Yo soy Del Son a la Salsa

Latin Beat Magazine, Sept, 1997 by Rudy Mangual

The Movie

RMM Records President, Ralph Mercado, enjoying the tenth anniversary of his record label and 40 years in the Latin music industry, now inaugurates his film division, RMM Filmworks. The first production scheduled for theatre release in September is the documentary film Yo Soy Del Son A La Salsa. Directed by Cuban-born filmmaker Rigoberto López, this documentary-film traces the evolution of the music identified today as Salsa from its Cuban roots dating back to the late 1920s in Cuba.

López is one of the premier documentary filmmakers of today with over 25 completed works to his credit some of which are: De una vieja Habana (1968), Granada, despegué de un sueño (1983), and Los hijos de Namibia (1987).

One afternoon in 1995, in the city of Habana, Cuba, musicologist Radamé Giró introduced the late Dr. Vernon Boggs (sociology professor, author of the book Salsiology and Latin Beat Magazine journalist) to Rigoberto López, who conveyed certain ideas about a special project he was contemplating at the time. Vernon Boggs, whose love for this music and its people remains unequaled, discussed the project with Ralph Mercado soon after his return to New York City. This started the wheels turning and subsequently López was able to make his way to New York and personally meet Ralph Mercado to talk business. After analyzing the project, Ralph Mercado agreed to take on the venture and immediately López began his research.

With a limited budget as well as limited equipment, López started filming, shooting ten days in New York City, three days in Puerto Rico and eleven days in Habana, Cuba. For historical references the aid of numerous public and private archives were used as well as conversations with Tite Curet Alonso from Puerto Rico and dialogues with Nelson Rodríguez from Latin Beat Magazine. The film took a year to complete with the first edit done in Cuba, the music mixed in Mexico, and the final edit done in the U.S.

Through the magic of cinematography, Yo Soy Del Son A La Salsa documents a visual musical journey that travels from the Cuba of the late '20s where the son was born, to the legendary mambo era that rocked the world, to New York City's salsa explosion of the '70s, and back to today's progressive Cuban salsa craze.

Historical points are noted, such as the shift of the guard (musically speaking) in 1959 when the United States ended relations with Cuba and the development of most Caribbean music shifted to New York City, which quickly became the new mecca for Latin music in the free world.

Legends such as Machito, Mario Bauzá, Miguelito Valdés, and Israel "Cachao" López continued to produce their Cuban-influenced music to dancers in New York City and so did the young Puerto Ricans Tito Puente and Tito Rodríguez, who ruled during the Palladium days.

The fusion of Latin rhythms with the R&B sounds of the '60s also created its own unique movement reflected in the rhythm of the Boogaloo by artists Joe Cuba, Joey Pastrana, and Johnny Colón.

The urban lifestyle of New York's late sixties and early seventies brought about a blend of Cuban-based rhythms with heavy brass arrangements that morphed into the Salsa sound as we know it today. The film focuses on some of the artists of this period like Eddie Palmieri, Hector Lavoe, Fania All Stars, Ruben Blades, Willie Colón, Johnny Pacheco and Celia Cruz among others.

The film concludes with the progression of Salsa in today's Cuba showcasing the performance of Los Van Van, considered the number one Salsa group in Cuba. With a total time of 107 minutes, the film also features clips from performances by Oscar D'Leon, Marc Anthony, Larry Harlow, El Gran Combo, Dave Valentín, Cheo Feliciano, Gilberto Santa Rosa and many more. Cuban salsero Issac Delgado serves as the host and narrator of the film.

The soundtrack, available as of this writing, is a 2-CD, digitally remastered set that contains 36 tracks, chronologically arranged to follow the film. The biggest names in the history of Latin dance music and Latin jazz are included in this CD set. The first CD begins with traditional Cuban compositions, followed by Pérez Prado, Machito, Tito Puente, Benny Moré, and others, closing with Puerto Rico's pride and joy, Ismael Rivera with Cortijo y su Combo and El Gran Combo.

The second CD continues with the Boogaloo period featuring Joe Cuba's Bang, Bang, the charanga classic, El Bodeguero by Orquesta Aragón, followed by the greatest hits of the Salsa era by Eddie Palmieri, Hector Lavoe, La Sonora Ponceña, Larry Harlow, Oscar D'Leon, Fania All Stars, Celia Cruz with Johnny Pacheco and Ruben Blades with Willie Colón. Two new bonus recordings are also included in the soundtrack, from Marc Anthony, Aguanile, and Descarga a la Tito, featuring Tito Puente, Chucho Valdés and Dave Valentín.

Yo Soy Del Son A La Salsa covers a broad range of Salsa music, the way it was, and the way it is now.