Buena Vista Social Club
Released October, 2008
The Guardian Highest Rated Jazz Albums of All Time
YouTube: https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mC5qvfQuTBVUBl6yC40ZOYAer-loOPdL0
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/7gIpPRE9VDKCrMk08okn59?si=ed8E1nk4SyCn27fmvZHU2A
About:
As Cuban revolutions go, it was an entirely peaceable uprising – but its impact could not have been more profound. On the release of the Buena Vista Social Club™ album in 1997, few outside the specialist world music audience initially took much notice of the record’s elegantly sculpted tunes and warm, acoustic rhythms. Then something extraordinary occurred. The album was spectacularly reviewed by a few discerning critics, but although their words of praise did Buena Vista’s cause no harm, they cannot explain what subsequently happened. Good reviews create an early surge in sales, but unless it’s a big pop release sustained by an expensive TV advertising campaign, the established pattern is that interest then slowly tails off. Instead, Buena Vista’s sales figures kept steadily rising week by week, building almost entirely by word-of-mouth until it achieved critical mass: all who heard the record not only fell in love with Buena Vista’s irresistible magic, but were then inspired to play or recommend the album to everyone they knew. It was one of those rare records that transcended the vagaries of fad and fashion to sound timeless but utterly fresh. Once you heard it, you had to have a heart of stone not to be swept away by the music’s romantic impulses and uninhibited exuberance.
That its impact had made waves, far beyond the specialist world music audience was soon self-evident. Buena Vista went on to win a Grammy and its crossover success persuaded the cclaimed director Wim Wenders to make an award-winning feature film about the phenomenon.s Nick Gold, whose World Circuit label released the record, put it :record but nobody could have imagined how it would take
The record’s success launched what can only be described as Cuba-mania, helping to inspire a thousand salsa dance classes and Cuban-themed bars on every high street. At its peak, it seemed that you couldn’t move without hearing Buena Vista’s potent, captivating soundtrack : in coffee shops and mojito bars and even department stores and elevators songs such as Chan Chan, Dos Gardenias and Candela came to accompany our daily existence. Suddenly, Buena Vista was not so much a record as a brand, albeit one based on musical quality rather than marketing hype. Even Salman Rushdie, in his New York novel Fury, paid tribute to its all-pervasive power, describing the long, hot days of 1998 as “that Buena Vista summer”.
On the album’s release, Nick Gold had hoped that, given a fair wind, Buena Vista might ¬-Today the album’s global sales stand at over eight million, making it the biggest-selling Cuban album in history. As one critic put it, Buena Vista has become “world music’s equivalent of The Dark Side of the Moon.”
Yet few could have predicted this iconic success when the veteran musicians who recorded Buena Vista assembled in the run-down Egrem studio in Havana in 1996. They weren’t even a formal group, but a loose collective, spanning several generations and assembled more-or-less spontaneously for the occasion. Indeed, the group that came together was in essence an accident: the original intention had been to make an experimental hybrid record bringing together African and Cuban musicians, but the African musicians failed to turn up because of visa problems. In fact the original idea had been to record not one but two albums. The first was Juan de Marcos González’ dream project – an album celebrating the continued vitality of Cuban music’s golden age – the 1940’s and 1950’s. He hand-picked and recruited a multi-generational big band which he called the Afro Cuban All Stars and in a week they had recorded their brilliant debut album ‘A Toda Cuba le Gusta’ (‘All Of Cuba Likes It’). The following day recording of the Mali – Cuba collaboration album was due to start, but as the Africans were unavailable World Circuit’s Nick Gold, American Producer Ry Cooder and band leader Juan de Marcos were forced to improvise.
The veteran pianist Rubén González, who didn’t own a piano at the time had been persuaded out of retirement by Juan de Marcos for the All Stars album. Not that it took much coaxing: despite his years of inactivity, his playing was on fire and so eager was he to get to the piano that every morning when the janitor turned up to unlock the studio doors, he was already waiting outside. The singer Ibrahim Ferrer, who was scraping a living shining shoes and selling lottery tickets, was also rescued from obscurity – and proceeded to sing his heart out. Eliades Ochoa the great guitarist and singer provided the rural roots from Santiago. Omara Portuondo was recruited as the company’s leading lady and the rich, resonant voice of the 89 year-old Compay Segundo provided a link with Cuba’s deepest musical past. “He knew the best songs and how to do them because he’d been doing it since World War One,” as Ry Cooder noted.
