Product Description

The music of Cuba developed from a unique set of historical and social circumstances. African slaves, brought to work on the Spanish sugar plantations, soon outnumbered the European colonists. The attitude of the Spanish political and religious institutions towards African culture, while undeniably oppressive, was more open than in some other colonial societies. Catholic priests did their best to convert the Africans to Christianity, but they overlooked their worship of African deities as long as they gave them Christian names. In fact, santeria, a religion that combines Catholicism with African deities and rituals, is still a key part of Cuban spiritual life. Most of the songs on this collection are a style called son, (lit. "sound") one of the most popular and influential Cuban musical forms. Son developed around the turn of the century in Oriente, a region in eastern Cuba. Migrating musicians brought son west to Havana in the 1920s, where it exploded in popularity. The fundamental element of the son is a rhythmic pattern called clave (lit. "key"). Played on two wooden sticks, called claves, this repetitive beat is the foundation upon which all of the other musical elements are structured. It gives son the propulsive swing that has endeared it to people around the world. Most contemporary salsa is based on son.

Track Listing

1. Compositor Confundido - Ibrahim Ferrer
2. Al Vaiven de Mi Carreta - Cuarteto Patria, Eliades Ochoa
3. Adios de Este Momento - Septeto Nacional de Ignacio Piñeiro
4. Campina - Afro-Cuban Jazz Project
5. Sabroso Como el Guarapo - Orquesta Sublime
6. Mecanica de Amor - Mi Son
7. Mami Me Gusto - Todos Estrellas
8. Boliviana - Irakere
9. Reloj de Pastora - Sierre Maestra
10. Patria Querida - Los Guaracheros de Oriente

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5660 in Music
• Released on: 1999-05-25
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .21 pounds

Amazon.com
At once spicy hot and languorously sweet, Putumayo Presents Cuba is a passionate marriage of active and passive, masculine and feminine, a contemporary festival of sound whose roots were born in defiance of onerous distraction and oppression. Based on Afro-Cuban culture, whose music comes from a combination of European and African instrumentation, the songs in this collection swing with the energetic rhythms of traditional son (also the base of salsa). Layered over the repetitive beat, guitars chime, maracas add shimmy, and trumpets take the upper accent melody, often repeating or contrasting the main vocal melody. One of the finest contributions to the disc is Mi Son's "Mecanica de Amor," in which the band substitutes the violin for the lead trumpet, making a treat of the unexpected. Irakere's funky fusion "Boliviera" comes on gangbusters with beefy bass, full horn section, and featured flute melody. Containing superb liner notes, Putumayo Presents Cuba makes a fine introduction to this island's rich sound, and a superb remedy to the blues. --Paige La Grone

Customer Reviews

Cuban Musical Elixir
A superb collection of Cuban songs that explores the various styles with complete professionalism. Some of the BVSC stars are here, such as Ibrahim Ferrer and Eliades Ochoa. Ferrer opens the CD to get you right into the mood with his beautiful voice soaring behind driving rhythmns as he improvises while a chorus encourages his improvisaation. Every track is superb, rich with the flavor of Cuba, con sabor. I can't get enough of Eliades Ochoa so this CD was a delight as he sings in his soulful mannner one of my favorite songs "Al Vaiven a mi Carreta". The character of this song is perfect for Ochoa as it laments the life of a field worker. The variety is one of the strong points of this CD as it constantly changes so you never get tired of a particular style, variety IS the spice of life afterall. If you're into Cuban music this is a super collection of songs by some of the best performers. Sierra Maestra knocks your socks off with their beautiful song "El Reloj de Pastora". There is a play on words as they say "Se me paraba", (chorus, mi reloj) as I was in your doorway, fuuny sexual stuff if you speak Spanish. Add this to your Cuban collection, the booklet is superb, complete with a glossary of Cuban music terms and a bilingual biography on each featured artist. This music will have you dancing or at least moving your feet, if not you need your pulse checked.

Buena coleccion de son cubano
En este disco, tal como los otros discos de paises de putumayo que tengo, pone diferentes grupos que se destacan entre los musicos de ese pais. Pero por alguna razon en este disco putumayo decidio hacer una compilacion de son, en vez de los diferentes estilos conocidos de Cuba. El son esta bueno, ya como lo dicen todos los otros que han criticado el disco, pero me quede esperando por la musica afrocubana, el guaguanco y los cantos Yoruba, que ha tenido tanta influencia en la musica latina moderna. Tampoco hay cha-cha, un estilo tipico de baile cubano.
Por lo tanto si quieres algo que te de un mordisco pequen~o de toda Cuba, este no lo es. Pero si quieres son, paraste en el lugar correcto.

A Great Compiliation to have
This is a great Compilation of Cuban music specially for anyone who hasn't been exposed to the distinctive sound of Cuba. It interject party salsa beat then the next track would be kinda sad and romantic with undulating drums and melancolic trumpets. Slow or fast you'll find that your hips and feet are doing some pretty strange things once you push play. Bet you never knew that you can dance around your kitchen floor before. Never mind that your spanish is a little shaky. Just read the insert if you must know the meaning of each song, but it is the melody, the salsa beat that will make carry you away. And also the art cover is beautiful to look at. In fact most Putumayo CD have these really beautiful art work, you'd want to collect them all.