Mambo Sinuendo

Submitted by nonesuch on
Release Date
DescriptionExcerpt

Ry Cooder returned to Havana’s Egrem Studio, site of the Buena Vista Social Club recordings, to cut these tracks with Cuban guitar legend Los Zafiros’s Manuel Galbán. The pair, says the New York Times, “create a time-warped neverland where unhurried melodies hover above subtly swaying Cuban rhythms.”

Description

2003 Grammy Award Winner

Mambo Sinuendo, Ry Cooder’s collaboration with Cuban guitar legend Manuel Galbán, hearkens back to a point in the late 1950s when Cuban popular music began to hint at a fusion of American pop-jazz and the futuristic creations of modern Cuban composers (like Perez Prado). Borne along by the mid-century mambo and cha-cha-cha crazes, the hot sounds of mambo-jazz spread out into American popular culture—Perez Prado was Vegas-bound; Stan Kenton hit the road with his "Cuban Fire" orchestra; Henry Mancini scored Touch of Evil à la Prado; and Duane Eddy had a Top 10 hit with the mambo-esque "Theme from Peter Gunn."

But nowhere can there be found a more perfect representation of this style than in the recordings of the Havana doo-wop quartet Los Zafiros, still after 40 years the most popular Cuban vocal group of all time. As Los Zafiros's guitarist and arranger, Manuel Galbán pioneered a tough, rocking guitar style that is considered by Cuban musicians to be unique in their music. Mambo Sinuendo reintroduces Manuel Galbán—pianist, organist, and guitarist extraordinaire.

Says Cooder, "Galbán and I felt that there was a sound that had not been explored—a Cuban electric-guitar band that could reinterpret the atmosphere of the 1950s with beauty, agility, and simplicity. We decided on two electrics, two drum sets, congas and bass: a sexteto that could swing like a big band and penetrate the mysteries of the classic tunes. This music is powerful, lyrical, and funny—what more could you ask? Mambo Sinuendo is Cuban soul and high-performance twang."

For Mambo Sinuendo, Cooder has enlisted the bassist for all the Buena Vista Social Club sessions, Orlando “Cachaíto” López. The percussionists include longtime collaborator Jim Keltner; Cooder's son, Joachim Cooder, another Buena Vista veteran; and the conga master Miguel “Angá” Díaz.

ProductionCredits

PRODUCTION CREDITS
A Perro Verde / World Circuit Production
Produced by Ry Cooder
Recorded and mixed by Jerry Boys
Recorded at Egrem Studios, Havana, Cuba
Additional recording at Capitol Studios and Sound City Studios, Los Angeles
Assistant Recording Engineers: Simon Burwell, Jimmy Hoyson and Isel Martínez Rodríguez
Mixed at Capitol Studios, Los Angeles
Digital Editing by Rail Jon Rogut and Jared Smith
Mastered by Tom Leader and Jerry Boys at Livingston Studios, London
Music Coordinator: Demetrio Muñiz
Production Coordinators: Zita M. Morrina (Toti) & Sara Daoud
Executive in Charge of Production for World Circuit: Nick Gold

Design by Doyle Partners
Cover Photography by Cindy Lewis

Nonesuch Selection Number

79691

Number of Discs in Set
1disc
ns_album_artistid
195
ns_album_id
494
ns_album_releasedate
ns_genre_1
0
ns_genre_2
0
Album Status
Artist Name
Ry Cooder
Manuel Galbán
MusicianDetails

MUSICIANS
Manuel Galbán, guitar (1-12)
Ry Cooder, guitar (1-12), steel guitar (1, 8), trés (2), vibes (3), electric piano (4, 7), organ (6), electric bass (6)

Jim Keltner, drums (1-5, 7, 11)
Joachim Cooder, drums (1, 4-8, 12)
Miguel “Angá” Díaz, congas (1-5, 7, 8, 12)
Orlando “Cachaíto” López, bass (1-12)
Juliette Commagere, Carla Commagere, coro (2, 6)
Gregorio Hernández Rios “Goyo”, Maximino Duquesne Martínez, Marcos H. Scull, Yosvani Díaz, bata drums (3)

Cover Art
UPC/Price
Label
CD+MP3
UPC
075597969122BUN
Label
MP3
Price
9.00
UPC
075597969160
Label
2LP+MP3
  • 79691

News & Reviews

  • Congratulations to all the winners at tonight's Grammy Awards, including Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway, whose debut album, Crooked Tree, won Best Bluegrass Album; Wilco, Best Historical Album (compilation producers Cheryl Pawelski & Jeff Tweedy and mastering engineer Bob Ludwig) and Best Album Notes (Bob Mehr) for the 20th anniversary super deluxe edition of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot; Taj Mahal & Ry Cooder, Best Traditional Blues Album for GET ON BOARD: The Songs of Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee, with Joachim Cooder; and Caroline Shaw & Attacca Quartet, Best Chamber Music / Small Ensemble Performance for Evergreen.

