But it wasn’t until 1957 that he formed his own group, embracing the more urbane son sound. They moved to Havana, working together and apart in numerous support contexts, singing and playing guitar, tres and clarinet. He got his nickname, which translates to “second compadre”, in 1942 as a member of the duo.
Yet Segundo had made music since he was a teenager, forming a duo with his cousin Lorenzo Hierrezuelo in Santiago to play trova music-a rustic troubadour style once used to convey the latest news set to melody. As a member of the Ry Cooder–assembled Buena Vista Social Club in the late ’90s, his song “Chan Chan” became a signature of the supergroup’s repertoire. Compay Segundo-was born in 1907 in Cuba, but it took nine decades for him to become a global star.
