Latin jazz musician Sanchez plans to "let it rip"

Poncho Sanchez is known as a Latin jazz musician, but the man digs his funk.

Before he became an internationally respected conga player, a Grammy Award winner, a jazz-festival headliner, Sanchez was the vocalist in a high-school band that grooved to James Brown covers.

That's why on his latest CD, "Do It!," Sanchez felt right at home singing a tune by underrated '60s act "Dyke and the Blazers," one of the first bands to get funky other than the "Godfather of Soul" himself.

When Sanchez, 54, and his seven-piece band take the stage, they blow through myriad styles while wearing smiles. Sanchez attacks his congas with his entire physique — hands, elbows, the works.

And his band — four rhythm musicians and three horn players — are gifted, adaptable veterans honed by high-profile gigs at clubs, concert halls and festival venues.

"I love to start off [a concert] with nice strong Latin stuff," Sanchez explains by phone from his home in California. "I love Latin jazz, mixing the melodies and harmonizing with the Latin flavor and Latin rhythm — create a little excitement right away.

"Then, somewhere in the middle of the show, we'll hit them with some salsa, dance stuff. And then I like to throw in the Latin soul."

If it sounds like a melting pot of traditional genres, well ... it is. That's the way Sanchez grew up.

Born in Laredo, Texas, he moved to Los Angeles as a child, then back to Laredo, and, finally, back to Los Angeles again for high school. Along the way, he learned about Tex-Mex and Mexican music, then soul and Latin jazz.

Sanchez tried different instruments before settling on percussion, which he was inspired to play by Cuban master conguero, Santamaria.

Sanchez's big break came at 23, when he joined the band of late, great vibraphonist Cal Tjader. Sanchez recorded his first solo album in 1979, and he chuckles when he describes taking a copy to his boss.

"Cal was very cool about it," Sanchez remembers. "He goes, 'It's your first record, right? All right, you got about 78 more to go.' To catch up to him! He was great. I really miss him."

One year after Tjader's death in 1982, Sanchez signed to Concord Records, where he has enjoyed a remarkable career in the Latin jazz-flavored Picante division.

Sanchez has released a couple dozen CDs, won a Grammy and been nominated for many more. At this point in his career, he says, Concord essentially lets him run free. While recording "Do It!" he brought the entire funk group "Tower of Power" into the studio for a session.

"That's where we're at," he says proudly. "We're open."

Sanchez will be honored in May at the Heineken Jazz Festival in San Juan, Puerto Rico, which he'll also headline. Concord plans to turn the concert into a live CD and DVD.

"I said, 'Wow. Not a bad idea!' " Sanchez chuckles, adding that he hopes to invite a few guest musicians to make the gig extra special.

One thing is certain: Fans should expect a Latin jazz bonanza with as many flavors of music as Puerto Rico has rums.

"We've played many sophisticated jazz clubs — then we lean toward our Latin jazz bag," Sanchez says. "But when you've got a big outdoor concert, you want to let it rip, know what I mean?

"You want to have a good time."