Best of London Salsa: LEGENDS OF SALSA GIGs 30.4.07

See a Video Clip of CACHAO IN ACTION, CLICK HERE

   says. "Like a cook who doesn't use measures anymore. He begins by tossing in salt, a branch of this, a grain of that and comes up with a great dish. However, after it is done he cannot tell you how he made it. That's the way it is with me. There are things that I do that I can't measure. They just happen." After more than 70 years in the kitchen and having won a Grammy last year, Cachao’s cooking is hotter than ever.
More on La Linea www.comono.com Barbican, Silk Street, London, EC2 8DY Tel: 020 7638 8891 www.barbican.org.uk to book and for more. London Salsa in the City, April 30

Palmieri Swings and Cocktails Suck

LEGENDS OF LATIN MUSIC, MUST SEE GIG ,,,,,
Five–time Grammy Award winner piano virtuoso Eddie Palieri played an exclusive show at the Jazz Cafe, 5 Parkway, Camden Town, London NW1 7PG last night (Thursday 3 May 2007).
     With a career spanning 50 years, this was a night to pay one’s dues to Eddie Palmieri, one of the giants of the 20th century Latin music scene. Interestingly enough, there was nerry a Latino in sight, apart from Orlando the Colombian who stuck out big time in the Brit dominated crowd. Eddie y su Orqestra were in the zone and the place was packed to the gunnels. Luckily, the Jazz Cafe has already introduced a non-smoking policy - otherwise punters would have needed breathing apparatus as well as shoe horns.
     As you’d expect, drinks weren’t cheap - cocktails come out at a stiff £8.50 and my margarita (made with Jif lemon) was simply undrinkable. Cloakroom fees were steep - I tied my jacket, bag and shoes together but was told these were separate items so had to pay £4.50. As a temple for jazz lovers, the Cafe’s toilets are a surprise - basic but ok for ladies, but apparently the guys’ facilitiies are like something out of Most Haunted.  But, they get the top acts, so there you go, Camden grunge chic strikes again.
   Reservations: 0207 534 6955, www.jazzcafe.co.uk or www.meanfiddler.com book online. London Salsa in Camden Special Focus, Friday 4 May 2007

Best of London Salsa: Alex Wilson on Israel “Cachao” Lopez

To See a Video Clip of CACHAO IN ACTION, CLICK HERE

Israel Cachao Lopez at the Barbican Concert Hall, April 29, reviewed by Alex Wilson

There was a warm greeting for veteran Cuban bassist Israel “Cachao” Lopez on his debut gig at London’s Barbican - part of the La Linea Latin Music Festival - with a standing ovation from the crowd recently.
     Cachao, born in Havana in 1918 and now 89, brought a hybrid line-up of two male vocals, sax/flute, trumpet, trombone, violin & Cuban rhythm section to the Barbican stage – allowing him to cover Latin jazz and more traditional Cuban styles.
     From the outset, it was clear these musicians had been doing it for years and were there to have a great time and so, driven by the leader’s constantly undulating bass tumbao, the group performed pieces mainly in the descarga format – a type of structured Afro-Cuban jam session and a form pioneered by Cachao himself in the 1950’s.  This style of playing frees the musicians from the tight restrictions of salsa and allows the instrumentalists feature as soloists while still retaining structure.

Right: Alex Wilson, UK pianist/
bandleader

     The eighty-nine year old bassist started the concert by launching into the tune everyone wanted to hear – Descarga Cachao – driven by his famous bass line that has influenced countless other salsa and latin jazz compositions.
     The audience were also treated to renditions of some of the first mambos and pachangas to come into existence, penned by the leader back in the 1930’s for the group he had with his brother, Arcano y sus Maravillas.      As every good band leader knows, problematic sound amplification – such as was encountered on this occasion – requires an sensitive approach and Cachao in his maturity was not afraid to pair the instruments down to the bare bones in order to feature his soloists. This was done to great effect on Mambo for a duo with conguero Richie Flores and also on Rendencion with a friendly duel with violinist Federico Britos showing that Cuban strings are some of the most hippest in the world …
     The inclusion of Si me pudieras querer composed by the pianist Bola de Nieve added further delicate contrast as the ensemble stripped down to violin, clarinet and rhythm section for a tribute to the Cuban-born composer/pianist born in the early 1900’s.
     The concert came to a climax with an Afro-Cuban guaguancó, Yambu, followed by a breakneck-tempo piece Chambelona, ably driven by timbalero Edwin Bonilla.
     If there was any disappointment it was only that the group chose not to play any of the older, more traditional styles such as the elegant danzon that is so rarely heard and of which Cachao is an acknowledged master. That said, the eighty-nine year-old’s first performance in the UK has to be one that will remain the hearts and minds of many for years to come.
     Support for the Cachao concert came from Omar Puente and pianist Robert Mitchell. 
                                               Alex Wilson, London Salsa May 24 2007