Yet this stellar line-up of singers was only part of the story. Behind them were some of the finest musicians Cuba had to offer, including the bassist Orlando ‘Cachaíto’ López, who provided the heartbeart, trumpet player Manuel ‘Guajiro’ Mirabal, who added the flair, and Barbarito Torres the virtuoso laoud player. In the space of two weeks World Circuit’s Havana recording blitz produced not only the Afro Cuban All Stars and the Buena Vista Social Club™ albums but also the debut solo album by Rubén González.
When they had finished recording, Ry Cooder knew that he had been privileged to be part of a unique musical experience. “This is the best thing I was ever involved in,” he said prior to Buena Vista’s release in June 1997. “It’s the peak, a music that takes care of you and nurtures you. I felt that I had trained all my life for this experience and it was a blessed thing.”
In Cuba, he noted, he had found the kind of deeply rooted musical context that he had been searching for all his life. “These are the greatest musicians alive on the planet today,” he enthused. “In my experience Cuban musicians are unique. The organisation of the musical group is perfectly understood. There is no ego, no jockeying for position so they have evolved the perfect ensemble concept.”
Following the recordings, the musicians hit the road and extensive tours were undertaken by Rubén González, Ibrahim Ferrer, the Afro Cuban All Stars, Eliades Ochoa, Omara Portuondo and Compay Segundo. The original line up of the Buena Vista Social Club made three triumphant concert appearances; two at Amsterdam’s Carré Theatre and the final legendary show at New York’s Carnegie Hall. The latter was filmed by Wim Wenders as the climax of his successful documentary also named “Buena Vista Social Club™”, and the concert recording was released ten years later as “Buena Vista Social Club® at Carnegie Hall”. Over the years World Circuit has continued to travel to Havana recording acclaimed albums by Ibrahim Ferrer, Omara Portuondo, Rubén González, Cachaíto López, Guajiro Mirabal and Angá Díaz, who had been an integral part of the Afro Cuban All Stars. Sadly, several of the group’s aging stars, including Compay Segundo, Rubén González and Ibrahim Ferrer are no longer with us. But the timeless, magical music that created the Buena Vista legend lives on. Omara Portuondo has been extremely busy having recorded two albums, one with Brazilian star Maria Bethania and a solo album due for release in autumn 2008; her tours continue to sell out concert halls around the world. Juan de Marcos González is ever active: working on musical productions in Mexico and forming a new edition of the Afro Cuban All Stars. Eliades Ochoa embarks on a new European tour in the autumn of 2008 and has been working on material for a new solo album. Cachaíto López, Guajiro Mirabal, Aguaje Ramos, Manuel Galbán, Amadito Valdés and Barbarito Torres are touring the world to great acclaim as part of the Orquesta Buena Vista Social Club.
Track Listing:
Disc 1
1. Chan Chan (Compay Segundo) 4:45
2. De Camino a la Vereda (Ibrahim Ferrer) 4:58
3. El Cuarto de Tula (Sergio Siaba) 8:00
4. La Engañadora 2:44
5. Buena Vista Social Club 5:59
6. Dos Gardenias 4:23
7. Quizás, Quizás (Osvaldo Farrés) 3:47
8. Veinte Años 4:06
Disc 2
1. Orgullecida (Eliseo Silveira) 3:23
2. ¿Y Tú Qué Has Hecho? 3:33
3. Siboney (Ernesto Lecuona) 2:32
4. Mandinga 5:29
5. Almendra 5:49
6. El Carretero (Guillermo Portabales) 5:38
7. Candela (Faustino Oramas) 7:00
8. Silencio 5:25
Personnel:
Juan de Marcos González: bandleader, backing vocals, güiro
Ry Cooder: guitars
Rubén González: piano
Ibrahim Ferrer, Omara Portuondo, Hugo Garzón, Pío Leyva, Manuel ‘Puntillita’ Licea: vocals
Manuel ‘Guajiro’ Mirabal, Octavio Calderón: trumpet
Jesús ‘Aguaje’ Ramos: trombone
Compay Segundo, Eliades Ochoa: guitar, vocals
Benito Suárez Magana: guitar
Barbarito Torres: laoud
Orlando ‘Cachaíto’ López, Salvador Repilado: bass
Joachim Cooder: drums, percussion
Alberto ‘Virgilio’ Valdés: maracas, backing vocals
Amadito Valdés: timbales
Angel ‘Terry’ Domech: congas
Roberto García: bongos, cowbell, güiro
Recorded on 1st July 1998 at Carnegie Hall, New York.
