Puchito Records
| Puchito Records | |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1954 |
| Founder | Jesús Gorís (1921–2006) |
| Genre | Cuban |
| Country of origin | Cuba (until 1961) Miami, Florida (beginning 1961) |
| Location |
Havana, Cuba (1952–1961) Miami, Florida (1961– ) |
Puchito Records was Cuba's second independent record label. It was founded in 1954 during the mambo and cha-cha-chá explosion. Many of its recordings, produced by its founder Jesús Gorís, became instant hits.
The founder, Jesús Gorís (né Jesús Ramon Francisco Gorís Ballas; 12 April 1921 Havana, Cuba – 16 Aug 2006 Miami, Florida) had been a representative of RCA Victor, selling records from a separate counter at his father's hardware store, La Estrella. Eventually, the store became known as Gorís Shop.
Back then, stores were restricted to sell records from just one label. At La Estrella, they were supposed to sell only RCA Records, but Gorís, he would sell you Columbia and Decca recordings he kept hidden under the counter. I guess that secret can now be told.
In 1952, Gorís invested in a single, "Guantanamera", composed by Joseíto Fernández, which did well in jukeboxes. Gorís and two partners, Messrs. Alfredo Beltrán and Oliva, originally wanted to launch a series of children's records, so they chose the name Puchito, which, in this context, means "youngest child." In 1954, Gorís and his two partners produced an LP of Olga Guillot singing with the The Castro Brothers Orchestra, one of Cuba's first jazz bands (no relation to Fidel Castro). Although Guillot. "Mienteme" ("Lie to Me"), a bolero composed by Chamaco Domínguez () (1921–1985), was one of the album's great successes. Puchito went on to produce Guillot on nine more albums, and a few singles, up until 1960. In 1958, Gorís hired pianist René Touzet (1916–2003) as musical director and orchestrator of Guillot's album, Intemidades (MLP-526), which gained reputation as having the most important works of her career, an several that cemented Touzet's reputation as an original composer: "La Noche de Anoche" ("The Night Last Night"), "Será Cuando Tú Quieras," "Estuve Pensando," and "No Te Importe Saber" ("Let Me Love You Tonight"). Guillot and Touzet, though never married, had a daughter together: Olga María Touzet-Guillot (born 1960).
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