Above: Israel Cachao Lopez, The Man who Invented Mambo

SEE & HEAR Alex Wilson
Inglaterra - just released album
visit: www.alexwilson.net
ALEX WILSON appears at Glastonbury Festival 22 June 07, PizzaExpress Jazz Club Soho 4th-8th July 2007, Aldeburgh Proms, Mouth of the Tyne Festival and more... www.alexwilson.net  

Best of London Salsa: UNMISSABLE!!!! Wed, 25 Jul 07

AMONG THE ALL-TIME HEROES OF SALSA, ONE NAME STANDS OUT - WILLIE COLON.
       Colón is a true legend of salsa, with a career spanning over 40 years;
he was there at the beginning, one of the original Fania All-Stars, kick starting
and defining salsa as a musical genre.
       This is your opportunity to see and hear LIVE one of the most important virtusos - musician, composer, arranger, singer, trombonist - in the history of Latin music, giving his valedictory performance in London.
         With over 30 million sales, Colón has sold more music than any other single Latin artist, collaborating with some of salsa’s most known names. A Puerto Rican Nuyorcian, growing up in the Bronx in the 1960’s, Colón’s music started out like his life; raw, dangerous, hard and heavy street salsa, reflected in his trade mark Latino gangster look. Colón’s musical development is also the development of salsa as a genre, from early hits like Fuego en el Barrio, Che Che Cole and El Malo. Later, irresistable, driving Latin & Afro-Cuban beats and flavas soften El Malo and his music settles down, acquires maturity - and a big string section.              To coincide with Colón’s last ever concert in London, Fania Records has released a definitive double CD album, Willie Colón The Player, featuring many seminal tracks and collaborations with the likes of Ruben Blades [from their 1978 album Siembra – the first Latin record to sell a million copies], the Queen of Salsa Celia Cruz, Hector Lavoe and Ismael Miranda.
         There are some great and familiar dance tracks on the album but the man’s music is much more - for newcomers to Latin music, there will be a spooky familiarity to tracks you’re hearing for the first time - everything is there, Colón is the source for so many artists and their work.
More info and to buy the album: CLICK HERE        
           OFFICIAL AFTER PARTY: For the dancers - there is a special late night aftershow at Dingwalls
(400m from Roundhouse) with DJs and dancing until 3am. For More and to Book: CLICK HERE   via the Roundhouse:  CLICK HERE

Best of London Salsa: Willie Colon Review Mon 13 AUG 07

Latin Singalong at Colón’s Last Concert

Willie Colón’s valedictory performace at the Roundhouse in Camden, north London this Friday was a perfect night for a Latin singalong. They came to pay homage to one of salsa’s biggest heroes - before he leaves music behind to take up a full-time career in politics - and emotion ran high. 
           When, at one point, Colón asked the 2,400 strong crowd to shuddaup and listen to a delicate piano solo, he asked the impossible. Whenever he picked up his trombone, the roar from the crowd was deafening. The man and his crew rose to the occasion, lapping up the huge vibe, delivering everything the crowd expected.  This is what live music is about: a unique experience, a unique memory, a vibe, a spirit, a buzz, a unique appreciation and insight into the music that recorded music just can’t give you.
         “I liked the energy of the man and his performance. This music is about appeciating a man’s life, as a founder member of salsa with people like Hector Lavoe - he brings that history with him. He touched ny salsero spirit - he was in tune with his muisicians, aware of their musical abilities and being with them as an entity. We loved the after party at Dingwalls.”- Tyrone Bacchus, Tyrrell Films, film writer/director, www.tyrrellfilms.co.uk - Willie Colón, photographed by Miguel del Foto for London Salsa Scene 13.8.08

