BILLO'S CARACAS BOYS mosaico #37

BILLOS CARACAS BOYS interpretan MOSAICO #37 con sus cantantes Cheo Garcia, Ely Mendez ,Memo Morales y Billo Frometa. Luis Maria Frometa was born in the Dominican Republic on November 15, 1915. He studied music in his early years and formed some bands in the capital of the republic, Ciudad Trujillo in the 1930's. Damiron & Chapuseaux who were well known in the capital helped him to get started. He went to study medicine, but, his inclination for music was stronger so he drops out of school to pursue his music career. He formed his own big band; the "Santo Domingo Jazz Band" In 1958 he went to Venezuela and changed the name of the band to "Billo's Caracas Boys." The name stick, but, President Trujillo got insulted and banned the band in Santo Domingo and cancelled their passport. So Frometa got stranded in Caracas. Then came another problem with the new Venezuelan dictator. At the fall of the Marcos Perez Jimenez regime he was accused of being a supporter of Perez Jimenez. So he was banned to play in Venezuela. So he moved his band to Cuba and stayed there until he was able to come back in 1960 to Venezuela who was now under a new regime. From 1960 until his death he played almost continuously in Venezuela. Frometa died on May 5, 1988 at the age of 73, while rehearsing with his orchestra.