LATIN & CARIBBAN MUSIC

 Sometimes what seems like an outrageous idea can also be so natural you wonder why nobody did it years ago - as in the case of Ska Cubano, who  mixes two popular rhythms and sounds of the Caribbean - the ska (pre-reggae) sound of Jamaica with the son-based musics of Cuba. The result? More fun than salsa or reggae.  You may not immediately know how to dance to this project, but if you don't find yourself wanting to dance and shake your body you must be dead. 

AY CARAMBA!  is the second recording from this London-based group (and now they push the envelope further by incorporating cumbia music from Columbia into the mix). The players come from all over the world, especially Cuba and Jamaica. Of course, before the Cuban revolution, Cuban performers were influenced by musics outside of Cuba like calypso, swing, jazz, etc.

 The music of Ska Cubano attempts to answer the question "what would have happened in Cuba and other nearby islands if the revolution hadn't happened?"

 Another exciting note about AY CARAMBA! is the debut of a new label, 'Cumbancha', from the former heard of A&R at the Putumayo label, the most successful ethnic music label of all time. Putumayo will be co-operating with Cumbancha in distributing and promoting its artists. Sounds like a win-win situation for everyone, including the artists and the listening public!

  After listening to many cds of modern as well as rootsy Brazilian music the last few years, I was not quite prepared for the gentleness of this work. This amazing new cd by long-time acclaimed singer and guitarist Rosa Passos harkens back to the golden days of bossa nova in the late 1950s and 1960s.   Imagine listening to Gilberto mixed with the most laid-back works of James Taylor and you begin to get the picture.

 Unlike most vocalists, Rosa Passos doesn't write lyrics but composes and arranges music. She has recorded many albums in the last 25 years or so, but ROSA is her first totally solo project. Long known as an exceptional vocalist, this project lets Rosa shine as a guitarist as well.

 Check out Cut 13, 'Fusion': gentle vocal meets fancy fretwork. Her vocals go from a subtle sexiness to an almost baby gurgle: too cute. It may not be evident on every tune, but like all the great bossa nova artists, Rosa Passos possesses a strong sense of swing.

 Before watching the DVD of MORO NO BRASIL I was rather proud that I knew of so many different styles of Brazilian music (approximately 8 styles): now, after viewing this film tour of  three major regions of Brazil and listening to the music styles of these areas, I realize that although I may know a lot more about Brazilian music forms than most Americans, it's only a drop in the bucket compared to all the different forms to be found in Brazil.

 Part of the reason this film MORO NO BRASIL exists is to preserve as many of these forms as possible. Director Mika Kaurismaki not only toured Brazil making this film and recording, but has now opened a nightclub dedicated to exposing people to these sounds.

 More than half of the tunes on MORO NO BRASIL were actually recorded at his club. That said, potential listeners should know that most of these recordings are not of commercial quality: much of the music is rather raw, similar to field recordings. Though some of the musicians and singers are polished professionals, most are not.

 Listening to this music can be somewhat jarring for someone who's chief exposure to Brazilian music is bossa nova.  Some of the music on MORO NO BRASIL is more aboriginal "American"  (a.k.a. "Indian" based), while other forms have a strong African base.

 Though not for everybody, MORO NO BRASIL - both the film and the cd - are real eye-openers. Are you up to the challenge?

  Like good danceable soca and calypso? Want to explore the roots of rap yet not put up with the nasty gangsta attitude? Well, the Caribbean is where it comes from: calypso singers were 'rappin' in Trinidad (and later all over the English speaking Caribbean) decades before hip hop artists in the USA discovered the style. Soca is a more modern style of calypso mixed with soul music. Stephen Samuel may not be the most famous artist in this style, but he is an artist deserving more attention: he's an excellent singer who can really put a lyric across.

 As he sings in English more people around the world can understand his lyrics. This is friendly music; this is fun music.

 Stephen is now living in the U.S.A. but entertains worldwide: if you can't get to a concert, SAM 0: TATA is the next best thing.

  Reminiscent of the work of Darrol Anger and particularly Mike Marshall's Brazilian-influenced work - at least until the rap on cut ten which is not in English - is LIVE AT MONTREAUX, featuring acoustic guitars, bass and violins with sax and cello.

 Gui Mallon prefers acoustic music, though he listens to electric and electronic music. He's played for royalty but prefers playing on the strets, and is a man of many contrasts.

 Jazz is so mixed in with so many musics: now it's controversial saying what is or what isn't jazz: LIVE AT MONTREAUX sounds more like true jazz than what I hear on the radio which is termed 'jazz'. No dancing; but plenty of challenging music.

 Black Peruvian music was unknown in the USA until relatively recently; yet this minority group from Peru's coastal area is spreading its influence worldwide. In AFRO the group Novalima attempts to get back to the roots of the Afro-Peru sound without sounding like a museum piece.

