- - Eddie Palmieri, Grammy-winning pioneer of Latin jazz and salsa music, dies at 88

Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY August 7, 2025 at 8:38 PM

Eddie Palmieri performs on Aug. 2, 2009, at the Theatre de la Mer in Sete, Southeastern France.

Eddie Palmieri, a Grammy-winning pianist and bandleader who helped define Latin jazz, has died. He was 88.

The famed musician died Wednesday, Aug. 6, according to Fania Records, a label responsible for several of his hit albums.

"Today, Fania Records mourns the loss of the legendary Eddie Palmieri, one of the most innovative and unique artists in music history," the company wrote in a statement.

The musician's youngest daughter, Gabriela Palmieri, told The New York Times her father had died following an "extended illness."

A musical multihyphenate, Palmieri was both a pianist himself and a mastermind outside the orchestra, composing, directing, arranging and producing. Reared in Spanish Harlem, New York, he soaked up the sounds of jazz in the city and took after a musical family, playing drums in his uncle's orchestra.

Latin jazz artist Eddie Palmieri attends the 7th annual Latin Grammy Awards at Madison Square Garden Nov. 2, 2006, in New York City.

Drawing on his Puerto Rican roots, Palmieri's signature styling became a blend of Afro-Caribbean and jazz sounds. He would go on to found groups such as La Perfecta, La Perfecta II and Harlem River Drive, collaborating with other musicians to innovate in the salsa genre and bring a new twist to the big band sound of the decade.

"Over the course of his seven-decade-long career, Eddie recorded for labels such as Tico, Alegre, Fania, Concord Picante, RMM and Coco Records, leaving an indelible mark on over four dozen albums," Fania said in its statement. Among those projects was "The Sun of Latin Music," the first Latin album to win a Grammy in 1974.

"He will be greatly missed," the statement concluded.

Palmieri, who was known not just for his musical prowess but for his full-bodied approach to conducting, became an elder statesman of both salsa and Latin jazz in later years, serving as the gold standard for innovation and creativity.

"(I) work with complex African rhythmic patterns that are centuries old," he told MusicianGuide in an interview. "The intriguing thing for me is to layer jazz phrasings and harmony on top of those patterns."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Eddie Palmieri dead: Latin music pioneer and renowned pianist was 88

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