Pick Of The Month - Reseña

Latin Beat Magazine, Nov, 2000

VARIOUS ARTISTS

Latin Beats: A Tribute To Tito Puente

(Mr. Bongo)

This production from Mr. Bongo Classic Latin Recordings out of London, England, pays tribute to the late king of the timbal, Tito Puente. Through a compilation of 18 tracks of which six correspond to Puente-- Tito's Odyssey, Watu Wasuri, Black Brother, Hit The Bongo, 110th & 5th Av., and Oye Como Vá. The CD also features two classic compositions from master conguero Ray Barretto (Cocinando and Soul Drummers). Other percussive masterworks include the opener, Hotel Alyssa Soussie by Sabú Martinez, Jive Samba by Jack Costanzo and Gerry Woo, and Land of Love by Louie Ramírez. Joining the tribute from the island of Cuba are Los Van Van, who supply their unique sound with the selections Llegada and Llegé Llegé -- Guararey De Pastoria; trombonist/bandleader Juan Pablo Torres with the selection Rompe Cocorico, and closing the production, Benny Moré and his big band interpreting the classic Babarabatiri, a selection Tito Puente performed and recorded many times throughout his long career. The CD package displays some interesting artwork as well as some memorable photographs of Tito Puente and actor Marlon Brando playing congas. --Rudy Mangual

¡RETUMBA!

A WOMEN'S AFRO-CARIBBEAN DANCE & PERCUSSION ENSEMBLE

Retumba is a multi-lingual, multi-ethnic, multi-racial all-female Afro-Caribbean dance and percussion ensemble first founded in 1981 by Yvette Martínez in New York City. The ensemble draws from the folkloric roots of Cuba, Puerto Rico, Haiti and the Dominican Republic as well as Africa and Brazil to demonstrate the rich diversity and underlying similarities of the many people that make up the human mosaic. Elements of Retumba's performances include dancing and playing to the rhythms of the Cuban guaguancó, the Puerto Rican bomba and plena, the Dominican merengue, Haitian ibo and banda, and the Brazilian samba, among many other fiery rhythms. For over nineteen years Retumba (originally named "Retumba Con Pie" meaning resounding with feet or resounding with dance) has been exciting audiences with their warmth, powerful and visual performances when they grace the stages of the Lincoln's Center Out-of-Door Festival, Avery Fisher Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Clearwater Music Revival and the New Jersey Performing Arts Center State Theater, as well as the Village Gate, S.O.B's, and the Club Broadway. For the last fifteen years they have been bringing performances, workshops and residencies to the public schools in New York City by way of various arts-in-education programs. "This group demonstrates that women are capable and are able to do supposedly what is a man's kind of role in music," said Ms. Martínez. She also adds that the focus on women, while a strong aspect of the ensemble, was only one part of Retumba. Equally as important for the group, she said, was the emphasis on remembering and celebrating the differences as well as the similarities among our cultures. Retumba recently celebrated the debut release of their CD ¡Retumba! Live ¡Retumba! The production features original, traditional and world music from the all-female ensemble. --Rudy Mangual

JORGE BERMUDEZ

BERMUDEZ TRIANGLE

A native of Managua, Nicaragua, Jorge Bermúdez entered the San Francisco music scene in 1972 at age 17, with the popular group Malo. Since then Bermúdez has assembled a musical portfolio of credits performing with the majority of California's west coast and San Francisco's Bay area bands and artists (San Francisco's renowned percussion and dance troupe "Escola Nova de Samba"); recorded on the worldwide hit single Don't Dream It's Over with Crowded House; Mickey Hart's Planet Drum CDs (Mystery Box and Supralingua); Jeffrey Osbourne's Emotional album; movie soundtracks "Weird Science" and "I'm Gonna Get You Sucka," and television jingles like the bongo work at the opening of Judge Wopner's "People's Court" show seen on syndicated TV daily.

By 1986, Bermúdez assembled his own group, Bermúdez Triangle, a band that has always been a platform for West Coast musicians. In 1988, they recorded a bilingual dance single called Bongoland, chosen as the Billboard Dance Pick of the Week back then. This song earned Bermúdez Triangle national television coverage while performing at the popular Calle Ocho street festival in Miami, Florida. Their music has also been licensed to Jazzercise Corporation internationally for their workout videotapes.

Most recently, Bermúdez and his triangle of musical friends produced their first CD, Are the Women Dancing. The composition Cu Cu Cumbia from the production was featured on the CBS TV film "The Corpse Had A Familiar Face". The song also opened the Columbia TriStar Film "Broken Hearts League".

Jorge Bermúdez is a clinician for Remo Drums and Sabian Cymbals. He was a percussion columnist from 1992 until 1998 for Drum Magazine and is an occasional guest writer for Latin Beat Magazine. --Gil Rivera