EDDIE MONTALVO

Rubén Blades

A Grammy nominee and frequent collaborator with salsa crossover star Rubén Blades, conguero Eddie Montalvo was born and raised in the Bronx. Growing up a fan of salsa music, Montalvo started on the bongos, but switched to the congas when he joined Julio Romero & the Latin Jazz All-Stars. With the congas, he would play in the bands of superstars like Celia Cruz, Héctor Lavoe, Willie Colón, and Johnny Pacheco before joining the Fania All-Stars in 1979. In 1995 he released his first solo album, On My Own, while in 2001 he joined Joe Madera in his Big 3 Palladium Orchestra. In 2012 Montalvo released his second solo album, Desde Nueva York a Puerto Rico. It would be nominated for a 2013 Grammy Award in the category of Best Tropical Latin Album.

Montalvo's first conga was the LP Original Conga and we are proud to have worked with Eddie to develop the unique, colorful artwork featured on his signature series congas.