THE PEANUT VENDOR - Free Jazz Leadsheet

"The Peanut Vendor"—originally "El Manisero"—was composed by Moisés Simons in 1928. The landmark first recording was made in Havana by Rita Montaner, though the international breakthrough came with Don Azpiazú’s 1930 New York recording, which helped introduce Afro-Cuban music to a global audience.

The tune has been recorded by artists ranging from Stan Kenton to Louis Armstrong, reflecting its importance in Latin-jazz history. Structured more as a street-vendor chant than a conventional 32-bar song, it uses a repeated melodic refrain over syncopated Cuban rhythmic patterns.