Lo último en música - Tt: Latin Beat Music Update - Artículo Breve

Latin Beat Magazine, Nov, 2000 by Nelson Rodríguez

Another year is coming to a close, as the music world gets deeper into the issue of Internet use and in particular, the Napster site and others like it. Throughout the year 2001 the issue of downloading music will be a huge debate.

The first salsa music DVD is now available with a 1974 Fania All-Stars performance featuring Celia Cruz: Guantanamera. Check out the fashions, the hairdos and great music including Quimbara, Bemba Colora, the Fania All-Stars Theme and many other great hits.

Ray Barretto is completing his latest CD and on it he collaborates with artists Los Muñequitos from Cuba, Bobby Sanabria and James Moody. Barretto has been successfully touring with his group New World Spirit and keeping busy.

One of the hottest CDs of the month has to be Yuri Buenaventura's Yo Soy, that is already playing all over the nation's clubs with the swinging tracks Salsa, Yo Soy, Cantares, and Mala Vida.

Tito Puente's The Best of The Concord Years is a beautifully designed package with 24 outstanding Latin jazz tracks selected from each of his Concord releases. Many of the selections in this compilation were re-arranged by Tito for the original recordings.

Orishas A Lo Cubano is a very good Latin alternative CD by four young Latin rappers with heavy Cuban music influences and the renowned Miguel "Angá" Diaz on percussion. I found it to be a very creative and hip production.

While there will be many holiday music releases this season including the return of classical ones like the Willie Colón and Hector Lavoe's Christmas album, and Yomo Toro's previous releases, two of the hottest new ones have to be It's a Cuban Christmas and The RMM Christmas Album. For close to a quarter century, Cuba would not celebrate Christmas until the Pope's visit three years ago that ended the ban on December 25, this holiest of holidays. It's A Cuban Christmas features spectacular versions of holiday classics done in a very Cuban style using the rhythms of chachachá, guaguancó, guaracha, son, rumba, and others. I loved the chachachá version of Jingle Bells, the danzón version of White Christmas, and the rumba of The Little Drummer Boy. The acts include Los Papines, Barbarito Torres, pianist extraordinaire Tony Pérez, Trio Cubamar, Beatriz Marquez, Orquesta Panorama, and Septeto Traje Nuevo among others.

The RMM Christmas Album is a compilation with music by Marc Anthony, Manny Manuel with El Topo, Descarga Boricua, Jerry Medina, Domingo Quiñones, Ravel, and new material by Kevin Ceballo, Vanessa & Yanko, Henry Rosario and Cheo Feliciano.

Los Jubilados are a nine-member group from Santiago de Cuba that recorded their first CD in 1998, after many years of being together. While eight of the members are veterans of the classic Cuban son, the ninth musician is a young trumpeter featured in the group. The title of their CD is Cero Farandulero, available from Corason Records.

Pianist Ernan López-Nussa brings Cuban and Brazilian music together on his CD From Havana To Rio, with the legendary percussionist Tata Güines as part of the quartet. Check out López-Nussa's strong classical background mixed with Cuban jazz.

Well, the holidays are nearing and the end of another year is almost here. There are still many great recordings being released before December. Next month I'll give you my year's end summary of recordings and my choices for the Top Ten CD Recordings of the year 2000. Chao.