 Listeners at times will hear echoes of Cuban music and other Latin American sounds: even tidbits of Brazilian NYC salsa sounds surface from time to time, as well as older sounds from coastal West Africa and the Congo.

 Most of the music is very danceable, yet the musicians are not slaves to the dance: you might hear the roots of the cha-cha-cha here, but nothing as commercial as popular Cuban dance rhythms or disco.  AFRO is more subtle and substantial: acoustic strings with congas and bongos dominate the sound yet some electronic studio effects are used. 

 Female vocalist Miagros Guerrero has  pretty voice but it never dominates a song the way you would expect. There is no star here, unlike the recordings of Afro-Peruvian superstar vocalist Susanna Baca and others we've heard.

 It's the sound of the band that counts, and that sound is called AFRO: groovy in more ways than one.

Lataye leader Daniel ‘Dadi’ Beaubrun, formerly of the renowned Haitian group Boukmans Eksperyan, explores other aspects of Haitian/African roots music with his new group Lataye on TOU MANBRE. Where Boukmans was known for its fantastic rhythm, known as ‘vodou beat’, Lataye emphasizes group vocals without moving away from an African-based sound of choral music. This approach is unusual outside of South Africa and the beat’s seemingly sparse, but if you listen closely, there’s a lot of subtle things going on.

Dadi’s sister Marjorie and ex-Boukmans member helps out on vocals as well as songwriting and in person, dancing along with singer/dancers Sheila and Alex Tanisma.

It’s hard to imagine Lataye could be even better live: TOU MANBRE is so good from beginning to end: a very haunting sound.

What a wonderful introduction to the many myriad sounds of the Caribbean islands! Although Cuban music is not featured as it gets its own Putumyao cd, so pervasive is Cuban music in Latin America that we hear elements of compa, mento, ska and other sounds not as familiar to those outside their islands of origin.

It’s nice to know such pre-reggae sounds as mento still exist and are still evolving. Twenty years ago Haiti’s most popular style, compas, seemed to be in a stylistic rut and about to be left out in the cold by the emerging vodou rock sound, but Mika provides on ‘Bel Fanm’ that compas can absorb other styles and remain fresh.

Old friends such as the Skatalites keep the ska sound going with ‘Freedom Sounds’ – most interesting. Perhaps it’s the oddly-named Militant who delivers some delightful soca party sounds with ‘hot and groovy’, too.

The Caribbean has been one of the world’s greatest cooking pots of great music for over a hundred years, and Putuyamo’s CARIBBEAN cd proves it still is.

After more than forty years of listening to and collecting recordings of various music styles from around the world you’d think it would be difficult if not impossible to surprise me with a style that was all-new to me; but on the contrary, it happens at least once a month – as with Chango Spasiuk’s TAREFERO DE MIS PAGOS.

Chango Spasiuk plays a mean accordion in a style new to me called ‘chamame’. Chamame is from the northeastern provinces of Argentina: it originally evolved from a mating of Spanish and Native influences.

The accordion came later with the arrival of Eastern Europeans and eventually became the unofficial instrument ‘chamame’.

Like most musical forms chamame started with the rural poor workers, then spread into town. Chango Spasiuk is a sophisticated musician, so although his chamame can sound danceable and down home, most of the time it’s not.

Cellos and violins accompany many of the tunes similar to a chamber music performance. Listeners will be reminded of Astor Piazzola’s reinterpretation of tango.

TAREFERO DE MIS PAGOS is a challenging recording – and a treasure.

A Latin rock band that sounds nothing like Santana? Is it possible? It’s got a haunting, strange vocal, a strong beat reminiscent of Link Wray, and then add some post-Ornette Coleman ‘freestyle’ frantic horns and you have Zemog El Gallo Bueno, the craziest Puerto Rican-led group to ever come out of Boston.

Now relocated to New York City, leader Abraham Gomez-Delgado spends a great deal of time pondering what’s cool to whom and what may be cheesy to another. So many different sounds from all over are presented while trying to avoid the stereotype Santana/Tito Puente sounds.

The result: music that can be very intellectual one second, rocking or Latin-dance pulsating the next, constantly mixing influences: Cuba, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, USA, Europe, rock, jazz.

What Frank Zappa did for rock in the late 1960s and 70s Zemog el Gallo Bueno could do for Latin music today: pay attention – this group could be important!

Charanga Cakewalk is actually Michael Ramos, a semi-famous rock musician, and whomever he chooses to record with. Michael is mostly known as a former member of the Bo Deans and the Rembrandts. He makes his living touring and recording with everybody. Despite his pedigree rock/pop chops, Michael’s family roots are in Latin music.