  • Congratulations to all of the Nonesuch nominees for the 65th Grammy Awards: Molly Tuttle for Best New Artist and Best Bluegrass Album for Crooked Tree with Golden Highway; The Black Keys for Best Rock Album for Dropout Boogie and Best Rock Performance for "Wild Child"; Dan Auerbach for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical; Cécile McLorin Salvant for Best Jazz Vocal Album for Ghost Song and Best Arrangement, Instrumental and Vocals for "Optimistic Voices / No Love Dying"; Joshua Redman, Brad Mehldau, Christian McBride, and Brian Blade's LongGone for Best Instrumental Album; Brad Mehldau's Jacob's Ladder for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album; Punch Brothers' Hell on Church Street for Best Folk Album; Caroline Shaw & Attacca Quartet's Evergreen for Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance; Taj Mahal & Ry Cooder's GET ON BOARD for Best Traditional Blues Album; Wilco's Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (20th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition) for Best Historical Album and Best Album Notes for Bob Mehr; and Astor Piazzolla: The American Clavé Recordings. for Best Album Notes for Fernando González. 

Buy Now

  • About This Album

    2003 Grammy Award Winner

    Mambo Sinuendo, Ry Cooder’s collaboration with Cuban guitar legend Manuel Galbán, hearkens back to a point in the late 1950s when Cuban popular music began to hint at a fusion of American pop-jazz and the futuristic creations of modern Cuban composers (like Perez Prado). Borne along by the mid-century mambo and cha-cha-cha crazes, the hot sounds of mambo-jazz spread out into American popular culture—Perez Prado was Vegas-bound; Stan Kenton hit the road with his "Cuban Fire" orchestra; Henry Mancini scored Touch of Evil à la Prado; and Duane Eddy had a Top 10 hit with the mambo-esque "Theme from Peter Gunn."

    But nowhere can there be found a more perfect representation of this style than in the recordings of the Havana doo-wop quartet Los Zafiros, still after 40 years the most popular Cuban vocal group of all time. As Los Zafiros's guitarist and arranger, Manuel Galbán pioneered a tough, rocking guitar style that is considered by Cuban musicians to be unique in their music. Mambo Sinuendo reintroduces Manuel Galbán—pianist, organist, and guitarist extraordinaire.

    Says Cooder, "Galbán and I felt that there was a sound that had not been explored—a Cuban electric-guitar band that could reinterpret the atmosphere of the 1950s with beauty, agility, and simplicity. We decided on two electrics, two drum sets, congas and bass: a sexteto that could swing like a big band and penetrate the mysteries of the classic tunes. This music is powerful, lyrical, and funny—what more could you ask? Mambo Sinuendo is Cuban soul and high-performance twang."

    For Mambo Sinuendo, Cooder has enlisted the bassist for all the Buena Vista Social Club sessions, Orlando “Cachaíto” López. The percussionists include longtime collaborator Jim Keltner; Cooder's son, Joachim Cooder, another Buena Vista veteran; and the conga master Miguel “Angá” Díaz.

    Credits

    MUSICIANS
    Manuel Galbán, guitar (1-12)
    Ry Cooder, guitar (1-12), steel guitar (1, 8), trés (2), vibes (3), electric piano (4, 7), organ (6), electric bass (6)

    Jim Keltner, drums (1-5, 7, 11)
    Joachim Cooder, drums (1, 4-8, 12)
    Miguel “Angá” Díaz, congas (1-5, 7, 8, 12)
    Orlando “Cachaíto” López, bass (1-12)
    Juliette Commagere, Carla Commagere, coro (2, 6)
    Gregorio Hernández Rios “Goyo”, Maximino Duquesne Martínez, Marcos H. Scull, Yosvani Díaz, bata drums (3)

    PRODUCTION CREDITS
    A Perro Verde / World Circuit Production
    Produced by Ry Cooder
    Recorded and mixed by Jerry Boys
    Recorded at Egrem Studios, Havana, Cuba
    Additional recording at Capitol Studios and Sound City Studios, Los Angeles
    Assistant Recording Engineers: Simon Burwell, Jimmy Hoyson and Isel Martínez Rodríguez
    Mixed at Capitol Studios, Los Angeles
    Digital Editing by Rail Jon Rogut and Jared Smith
    Mastered by Tom Leader and Jerry Boys at Livingston Studios, London
    Music Coordinator: Demetrio Muñiz
    Production Coordinators: Zita M. Morrina (Toti) & Sara Daoud
    Executive in Charge of Production for World Circuit: Nick Gold

    Design by Doyle Partners
    Cover Photography by Cindy Lewis