Biography
Born into poverty on the island of Puerto Rico, Daniel Santos rose to become one of the most powerful voices and composers shaping Latin and South American music throughout the middle decades of the twentieth century. His early heartbreak songs, drawn from Pedro Flores and built around spare, mostly single-word titles including "Despedida," "Obsesión," "Irresistible," "Perdón," and "Venganza," left a mark on Gabriel García Márquez comparable to the impact they made on fellow performers, while his subsequent patriotic anthems provoked American intelligence agents and helped fuel Fidel Castro’s Cuban Revolution.
Daniel Santos entered the world in 1916 in Santurce, Puerto Rico. Pulled out of school to help support his household, he eventually returned to perform in the school choir and picked up English along the way. By fourteen, however, he was already living independently and spent several years singing with the local Trio Lírico. Following the path of many compatriots, he relocated to New York in the mid-1930s, where his interpretation of Pedro Flores’s “Amor Perdido” caught the songwriter’s attention.
By 1938 he was performing and cutting records with the Flores Quartet, laying down most of his early successes—“Tú Serás Mía,” “Venganza,” “Esperanza Inútil,” “Perdón,” “Irresistible,” and the definitive reading of Flores’s finest piece, “Despedida.” When Miguelito Valdés departed Xavier Cugat’s Orchestra for a solo path in 1942, Santos moved from the Flores group into Cugat’s celebrated ensemble, only to be drafted into military service shortly afterward.
After the war, Santos came back with fresh determination. He began composing and recording patriotic works, collaborating with Pedro Ortiz Dávila on “Los Patriotas.” From 1946 onward he performed extensively in Cuba, where he wrote dozens of songs; one of them, “Sierra Maestra,” was aired by Castro during the Movimiento 26 de Julio. By 1961 he had grown uneasy with the movement, especially its practice of preparing children for combat. He kept appearing across the United States and Latin America, delivering his best-known numbers and sharing stories from a turbulent personal history that reportedly included jail time in various countries. He spent his final years in quiet retirement in Florida and died of a heart attack there in 1992.
Daniel Santos entered the world in 1916 in Santurce, Puerto Rico. Pulled out of school to help support his household, he eventually returned to perform in the school choir and picked up English along the way. By fourteen, however, he was already living independently and spent several years singing with the local Trio Lírico. Following the path of many compatriots, he relocated to New York in the mid-1930s, where his interpretation of Pedro Flores’s “Amor Perdido” caught the songwriter’s attention.
By 1938 he was performing and cutting records with the Flores Quartet, laying down most of his early successes—“Tú Serás Mía,” “Venganza,” “Esperanza Inútil,” “Perdón,” “Irresistible,” and the definitive reading of Flores’s finest piece, “Despedida.” When Miguelito Valdés departed Xavier Cugat’s Orchestra for a solo path in 1942, Santos moved from the Flores group into Cugat’s celebrated ensemble, only to be drafted into military service shortly afterward.
After the war, Santos came back with fresh determination. He began composing and recording patriotic works, collaborating with Pedro Ortiz Dávila on “Los Patriotas.” From 1946 onward he performed extensively in Cuba, where he wrote dozens of songs; one of them, “Sierra Maestra,” was aired by Castro during the Movimiento 26 de Julio. By 1961 he had grown uneasy with the movement, especially its practice of preparing children for combat. He kept appearing across the United States and Latin America, delivering his best-known numbers and sharing stories from a turbulent personal history that reportedly included jail time in various countries. He spent his final years in quiet retirement in Florida and died of a heart attack there in 1992.
Albums