On LOTERIA DE LA CUMBIA LOUNGE he gets to combine various popular styles with Latin music in some quirky ways.

Some tunes, like ‘Carmela’, are very catchy, some are humorous, many are spacey. Although there is very little true cumbia on here, some of the tunes are danceable. In fact, cut ‘La Cumbia Lounge’, is not lounge at all: it’s a dance tune; more cumbia meets salsa than lounge. Cut 13 is a ‘bonus track’, ‘Le Negra Celina’, remixed by Hex Hector. Tres cool. If the original cut #7 mix didn’t get your fet moving, the remix sure will.

There are some very tasty bits of music throughout LOTERIA DE LA CUMBIA LOUNGE: a great first effort for Charanga Cakewalk.

It’s amazing how in this day and age you can be a huge pop star in your native country and perhaps half the world, and yet a complete unknown in the USA: case in point, Lenine, whose music owes almost as much to rock as samba.

Many Brazilian artists have become popular in the U.S., but not anyone as pop as Lenine, who can sing a gentle ballad better than Sting, whom he occasional reminds me of – very sophisticated international pop, sometimes funky, sometimes gentle, sometimes rocking.

IN CITE and its hit single ‘Ningguem faz Ideia’ have garnered all sorts of awards in Brazil even though the whole thing, including the cd , was cut live in concert: no studio tricks, no overdubs – just lots of talent.

Like so many Brazilian singer/songwriters before him, Lenine prefers to communicate directly with his audience. Somebody put this man on a USA tour: he has a killer talent.

Another great compilation of the hottest music in the world today, Latin, from Putumayo is the gathering on BAILIA!

So many Latin musicians have been moving around the world and musicians from everywhere are listening to Latin music that it’s getting more and more difficult to tell where a recording artist comes from.

First up is Raul Paz from Cuba, but currently living in France. Cuba meets rap and flamenco with a hint of Columbia cumbia and bolero thrown in.

The Africando All stars sound more ‘Cuban’ than some of the Cubans on this cd do – i.e. the group Ng La Banda sound so modern, like the hottest salsa from New York – but they’re from Cuba.

Anyone remember the boogaloo fad from forty years ago? It’s back, courtesy of La-33, a group from Columbia where the cumbia was invented.

Gabriel Ross is from Puerto Rico, lives in Belgium and sings in English. His sound reminds me of NYC and London, England.

The entirely of BAILA is like this: a crazy mix of variations with a Cuban base: much fun!

Vocalist Flora Purim has been delighting American audiences for nearly forty years with her blend of Brazilian and American jazz. In the past she has explored electric jazz fusion and avant guard concepts, but it’s her softer, more acoustic sounds that seem to bring her the most fans, and FLORA’S SONG explores most of her interests but never gets too ‘far out’. Although she does do some vocal trilling that could be described as post-60s jazz scat, she uses it more for color than as a base to work from.

Husband Airto shows great restraint in his percussion explorations: some occasional driving rock like electric guitar fits like a love.

A real find for me was band member Diane Booker, a singer/composer/arranger and lyricist. If she doesn’t have a cd of her own, she should. All the players on FLORA’S SONG are terrific at what they do and no-one, not even Airto, gets to play on every tune.

Only Flora’s wonderful voice, which sounds better than ever.

Sol y Canto is a USA-based Latin band that leads a split existence: they sing in Spanish and English as well as playing concerts for kids one day, then playing a dance concert for adults the next night. Their recording career reflects this split personality.

TWICE AS MANY FRIENDS (aka EL DOBLE DE AMIGOS) on Rounder Kids is a great introduction to music for kids, especially Latin American and Caribbean music. Several styles are represented. As you’d expect, the tunes are mostly fun, getting the kids to dance with humor. Since rap came out of the Caribbean originally and it’s everywhere today, a little of that pops up – but it’s fun rap, not gangsta style at all.

Leaders of the group Rosi and Brian Amador have children of their own who also get to sing with the group. I get the feeling that all new tunes are tried out on the Amador children first.

All the musicians are originally from Latin America or the Caribbean: all are excellent musicians who could be playing in jazz bands if they wanted to.

This is even more evident on the music for adults cd EN TODO MOMENTO on Redwing Music. If the children’s cd hasn’t already convinced you Rosi Amador has a beautiful voice, her singing on EN TODO MOMENTO sure will. I should also mention Brain Amador is also a very good singer as well as a fine guitarist.

The music on EN TODO MOMENTO is primarily acoustic, though the band in concert switches between acoustic and electric instruments.

Though the front cover photo gives the impression this cd is going to be all-Cuban music, there’s a delightful mix of Cuban, Puerto Rican, Afro-Peruvian and some Afro-Celtic Venezuelan which the band invented.

If you like Andean flute music, Sol y Canto mixes some of that (kena) in also.