Thursday, April 30, 2009

Orquesta Sublime - "A Bailar Boogaloo Con La Sublime" - Cuba

"A Bailar Boogaloo Con La Sublime"
'Orquesta Sublime'
Vinyl LP on Bonita
With several songs never reissued on CD
The title says "Boogaloo"... but there is no Boogaloo on this LP at all.
During the 1960's, it was very common to use the term "Boogaloo" as a marketing strategy.

7. El Escrupuloso - A Pasear En Coche
It goes into "A Pasear En Coche", which "Chocolate" did
a great version of on his 1st LP with Marcelino Guerra

12. El Tiempo Te Lo Dirá



"El Divertido"
'Orquesta Sublime'
Vinyl LP on Bonita
The 12 songs on this LP have been reissued on CD

Gilberto Diaz y Conjunto Colonial - Miami - Cuba

"Gilberto Diaz y Conjunto Colonial" 
Maype vinyl LP - 196?

Vocalist 'Gilberto Diaz' led a band with a very typical "conjunto sound" in the mid 1960's in Miami Florida, reminiscent of Roberto Faz's Conj. Casino.A tight band with a great swing.
They have three recordings, this is the best one, includes a nice version of "Bacunayagua" that 'Conjunto Saratoga' also did.

3. Bacunayagua
 
5. La Guasima

6. El Bobo Y La Pachanga


10. Ahi Na' Ma'


11. Cuba De Mi Corazon




"Oye Pollito!" 
"El Biberon"

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Lou Peréz - Pianist, flautist, composer & arranger -N.Y.C.



Lou Peréz was born in New York City in 1921, his father was Cuban, his mother Puerto Rican.
He and his parents moved to Cuba when he was four years old, then moved back to the the U.S. when he was 12 or 13 years old.

A "masterful musician and arranger", 'Lou Peréz' wrote between 300 and 500 compositions, played drums and vibraphone, his main instruments were flute and piano. He also sang.
As a young musician, he was involved in the bands of Gilberto Valdés, Noro Morales and Belisario López among many others.
He wrote music for T.V. commercials and films as well.


'Lou Peréz' very sadly died in N.Y.C. in 2005, the result a car accident. He was 77 years old.
One of his sons, 'Ron' is a V.P. of a computer corp., his other son 'Louis A. Perez Jr.' is a professor at the University Of North Carolina and author of the following books:
"Cuba: Between Reform and Revolution" - 1988
"Cuba and the United States" -1990
"Guide to Cuban Collections in the United States" - 1991
"Cuba" - 1995
"On Becoming Cuban" - 2001
"Cuba: Picturing Change" - 2002
"To Die In Cuba" - 2005
(all 7 books available on Amazon.com)

I never had the good fortune to play with
Lou Peréz , although I met him several times near the end of his life. He was a true gentleman, very personable... with great soul.
This is not a definitive discography or biography, just twelve great recordings by him.
I really like Lou's music and his playing, and that he chose to have 'Marcelino Guerra' singing on several of these LP's.


"Para La Fiesta Voy" - 1961
(Reissued on CD)
Rudy Calzado vocal & coro

"Bon Bon De Chocolate!" - 1962
(Ajay vinyl LP)
Rudy Calzado: vocal

7. "Asi Se Baila Mi Son"



"Que buena está... Elena!!"

Elena Madera was from N.Y.C. with a Cuban mother & West Indian father.
Her singing style and voice was brusque, harsh & screechy ("torrid"?)... but Lou's arrangements and band sound great .

Early 1960's
vinyl LP, nothing really special.

6. Hermosa Tierra

11. Canto Karabali


"Tamboleo"
1964?
Marcelino Guerra: coro
(Reissued on CD but they took everything from vinyl)

6."Mamá, Mamá, Mamá"

10. "Bodas De Oro"

11. "Oye Tu Veras"



Lou Peréz and his Orq.
Recorded in N.Y.C. - 1966
Lou Peréz: flute & vocal, Cachao: acoustic bass,

Marcelino Guerra: vocal & coro, "El Negro" Vivar: trumpet,
Alberto Fajardo & Pupy Legarreta violins.
(possibly obscure rough mixes)

The odd thing about this is that the songs are the same as on the LP "Of Latin Extraction".. but the mixes are different. For example, on "Adios Amor", Lou Perez is singing... but the same song on the LP "Of Latin Extraction" below, there is no vocal.
I have listened to both recordings closely, these are the same songs, but perhaps these may be the original 'rough mixes' before the actual LP "Of Latin Extraction" was released.

Marcelino Guerra is definitely singing, but there is no mention of his name and no mention of Alejandro "El Negro" Vivar on trumpet or Alberto Fajardo & Pupy Legarreta on the LP.

3. "Adios Mi Amor"
Vocal: Lou Peréz
(version with vocal)

6. "En Carne Propia"
Vocal: Lou Peréz
Trumpet: Alejandro "El Negro" Vivar


"Of Latin Extraction"
Vinyl LP on the Madrid label

Marcelino "Rapindey" Guerra sings on several songs as well as in the coro and Alejandro "El Negro" Vivar plays trumpet on one song, but their names are not listed on the LP.
"Cachao" plays his ass off!!

