At 37, L.A.-based Alex Acuna could honestly call himself—if he weren’t so self effacing—one of the world’s most versatile drummer/percussionists. Though most people know his mid-Seventies work with the globe-hopping Weather Report, many are unaware of the depth of his Latin chops (schooled in Peru and Puerto Rico), his pit and show work (in Las Vegas and on the hotel strip in San Juan), his studio rep (now, in Los Angeles. He recently recorded with Chick Corea and Paco De- Lucia), and even his rock-pop work (currently, with Lee Ritenour and Friendship). And fewer still have heard a new but sensational band Acuna helps fuel—Koinonia, a fixture in L.A. clubs for the last few years, and a group soon to record (also featuring bassist Abraham Laboriel, keyboardists Michael Omartian and Harlan Rogers, reedmen Justo Almario and John Phillips, guitarists Hadley Hockensmith and Dean Parks, and drummer Bill Maxwell). For […]

May 1982 Issue