Beat mail

Latin Beat Magazine, Sept, 2003

On Sunday, July 13 in La Habana we Iost Francisco Repilado, better known as Compay Segundo and Enemelio Jiménez, brother of Generoso "El Tojo" Jiménez.

I met Compay twice and consider myself very fortunate to have been well acquainted with his accomplishments and standing in Cuban music history decades before the advent of the Buena Vista Social Club phenomenon. My uncles knew him way back in the '49s and because of them I was aware of him as I was with the importance of Oriente in the development of Cuban music.

When Compay Segundo was in Miami Beach for MIDEM and performed with ether Cuban artists in a "private, by invitation only" setting, I asked him why, if he was from southern Oriente province would he write about four obscure towns in northern Oriente, (Chan Chan). He replied, "Ask your older relatives, they'll know who my aunt was, la cantinera de Marcane, I used to spend a lot of time there as a young man visiting her."

Sure enough, my mom, aunts, uncles and other older former residents of Marcané confirmed his story about his aunt. By the way, in Cuba a cantinera(o) is not a bartender as in most Spanish speaking countries; it is a person who cooks and delivers to homes, a caterer on a daily basis.

I was extremely lucky enough to thank Compay in person for placing my sugar mill town in the mountains of rural northern Oriente on the musical map with the song Chan Chan. He was not the first one to write about Marcané in song, Los Compadres had a song called Caña Quemá (burned sugarcane) where they mention many small sugar mili towns including Marcané. However, Chan Chan made it around the world as the most recognized song from Buena Vista Social Club and has inspired over 50 versions, most of which I own, including a Japanese language take.

Another famous song written by Compay was Las Mujeres de Mayarí, women from a town he mentions in Chan Chan as well. That is the port town on the Bay of Nipe where, according to legend, the Virgen de la Caridad de Cobre appeared to save the lives of the three fishermen all named Juan, There is another town nearby called Mayarí Arriba, which is in the mountains just outside Loma Blanca and Guantánamo that Rudy Calzado wrote a song about ... La Botija de Abuelito. The late Pedro Manual "Rudy" Calzado and not Rodolfo, as many credit as his given name, was another Santiaguero but he told me he was often taken with his brothers to that portion of Oriente to visit their uncle who played la botija, hence the inspiration for that song.

Compay's grandchildren recently released a CD, Ecos of Siboney on the Pimienta label where he introduced his grandchildren; he taught them well and they will continue his legacy.

Accomplished saxophonist Enemelio Jiménez died at the age of 87. He was the brother of Generoso "El Tojo" Jiménez and recorded with his brother many times, He was part of the progressive Combo Siboney that included Tata Güines, Juanito Márquez, El Tojo, Rolito and others. They have a CD available, Live on CMQ Radio, late '50s, early '60s on the Bárbaro label. Enemelio was also on sevoral of Tojo's recordings including the legendary Trombón Majadero album reissued a few years ago on CO far the first time. I receivad the sad news from Miami through Tojo's son, Rubén "Tutty" Jiménez who is a drummer/percussionist with J P Torres' Super Son, Federico Brito's Danzón By Six and many other groups and recordings.

Arturo Gómez, Denver, CO, arturo@kuvo.org

Yo estaba hablando con un amigo que tenia una subscripción con ustedes sobre el reciente fallecimiento da Celia Cruz. Le mencioné que si se acordaba del nombre de una cantante venezolana que su vez tenia mucho parecido a la voz de Celia. Ella era segunda voz de ese grupo venezolano a finales de los años 80s hasta mediados de los 90s. Latin Beat escribió un reportage sobre ella en el 1995 o en el 1996 y creo que era por que se iba a ir como solista o por el parecido de las dos voces. Me podrian decir el nombre de ella, el nombre del grupo, si tiene grabaciones como solista y si sigue activa cantando. Victor M. Vicente, San Juan, PR-Queens, NY

Suggestions:

1. Stop printing articles on colored backgrounds, they are very difficult to read and enjoy

2. Very few people who only speak Spanish would subscribe because most of the magazine is in English, but the average reader who only speaks English has no idea what you are writing about in the Spanish articles

3. Great magazine, how about a little about San Diego once in a while?

4. Keep up all the Latin jazz articles. Barry Levine, California

Please send all correspondence to: Latin Beat Magazine 15900 Crenshaw Blvd. Suite 223 Gardena, CA 90249 email: info@larinbeatmagazine.com Letters will not be returned.