ArtistInfo

Harlem River Drive

Band,
Jazz, R&B/Soul and Latin

Leader: Eddie Palmieri The pinnacle of Palmieri’s career as a socially conscious artist was the revolutionary group he co-led with his brother Charlie, called Harlem River Drive. The band was named after a highway that cuts through Harlem, allowing cars to bypass the local streets of the neighborhood entirely, where the rich zipped past to avoid the harsh social realities of the ghetto. For Palmieri, this highway was a symbol of the inequalities of modern society. It was no accident that his group combined Latin, soul and free jazz in a way that sought to unify all of Harlem in the face of adversity. Palmieri’s Harlem River Drive group employed members of Aretha Franklin’s band, alongside some of the most important Latin musicians and jazz soloists of the day, such as Ronnie Cuber, Barry Rogers and Bernard Purdie.

Members

	Eddie Palmieri p *1936 US
	Bernard Purdie dr *1939
	Burt Collins tr, fh 1931-2007 US
	Charlie Palmieri p, org 1927-1988 PR
	Cornell Dupree g 1942-2011 US
	Randy Brecker tr, fh *1945 US
	Nicky Marrero tim US
	Barry Rogers tb 1935-1991 US
	Andy Gonzalez b *1951 US
	Jerry Jemmott eb, b *1946 US
	Victor Venegas b 1932-2006 US
	Reggie Ferguson dr US
	Bob Mann g *1944 US
	Eladio Perez cng, perc
	Manny Oquendo perc, tim 1931-2009 US
	Dick Meza ts, fl
	Lorene Hanchard voc
	Jimmy Norman voc 1937-2011 US
	Dean Robert Pratt dr US
	Marilyn Herscher voc
	Bruce Fowler tb *1947 US
	Allan Taylor voc US