LUNA
2026

Strawberry Boy
2025

Todos Mis Boleros, Daniel Santos
2024

Daniel Santos "El Anacobero"
2024

Paródias Não Famoso
2024

Tudo Ok dos Signos
2024

Amorcito Corazon
2024

Santos y Conjunto Clásico: Santos y Contreras
2023

Nuestro Juramento
2023

Despedida
2023

Ainda não
2023

La Muerte de Linda
2022

Canciones De La Radio
2022

Sabrosito
2022

Alborada
2022

Como Se Van Las Noches
2022

Daniel Santos
2021

Obsesion
2021

Grandes Boleros
2020

Lo Mejor De Lo Mejor, Vol. 2
2020

Sabor a Mí
2020

20 Súper Éxitos Vol.1
2020

Sabor a Mi
2020

Maldito Amor
2020

El Jefe
2019

Dos Voces, Dos Estilos del Caribe
2019

La Voz de Siempre
2019

El Disco De Oro
2019

Quédate Callada
2019

Boleros en Vivo
2018

Joyas De La Musica
2018

20 Temas Originales
2018

20 Éxitos de Daniel Santos
2018

Mano a Mano
2018

Acuarela Romántica: Daniel Santos, Vol. 2
2017

Guarachando: Daniel Santos, Vol. 2
2017

Acuarela Romántica: Daniel Santos, Vol. 1
2017

Guarachando
2017

Acuarela Romántica, Vol. 3: Daniel Santos
2017

40 Temas Originales
2017

El Legendario
2017

Daniel Santos Interpreta Lo Mejor de Pedro Flores
2017

Boleros Del Recuerdo
2016

Lamento Borincano
2016

Joyas de la Musica 30 Exitos Oro Puro
2016

Daniel Santos, Boleros de Oro
2016

Daniel Santos Con Sabor a Mi
2016

Solo Éxitos, Vol. 2
2016

Solo Éxitos, Vol. 1
2016

Daniel Santos (Grabaciones Originales)
2015

Daniel Santos, Se Me Olvidó Tu Nombre
2015

Historia Músical - 40 Éxitos
2015

Rescatando los Éxitos Originales del Long Play
2015

En Colombia
2015

Daniel Santos - El Inquieto Anacobero
2015

Daniel Santos, "Delirium"
2015

Grandes Exitos
2015

Estos Son los Cantantes
2014

Frente A Frente
2014

Daniel Santos: El Jefe - Ep
2014

Daniel Santos vs. Antonio Machín
2014

Daniel Santos en la Habana
2013

Las Estrellas De La Matancera
2013

Daqui Pra Frente
2012

Daniel Santos El Inquieto Anacobero Volume 1
2011

Daniel Santos El Inquieto Anacobero Volume 4
2011

Daniel Santos El Inquieto Anacobero Volume 2
2011

Daniel Santos El Inquieto Anacobero Volume 3
2011

Daniel Santos El Inquieto Anacobero Volume 6
2011

Daniel Santos El Inquieto Anacobero Volume 5
2011

Daniel Santos Interpreta a Julio Jaramillo
2011

Éxitos Románticos Del Jefe Volume 2
2011

Éxitos Románticos Del Jefe Volume 1
2011

Canta A México Volume 1
2011

Canta A México Volume 2
2011

The Very Best Of
2011

Hoja Seca (De Colección)
2010

En Vietnam
2008

El Inquieto Anacobero: Complete Sessions
2008

Mis Primeros 20 Éxitos
2008

Lo Mismo Que a Usted
2008

Juan (va pa' la guerra)
2008

Serie Inmortales - El Bolero Inmortal
2006

Serie Inmortales - Daniel Santos Y Sus Amigos
2006

Daniel Santos Con El Conjunto Clásico
2006

Grandes Boleros Vol. 2
2005

10 Grandes Exitos
2005

Los Éxitos Románticos Del Jefe
2004

Daniel Santos Con Su Sonora Boricua
2002

Lo Mejor De Lo Mejor
2001

Antologia de Exitos
2001

Los Jefes Cantan a Duo
2001

RCA 100 Años De Musica - Daniel Santos
2001

16 Exitos
2000

Inmortales de Daniel Santos y Olimpo Cardenas
2000

Homenaje Al Trio Matamoros
1999

Ídolos De América
1999

15 Éxitos Inolvidables De Daniel Santos
1998

Interpreta Lo Mejor De Pedro Flores
1998

Daniel Santos Canta a Agustín Lara
1997

Daniel Santos Y Pedro Flores
1997

Coleccion Original RCA
1997

Serie Imperial
1997

Cuatro Grandes Del Bolero
1997

20 Éxitos Julio Jaramillo y Daniel Santos
1996

El Jefe Vol. II
1996

Éxitos
1996

15 Grandes Exitos
1995

Grandes Exitos, Vol. 2
1995

El Marimbero
1995

20 Exitos
1994

Recordando a Javier Solís
1994

La Cantina
1993

El Anacobero
1993

Boleros Daniel Santos
1992

En Puros Boleros
1991

20 Exitos de Daniel Santos
1990

El Borracho No Vale
1982

Del Jefe a Gabo
1980

Reviviendo el Ayer
1980

En Navidad
1979

Feliz Navidad
1979

Por Culpa de la Melena
1975

El Contragolpe
1973

La Pared
1968

Daniel Santos y Los Diplomáticos
1968

Un Brindis Musical
1967

El Último Adiós
1966

El Retrato
1966

¿Y Linda?
1965

Mi Diario Musical
1964

Lo Mejor de
1962

LO SIENTO POR TI
1960

Éxitos De Oro
1959

Grandes Éxitos De Daniel Santos
1958

El Corneta
1956

Con Su Sonora Boriqua - Soltando Chispas
1953
Singles









