Gypsy Woman (Fania 340)
* 1968 Subway Joe (Fania 345)
* 1968 Riot! (Fania 354)
* 1969 Poor Boy (Fania 371)
* 1970 Singin' Some Soul (Fania 375)
* 1971 Mr. New York & The East Side Kids (Fania 395)
* 1972 Sweet Soul (Fania 407)
* 1972 Saint Latin's Day Massacre (Fania 420)
* 1972 Live From San Frantasia (unreleased, Fania 432)
* 1973 Salsoul (Mericana)
* 1975 Afro-Filipino (Salsoul)
* 1980 Mestizo (Salsoul)
* 1981 II (Salsoul)
* 1997 Last Album, Last Song (Bataan Music)
* 2005 Call My Name (Vampisoul)External links
* [http://www.joebataan.net/ Joe Bataan official site]
* [http://rbmaradio.com/ARCHIVE.153.0.php?extID=0&showID=526 RBMA Radio On Demand - Melbourne Marvels - Joe Bataan (Suss'D)]
* [http://www.redbullmusicacademy.com/TUTORS.9.0.html?act_session=304 Joe Bataan RBMA video lecture session Pt.1]
* [http://www.redbullmusicacademy.com/TUTORS.9.0.html?act_session=305 Joe Bataan RBMA video lecture session Pt.2]
* [http://www.redbullmusicacademy.com/TUTORS.9.0.html?act_session=306 Joe Bataan RBMA video lecture session Pt.3]
* [http://www.redbullmusicacademy.com/TUTORS.9.0.html?act_session=307 Joe Bataan RBMA video lecture session Pt.4]
* [http://www.laweekly.com/music/music/streetology/6113/ Joe Bataan article in the LA Weekly, 12/15/1999]
* [http://www.clubbity.com/charts_fea_roots.asp?ID=309&tipo=interviews Joe Bataan interview]
* [http://www.kpfa.org/archives/index.php?arch=9806 Joe Bataan interview] , from "APEX Express" radio program, KPFA FM, Berkeley, California (MP3)
* [http://www.thesoulgirl.com/music/andromeda1.php?q=s&sm=ff&s=bataan&x=0&y=0 TheSoulGirl.com]
* [http://www.lightintheattic.net Light in the Attic]
* [http://www.anthologyrecordings.com/release.asp?album=jCRScgomWBp Joe Bataan - Call My Name on AnthologyRecordings.com]ee also
*
Filipino hip hop
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