Best of London Salsa: GIG REVIEW - 30 October 2005

Frazier and Niles Shaken and Stirred by Pink Martini, their favourite Thirties’ Beat Combo

You could picture Frazier and Niles in the best seats at Sadlers’ Well gloating last night (Sunday, 30 October). Following a gourmet meal crafted by their favourite chef in a beautiful French bistro near Chelsea, they were ready for an evening of aural gastronomy served up by Pink Martini.
   They wouldn’t have been disappointed. Pink Martini is a florescent cocktail of something rather glamorous you’d find on an old Hollywood film set, a 30s Cuban dance orchestra, a classical chamber music ensemble with a dark past that drives it towards an addiction to funky Latin rhythms.
   Mixed originally in 1994 in Portland, Oregon by Harvard graduate and classically trained pianist Thomas M. Lauderdale, you have to wonder how this eclectic and egregiously talented group of people got it together. They seem to be wonderfully funny, multi-lingual, classically trained and American; like Friends for culture vultures.
   This is not a what-you-see-is-what-you-get outfit. There is a split personality in the music and presentation; the look is terribly smart suits & cocktail dresses; the feel, retro-chic sophistication. But then, the heady passion takes over, bobbing to the surface in the urgent Latin, percussive beat and the vocals of China Forbes. So did the audience at the end of the show, whooping, wolf-whistling, dancing in the aisles. Well, I ask you. I think I saw Frazier and Niles leaving with their hair mussed up and their ties askew. More from: www.comono.co.uk               Pic by: Mike Payne

Un Gran Dia En Londres!

The big guys from the Big Apple laid down some thumping hard core Salsa at the Islington Academy this week-end (Friday, 21 October 2005). Playing to a packed house, the Spanish Harlem Orchestra delivered with all the brash, razor sharpness and sabor you’d expect of NY’s hottest Latino dance band. There’s no messing with these guys; they play Salsa hard ball tight, tough, relentlessly infectious, marrying up perfect musicianship with a total dedication to keeping faith with their classic Latin dance orchestra traditions. It was enough to earn SHO a Grammy Award for their latest album, Across 110th Street this year.                       pic: Mike Payne

Best of London Salsa: Manolito, the Coronet, Sun 29 July

Manolito in the zone: photographed by Miguel Del Foto, copyright www.londonsalsascene.co.uk

Manolito: The Man, the Mood, the Music

Get a group of Brit blokes together and you get a football team. Get a group of Cubanos together and you get muscular music, that duffs you up, shakes you down, curls up your toes. You get men in white linen, with snake like hips and a nice line in erotic shirts (why did he wear that and then leave his jacket on?). Boy, those guys can move, they gave it 100 per cent. Ok, so the sound system could have been sharper, but we need ‘em back, not over-flying the UK and touring everywhere else in Europe.
   Heroes of the hour are Mambo City’s Robert and Jean White, who were crazy enough to take the huge financial gamble of bringing Manolito and his band to the UK. Thanks to their courage, passion, and sheer hard work, the rest of us got to hear one of Cuba’s finest crews. Speaking on behalf of all of us who made it - especially the mad Cuban woman next to me  who just might have had one too many lemonades and did an impression of a washing machine on a spin cycle throughout the concert - I’d like to extend warm congratulations and thanks to Robert and Jean. www.mambocity.co.uk for more.
     To hear Marcando la Distancia at Casa de la Música Miramar - the big international breakthrough song for Manolito - CLICK HERE It’s still one of their hottest tracks. CLICK HERE for more Manolito - Aquí Cada Uno Viene Con Lo Suyo live January 1, 2005 in Plaza Roja La Vibora, La Habana, Cuba. More Manolito: Locos por mi Habana - CLICK HERE Ed. London Salsa update in Elephant & Castle, Friday 2nd August, 2007

©London Salsa Scene is an online, independent magazine guide covering salsa and the Latin lifestyle in London and beyond. The views published  are not necessarily those of the Editor. All rights reserved. London Salsa Scene retains Copyright over all the articles and photographs published on this website - it is an infringement of that right to use this material elsewhere without our written permission. Disclaimer: London Salsa Scene publishes information on behalf of promoters, organisers, dancers and others in good faith but is not responsible if these events are cancelled, altered or if performers and instructors billed not not appear; this is exclusive liability and responsibility of the event organiser.

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