The Best of Salsa Classes, Salsa Clubs, Salsa Events
Co-Author "Find the Rhythm" & Founder of London's Carnival de Cuba

London Salsa Scene Review                 Thursday 2nd July 2009

Alex Wilson's Uplifting Roots - Return of Reggae's Super Heroes

THE UK'S TOP LATIN PIANO MAN ALEX WILSON AND ASWAD'S LEGENDARY DRUMMER KENRICK ROWE & THEIR STEAMY UPLIFTING ROOTS CREW DISHED UP A TERRIFIC NIGHT'S ENTERTAINMENT, first time I've seen the whole of the cool Soho Jazz Club audience on their feet bopping away for a closing number, writes Lee Knights.

         This is Alex Wilson at his most intimate and seductive, if you didn't get to opening night (Wednesday 1st July), make sure you make it to one of this crew's three remaining shows at Soho's Pizza Express Jazz Club, 10 Dean Street, London, W1D 3RW (last chance, Saturday 4 July).
          What gets me about this crew is you haven't just got a mighty league of reggae super heroes - all are stand out talents. You've got chemistry - the whole is greater than the parts - and the whole damn heavy duty thumping Jamaican reggae meets Latin rhythms meets pop groove meets gospel meets biblical Hollywood film-score (there's a cheeky, bumped up reggae version of the Exodus theme) ignites in an unexpectedly lusty, grindy, sweaty and soulful way. Amy Winehouse's ex-guitarist Robin Banerjee lit the place up, Naomi Phillips' gospel inspired vocals went all the way to the bone, Aquilla Fearon turned in a rocking performance, while Kenrick Rowe and Alex Wilson were simply flawless. A total pleasure - the pizza's not bad too.
          TO BOOK: CLICK HERE 0845 6027 017 or www.pizzaexpresslive.co.uk Doors: 7pm, set time varies, £15- £20. (This is a non dancing gig, book a table to ensure your full enjoyment!).    
        MALI LATINO LONDON DEBUT - For music lovers looking for a vibrant new sound, the London premiere of Alex Wilson's new nine piece band 'Mali Latino' is at Camden's Jazz Cafe, 5 Parkway, London NW1 7PG on Friday 31st July. Featuring Mali Madou Sidiki Diabate (kora), Ahmed Fofana (balafon) and Doussouba Diabate (vocals). Expect fiery latin percussion mixed with the driving village rhythms of Mali, the virtuosic kora and piano of Madou and Alex and the intense combination of mandingue and Cuban vocals.
TO BOOK: www.jazzcafe.co.uk call: 0870 060 3777, tickets: £17, doors 7pm
More: www.alexwilson.net and www.malilatino.com

LONDON SALSA MUSIC NEWS                   6th September 2009

LONDON SALSA SCENE RECOMMENDS: ALEX WILSON's SALSA CON SOUL ALBUM LAUNCH:
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Alex Wilson's Salsa con Soul Orchestra at Home at Ronnie Scotts

SOMEWHERE BETWEEN LONDON AND HAVANA, volcanic activity has triggered the emergence of a new tropical island – Salsa Con Soul, writes Lee Knights,
www.londonsalsascene.co.uk
              We caught the eruption as Alex Wilson and his 12 piece Salsa Con Soul Orchestra let rip with their latest high energy fusion at three concerts at the legendary Ronnie Scotts in London's Soho on Thursday 3rd - Friday 4th September. With the tables cleared away to create a dancefloor for the late concert on Friday, this was the ultimate Wilsonian flava fest, as intense as it gets, this guy is simply playing some of the hottest and most authentic grooves you're going to hear anywhere in the world. Dancers knocked themselves out on the floor, doing justice to a merciless, inspired cocktail of salsa, laced with soul and gospel rhythms.
                  Salsa Con Soul is the latest destination on Alex Wilson's circumnavigation of world rhythms and beats. The UK's top Latin/jazz piano man/band leader and featured instrumentalists will deliver driving salsa dura, laced with deeply felt soul and gospel vocals, drenched in Latin flavas, beats and rhythms at three concerts (early and late concerts Friday 4th September - book the late one if you want to stay on).
                  This is an opportunity to hear some of the most authentic and tastiest salsa grooves you'll hear anywhere in the world played live by the UK's No1 salsa crew and some of the finest salsa musicians around. Alex Wilson will play tracks from his 6th and latest album Salsa Con Soul (2008), his first totally dedicated to a genre he has made his own, salsa with soul, cranked up with bone aching gospel vocals.
              Expect to hear too some of Wilson's best known tunes - "Ain't Nobody" & "Show Me" from his 5th album Inglaterra and "R&B Latino" from the eponymous album, with vocals from Aquilla Fearon, Niaomi Phillips & Elpidio Caicedo.
                  Wilson's 5th album Inglaterra was his first to feature the fire water of Salsa Dura neat, with tracks like Show Me and Ain't Nobody appearing on 10 compilation albums and burning up dance floors in salsa clubs across the UK. This was another ground-breaking album, featuring the first ever Brit-Reggaeton-Salsa track and the first fusion of Cuban rhythms with Bhangra beats. Wilson's  3rd album - R&B Latino - created a cocktail of Cuban rhythms and R&B to blow away the cobwebs on the dance floor.
              With Salsa Con Soul, Alex Wilson has continued his relentless assault, only this time the burning yin fires of soul and gospel infuse the muscular, urgent yang drive of Cuban timba and hard salsa, creating a sensual, romantic vibe made for Ronnie's crepuscular hallows. More: 20 7439 0747 and visit:
www.ronniescotts.co.uk and www.alexwilson.net