Producer: Ry Cooder
Mixed at Bay 7 Studios, Valley Village, California
Review:
There is an old joke about a young
man walking the streets of New York City with a violin case under his arm.
After failing to find the address he’s looking for, he stops and asks the first
person he sees for directions. “How do I get to Carnegie Hall?” he
inquires. Without blinking an eye, the other man replies, “Practice, my
dear man, practice.” Ten years ago this prestigious hall, which has
witnessed some of the best musicians and bands through the ages, hosted a
“one-off” event featuring the Buena Vista Social Club band.
It has been said that every artist who stands on the Carnegie stage is standing
on history anchored by excellence. And surely, the Buena Vista debut cannot be
described otherwise than as momentous. Beside becoming the all-time best
selling record in the world music genre, the Buena Vista Social Club (World Circuit, 1997) studio album did
something more than that—it promoted Cuban culture in a way that hadn’t been
done before (or since Tony Montana). The record was brimming with magic and
full of songs from the vast trove of musical treasures with which Cuba is
plentiful.
But the performance at Carnegie Hall on the 1st of July 1998 remains the
pinnacle of the Buena Vista project. Ten years after the event, Buena Vista Social Club at Carnegie
Hall has been, at last, released—for everyone who was there to remember,
and everyone else to enjoy.
It’s possible that no music has ever appealed to so many people around the
globe as has Cuban music. With so many different roots and influences, no
wonder it has enchanted and seduced such a diverse collection of peoples.
Somehow there is something for everyone. The island’s music, instruments and
dances are mostly of European (particularly Spanish) and African origin. Most
forms of the present day are creolized fusions and mixtures of these two great
sources. Large numbers of African slaves and European (mostly Spanish)
immigrants came to Cuba and brought their own forms of music to the island.
There were even Chinese indentured laborers later in the 19th century.
All these peoples brought their musics and instruments and the plethora of
influences spawned a myriad of styles. Since the 19th century, Cuban music has
been hugely popular and influential throughout the world and has produced many
celebrated artists and songs. Through the years, music has been the most exported
Cuban product beside cigars, rum and revolutions.
But the Buena Vista Social Club album,
the Wim Wenders film and subsequent solo recordings by some of the participants
were truly a revolution. Artists like these don’t come along too often, and
though some of them were well known and respected prior to Buena Vista, it took
70, 80 or 90 years for their 15 minutes of fame to come on a global level.
The music throughout Buena Vista Social Club at Carnegie Hall is a deep pleasure—melodic and full of warmth. The songs beg for motion from the listener. “Chan Chan” will surely draw a smile on your face as soon as you hear the now familiar chords. It is impossible to remain still while listening to songs like “Candela,” “El Cuarto de Tula” and “El Carratero,” as they raise the temperature with impassioned vocals and faster tempos. The boleros—”Quizas, Quizas,” “Veinte Anos” and “Dos Gardenias”—are magnificent. There are three tracks heard on Introducing Ruben Gonzales (World Circuit, 1997)—”Mandinga,” “Siboney” and “Almendra.”
As for guitarist (and producer) Ry Cooder, his performance may be surprising to those familiar only with his signature style. Here he’s a tender and sensitive contributor who never dominates (check “Silencio”). Cooder nevertheless plays a key role in an ensemble that has produced a highly enjoyable debut. Glimpses of the triumph at Carnegie Hall can be seen in the Wenders movie, where the group is seen performing “Chan Chan” for their encore (not included on the audio disc), and when bandleader Juan de Marcos’ aunt brought the Cuban flag on the stage. With high-spirited ecstasy sprinkled throughout this recording, Buena Vista Social Club at Carnegie Hall is a hard album to sit still through, and an even harder one to listen to just once. These songs recapture the magic of the studio record. They shine with the same glow and evoke an era that is long gone.
Nenad Georgievski (AllAboutJazz)