¡Mambo!
sat 26 sep 2026 14:00 hrs
Today on ¡Mambo!, we turn the spotlight on Puerto Rican musician Tommy Olivencia.
Born in the 1930s in a working-class neighbourhood in Puerto Rico, the trumpeter and bandleader had already formed his own orchestra by the age of 22. He went on to introduce a succession of new Latin singers to his powerhouse band, while playing trumpet himself.
Read more below the playlist.
Playlist
1 Orquesta Tommy Olivencia & Chamaco Ramirez – Plante Bandera – 4:23
2 Orquesta Tommy Olivencia & Chamaco Ramirez – Como Novela De Amor – 3:52
3 Orquesta Tommy Olivencia & Chamaco Ramirez – A La Yumbae – 2:52
4 Orquesta Tommy Olivencia & Chamaco Ramirez – Si Estas Herido – 4:27
5 Orquesta Tommy Olivencia & Chamaco Ramirez – Trucutu – 4:52
6 Orquesta Tommy Olivencia & Chamaco Ramirez – Evelio Y La Rumba – 5:25
7 Orquesta Tommy Olivencia & Chamaco Ramirez – El Amor – 3:27
8 Orquesta Tommy Olivencia & Chamaco Ramirez – A Mi Pai Changó – 4:33
9 Tommy Olivencia & El Negro Chombo – Aun No Es Tiempo – 5:34
10 Tommy Olivencia & El Negro Chombo – Yolanda – 7:41
11 Orquesta Tommy Olivencia – Luna Lunera – 3:54
12 Orquesta Tommy Olivencia – Lobo Domesticado – 4:39
In the mid-1970s, the disco craze gave rise to the so-called ‘Latin Hustle’. But Tommy and Latin singer Chamaco Ramirez, who was one of his regular collaborators at the time, stayed true to traditional Puerto Rican music.
In 1981, Tommy and his orchestra formed what he called the ‘Triangle of Triumph’, with singers Frankie Ruiz and Carlos Alexis.
