The Mambo All Stars Orchestra 50 Years of Mambo

Latin Beat Magazine, Feb, 2003 by Rudy Mangual

On November 24, 2002, Mambo Maniacs Records recorded a "live" tribute to Cuban bandleader Damaso Pérez Prado, the "King of the Mambo," by ah all-star cast of musicians under the name of The Mambo All Stars Orchestra. The concert and 2-CD set titled 50 Years of Mambo, commemorate the career of Pérez Prado and the longevity of the mambo era, a musical period extending from the late 1940s to the early 1950s, in which Prado functioned as its ultimate ambassador to the world.

Veteran bandleader/arranger/composer Germ n Pifferrer musically directed this big band mambo extravaganza, full of blaring colorful horns, bewitching arrangements and intoxicating Afro-Cuban rhythms. Featured Latin music icons include the likes of Cándido Camero, Ray Mantilla, Bobby Sanabria, Carlos Averhoff, Paquito Hechevarría, and Tony Barrero. With a duration of over 80 minutes, these "live" recordings of Pérez Prado mambo favorites includes the selections Qué Rico Mambo, Mambo en Trompeta, Bonito y Sabroso, Mambo # 5, Mambo 8, Patricia, Cerezo Rosa, and Concierto Para Bongó, plus many others. David Oquendo does an exceptional job on the lead vocals, with the aid of Deborah Avilés and Edwin Torres on chorus.