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Perez Prado was a Cuban naturalized Mexican bandleader, singer, organist, pianist, and composer, born on December 11, 1916, in Matanzas, Cuba. He passed away on September 14, 1989, in Mexico City, Mexico. Often referred to as the "King of the Mambo," Prado studied classical piano in his early childhood and later played organ and piano in local clubs. He served as a pianist and arranger for Cuba's best-known musical group and worked with casino orchestras in Havana throughout most of the 1940s, earning the nickname "El Cara de Foca" ("Seal Face"). In 1948, he moved to Mexico to form his own band and record for RCA Victor, quickly specializing in mambos, an upbeat adaptation of the Cuban danzón. His big break came in 1950 when an arranger heard "Que rico el mambo" while on vacation in Mexico and recorded it back in the United States as "Mambo Jambo," which became a hit. This success led Prado to launch a US tour, with sell-out appearances in 1951, and he began recording US releases for RCA Victor. Prado is known for composing famous pieces such as "Mambo No. 5" and "Mambo No. 8." At the height of the mambo movement in 1955, he reached number one on the American charts with a cha-cha version of "Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White

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