Pepe Jaramillo (born José Jaramillo García; born October 27, 1921, Lerdo, Durango, Mexico; died April 30, 2001, Andalucía, Spain) was a notable Mexican pianist, composer, arranger, and recording artist. He was most active in London as an EMI recording artist in the 1960s and 1970s. Born in Lerdo, Durango, he began his professional music career playing in night clubs in Mexico City. Relocating to London, England, in his thirties, his many recordings and acclaimed concert appearances brought him international fame. At the age of 79, Jaramillo died of anemia in his sleep at his villa in Andalusia, Spain. Online, and within other sources, Jaramillo has often been confused with an Ecuadorean singer of the same name.

Both of Jaramillo's parents were originally from the state of Chihuahua, having relocated to Lerdo, Durango in 1908, the year he was born. Pepe's father was Vicente Baca Jaramillo and his mother was Doña Enriqueta García. He also had a sister and three brothers. Jaramillo's sister's piano-playing inspired the then-four-year-old to teach himself to play the instrument, largely by ear. His family soon arranged for private lessons with a local teacher, and Jaramillo later continued his private lessons with the director of the Mexican Conservatory of Music. In spite of his musical gifts, his family urged him to still have a back-up plan within a more stable profession. Thus, after studying dentistry for a frustrating two years, Jaramillo completed his higher education at the Academia de Negocios de Milton (Milton Business Academy), México City; he also devoted himself to learning English, French, Italian and Portuguese.

Jaramillo was employed for several years under a British mining company operating in the state of Chihuahua. One evening, while visiting the bar of the fashionable Ritz-Carlton in Mexico City, Jaramillo casually began "tinkering" on the grand piano in the hotel lobby for the entertainment of his friends; upon hearing his playing, hotel management promptly offered him a job playing in the Ritz-Carlton's night club. This marked the beginning of Jaramillo's lifelong musical career, during which he focused on the composition, arrangement and performance of various Latin American and Spanish musical styles, including Cuban cha-cha and rumba, boleros, and Brazilian samba, among others.

After a successful three-year term at the Ritz, Jaramillo was subsequently employed by friends who had opened the Quid Grill, a restaurant and bar. In turn, it was these friends' Hollywood actor friends who proved to be instrumental in introducing Jaramillo to the mainstream media, beginning in Mexico City; he also became highly sought after as an accompanist for visiting and touring vocalists and other musicians.

After a 1957 visit to Paris with his cousin (who was employed at the French Mexican embassy), Jaramillo fell in-love with Europe, ultimately deciding to relocate to London. He appeared on a radio series with the BBC called Stairway to the Stars. After answering a call on TV for musicians, Jaramillo sent a recording of some of his earlier Mexican releases to Norman Newell; soon thereafter, his 20-year recording career (spanning 1959–1979) as an EMI artist began.

As a seasoned professional performer in Mexico, at age 38 Pepe Jaramillo was well prepared to move to the international stage. Through his nightclub and theater performances in some of the world's major cities, he became known as the "Ambassador of México." His performance venues in the Americas included Los Angeles, Harlem, New York City, Miami, Colombia, and Buenos Aires (at Teatro Colón). European performances included (of course) London, Paris (at the Louvre), Madrid at (Plaza Mayor), Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Yugoslavia. During a world tour he performed in many theaters across Japan, (recording several releases there), and also performed in Tangier, Hong Kong (at the Mandarin Hotel), Thailand, and China. During his concert tour in Australia and New Zealand, he also performed with The Seekers. By popular demand, Pepe visited Durban (the Hotel Edward) and Johannesburg (the Dawson Hotel) for three tours of South Africa.

In London, Pepe gave a private performance for the family of the Duchess of Kent. "Also during a visit to London of [the] former President of México, Luis Echeverría, [Pepe was] invited to play at the reception hosted by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth and the Royal Family.."

Pepe Jaramillo rose to musical prominence during the mid 20th-Century's worldwide interest in Ballroom and Latin American dancing. In 1966, music critic Nigel Hunter explained Pepe Paramillo's appeal thusly: "A large part of Pepe's popularity and achievement undoubtedly lies in the utterly unpretentious simplicity of his style...[His approach] has been vindicated again and again by the impressive sales of his records, and the triumphs of his appearances...Being Mexican, Pepe has the Latin touch innately." Not to be overlooked is the fact that Pepe Jaramillo expanded his repertoire from traditional Latin American songs to one which included Broadway show tunes, music from movie soundtracks, and other popular songs of the day (all arranged to reflect authentic Latin American rhythms). In regard to the popularity of Pepe's authentic dance rhythms among dancers, "Peggy Spencer, the well known British dance teacher and formation team coach, [said] 'You haven't lived if you haven't danced to Pepe Jaramillo.'"