Putumayo Presents: Rumba, Mambo, Cha-Cha-Ch¿¿

Overview

Putumayo can usually be counted on to make some unlikely choices when they assemble a world music compilation. A Celtic compilation from Putumayo, for example, might have some artists from Africa and other places that are far from Scotland and Ireland; a reggae compilation from Putumayo probably isn't going to focus exclusively on major reggae stars from Jamaica. And Putumayo Presents: Rumba, Mambo, Cha-Cha-Cha is an Afro-Cuban compilation that has its share of artists who aren't from Cuba, Puerto Rico, New York City, or Miami (which are the places one typically associates with salsa and Afro-Cuban music). Most of the selections on this 2011 release are 21st century recordings that recall the Afro-Cuban music of the '40s and '50s; in other words, they are a throwback to a pre-Fania Records era of Afro-Cuban music. Some of the tracks, however, are experimental; "Esperanza" by Scotland's Salsa Celtica blends salsa and Celtic music, while "E.L.S." by Belgium's Internationals is an instrumental that combines salsa and ska. Many of the other artists, in contrast, faithfully emulate the Afro-Cuban music of the '40s and '50s, including Cuba's J. Joaquin Oliveros on "Me Lo Dijo Adela" (which favors an old-school charanga sound), Orquesta la Moderna Tradicion's "Mi Chachacha," and Chicago-based bandleader Angel Melendez's performance of Louiguy's "Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White," aka "Cereza Rosa," "Cerisier Rose et Pommier Blanc," or "Gummy Mambo" (which salseros associate with the Perez Prado hit mambo version from 1955). But if a recording on this 42-minute CD has a sound that is classically Afro-Cuban, that doesn't necessarily mean that the artist lives in a place that is anywhere near the Americas. Tres Muchachos & Companeros, for example, are from Russia, although their recording of "Pa' Mantener Tradicion" is straight-up Afro-Cuban. For the most part, Rumba, Mambo, Cha-Cha-Cha doesn't push the envelope to the degree that other Putumayo compilations have pushed the envelope; the main idea is artists from different parts of the globe celebrating the son, mambo, guajira, and cha-cha of yesterday, not trying to point Afro-Cuban music in any new directions. Nonetheless, there are some interesting surprises here and there. And even the tracks that aren't overly adventurous (which is the majority of them) are still enjoyable. ~ Alex Henderson

Product Details

Release Date:	04/05/2011
Label:	PUTUMAYO WORLD MUSIC
UPC:	0790248030821

Tracks

1. Guajira y Chachacha  -  Conjunto Massalia  - Doume Gaspari
2. Potpourri de Cha Cha Cha  - Richard Egues  - Jose A. Fajardo Ramos  - Rosendo Jr. Ruiz  -  Tradicuba
3. Mambo #5  -  Fruko y Sus Tesos  - Perez Prado
4. Esperanza  -  Salsa Celtica
5. Mi Chachach¿¿  -  Orquesta La Moderna Tradicion
6. Cereza Rosa  -  Melendez  - Perez Prado
7. Oriente  -  Asere  - Luis Marquetti  - Michael Padron
8. Me Lo Dijo Adela  - Joaquin J. Oliveros  - Otilio Portal
9. E.L.S.  -  Internationals  - Hans Schroeven
10. Pa' Mantener Tradici¿¿n  - Jimmy Bosch  -  Tres Muchachos & Companeros

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Conjunto Massalia   Primary Artist
Tradicuba   Primary Artist
Tres Muchachos & Companeros   Primary Artist
Joaquin J. Oliveros   Primary Artist
Angel Melendez & The 911 MAMBO Orchestra   Primary Artist
Fruko y Sus Tesos   Primary Artist
Asere   Primary Artist
Orquesta La Moderna Tradicion   Primary Artist
Salsa Celtica   Primary Artist
Internationals   Primary Artist

Technical Credits

Dan Storper   Executive Producer,Song Selection
Lane Gibson   Mastering
Luis Marquetti   Composer
Doume Gaspari   Composer
Michael Padron   Arranger
John McQueeney   Project Coordinator
Nicola Heindl   Cover Art
Liliane Van Balberghe   Design
Jacob Edgar   Research,Liner Notes,Project Coordinator
Kaitlin Ketchum   Project Coordinator
Rosendo Ruiz Jr.   Composer
Jose A. Fajardo Ramos   Composer
Hans Schroeven   Composer
Otilio Portal   Composer
Nathan Crandall   Project Coordinator
Richard Eguees   Composer
Perez Prado   Composer
Jimmy Bosch   Composer
Jessica Jones   Project Coordinator,Research
Tres Muchachos & Companeros   Arranger