4. "Guantanamo"

6. "Martina"
(Lou's great composition in 5/4 & 3/4)

7. "El Palo Tiene Curujey"
Vocal: Marcelino Guerra

12. "Guantanamera"
Vocal: Marcelino Guerra



"Barrio"
1972 Parnaso vinyl LP

3. "No Tienes Gandinga"
Vocal: Marcelino Guerra


"¡Que Calor!"
Lou Peréz y su Conjunto Tipico1974

(Originally on Parnaso, this is a Seeco pressing)

Leader, conductor & Flute: Lou Perez
Vocal on several songs: Roberto Torres
Piano: Larry Kiviat

Bass: Israel "Cachao" López (Ibayé bayé tonu)
Timbales: Nicky Marrero
Conga: Ray Mantilla
Bongoes: Manny Oquendo (Ibayé bayé tonu)
Trumpets: Alfredo "Chocolate" Armenteros & Alberto "Panama" De Mercado

2. "El Reloj De Pastora"
Comp: Arsenio Rodriguez
Vocal: Marcelino Guerra


"Fantasia Africana"
1975 CD
Javier Vazquez: piano
Virgilio Marti: tumbadoras
Osvaldo "Chihuahua" Martinez: Güiro

"Nuestra Herencia"
1976 Tico vinyl LP
With Edy Martinez: Piano.
Israel "Cachao"Lopez: bass.

Julito Collazo, "Cachete" Maldonado & Steve Berrios: Batá drums.
1. "Our Heritage" (mini suite)

5. "No Hay Nada Como El Son"

8. "Mi Matanzas"


"De Todo Un Poco"
1977 Vinyl LP
With Edy Martinez on piano,
Julito Collazo, Batá.


"Lou Perez And His New York N.Y. Sound"
197?
3. "El Miri Miron"
Vocal: Marcelino Guerra


"Lou Peréz Live At The Palladium N.Y.C."
Sacodis label - 1979
(thanks to "Odara" for the photo)

'Louis Armstrong' & 'Lou Peréz'
Roseland Ballroom N.Y.C. 1966

The late Sonora Matancera guitarist Rogelio Martínez, the late Lou Peréz and the late Israel "Cachao" Lopez. 1970's
R.I.P.

*If anyone knows how to make a page in 'Wikipedia',
Lou Peréz should have his own page!

Swine Flu - The better mask to get. "Reality is real"

This is the "N95" made by the 3M company. This is the better mask to have.
The masks you see them giving to people in the street in Mexico are of very poor quality and inferior compared to the "N95".
(Do you really think they're giving them the proper masks)

I just bought a box of 20 for $17.95, I'll keep a few and give a few to my Mother who is 82 years old.


I'm in New York City, where the highest "confirmed cases" have been found in the U.S.
If you go down into the Subway system, you encounter people who are sneezing and coughing all over the place. If you have to get on an airplane... the "N95" is the mask to have.
(short of having to buy a respirator)


Some of you may laugh this off, and some of you are "realists".
My ex girlfriend actually thinks this is all bullshit and we are being "lied to" and it's all a "conspiracy" and there's no such thing as "Swine Flu".

"Reality is real" baby.

Dr. 'Sanjay Gupta', nurosurgeon and CNN chief medical corespondent uses a N95 mask made by 3M.

Monday, April 20, 2009

Sunday, April 19, 2009

Live radio broadcasts radio CMQ - Vivo La Habana, Cuba 1953-1958

Radio CMQ
La Habana, Cuba 1953-1958


"Fefita"
Fajardo y sus Estrellas
Elio Valdés' violin solo, Tata Güines, tumbadoras

"Tiene Sabor"
Abelardo Barroso with Orq. Sensacion
Juan Pablo Miranda: flute

"Pare Cochero"


"Cosas Del Alma"
'Raúl Planas' with Orq. Kubavana, two boleros:

"No Me Pidas"


Celio Gonzales with Sonora Matancera,
killer timbalito solo in the middle,
by
José Rosario Chávez
"Manteca"


'José Rosario Chávez' ("Manteca")
(playing timbalito)

Saturday, April 18, 2009

"Book of the month"

"Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent."
Author: 'Eduardo Galeano'
(I read this book 30 years ago)


Septeto Turquino - Cuba

Of the many contemporary "young generation" of groups playing Son & Guaracha in Cuba, 'Septeto Turquino' is one of my favorites.Great tres playing, tight vocals and a bongocero with his own interesting style that swings.
Their earlier three recordings are for me are their best, the addition of trombone in the later recordings I'm not too crazy about.

"Son Para Los Rumberos"

1. "Que Me Haces"


"Hasta El Gato"


"Cuba, Tu Mi Amor"


"Amor A Santiago"

"Son De Altura"