Watermelon Man (composition)

Common card · No. 261684

"Watermelon Man" is a jazz standard written by Herbie Hancock for his debut album, Takin' Off (1962). Hancock's first version was recorded in a hard bop style, featuring solos by trumpeter Freddie Hubbard and saxophonist Dexter Gordon. A single release reached #12 on Billboard's Bubbling Under chart in March 1963. Afro-Cuban percussionist Mongo Santamaría subsequently released a version, with vocals, which became a surprise hit, reaching No. 10 on the Hot 100 in April 1963. Santamaría's recording was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998. Hancock later recorded a funk version of "Watermelon Man" for the album Head Hunters (1973).

Read on Wikipedia · Image Blue Note Records, Public domain