Xavier Cugat, born Francisco de Asis Javier Cugat Mingall de Cru y Deulofeo, earned recognition for his commercial take on pop while establishing himself as a trailblazer in Latin American dance music. Over an eight-decade career he brought wider attention to the tango, the cha-cha, the mambo, and the rhumba. Signature successes encompassed “El Manicero” during the 1930s, “Perfidia” in 1940, and the first recording of “Babalu” in 1944. Among the musicians who passed through his ranks were Desi Arnaz, Miguelito Valdés, Tito Rodriguez, Luis del Campo, Yma Sumac, and Abbe Lane, his third wife out of four. Capitalizing on his musical profile, Cugat pursued screen work that encompassed Gay Madrid (1930), You Were Never Lovelier (1942), Bathing Beauty (1945), Weekend at the Waldorf (1945), Holiday in Mexico (1946), On an Island With You (1948), A Date With Judy (1948), Chicago Syndicate (1955), and Desire Diabolique (1959).
Born in Girona, Spain, Cugat moved with his family to Cuba in 1905. After classical violin training he joined the Orchestra of the Teatro Nacional in Havana at age twelve. Sometime between 1915 and 1918 he relocated to the United States and soon supported an opera singer on tour. At the peak of tango popularity in 1918 he entered the Gigolos, yet his stint proved short-lived. Once the tango’s vogue subsided he worked as a cartoonist for The Los Angeles Times. Music beckoned again in 1920 when he assembled the Latin American Band. Steady engagements at the Coconut Grove in Los Angeles and contributions to several musical shorts followed, but the ensemble reached its greatest prominence only after shifting to New York and becoming the resident orchestra at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel. Though reviewers faulted the group’s middle-of-the-road style, Cugat stayed loyal to his accessible approach and later remarked, “I would rather play 'Chiquita Banana' and have my swimming pool than play Bach and starve.” He and his orchestra held that post for sixteen years. Attractive female performers remained a hallmark of his presentations; after advancing Rita Hayworth’s early career he joined her in the film You Were Never Lovelier. His 1950s recordings spotlighted vocals by third wife Abbe Lane. By the mid-1960s he showcased his fourth wife, Charo, whom he promoted as a “folksinger.” Following retirement in 1970 Cugat settled back in Spain and died in Barcelona on October 27, 1990. The orchestra he left behind, initially directed by Tito Puente, later continued under dancer, musician, and vocalist Ada Cavallo.
