By José Gandue @Gandour
An admirable man has just died., a guy who helped revolutionize contemporary Latin sound. A man whom all his friends described as a great guy, the epitome of positive energy wherever he went. After a three-year battle against an invincible colon cancer, he passed away. Little White Man, Venezuelan leader of the New York band King Changó and a special human wherever you find them.
I didn't have the pleasure of meeting him, but whenever I saw him on TV or in the videos that circulate around, it was clear that he was a cool character. I also loved his music, His album The Return of El Santo, Published in 2000, it blew my mind. When talking about fusion, no one can forget it from their list of favorites. This exquisite mix of guaguancó, ska, punk, drum & bass, New York salsa, and other ingredients showed where the new mestizo, mulatto, and zambo path of Latin art was headed.. Allow yourselves to listen, for example, to a song like Witchcraft, A blend of hip hop with cuatro guitar strings that produces a delightful yet strange sensation of the Venezuelan plains in the heart of Brooklyn. There is also Without you, That reggae with a carnival aroma, which adds bolero-like trumpets, manages to give it a suitable romantic atmosphere with a happy result. Step me down It starts with metallic percussion and transforms into a dark funk with unexpected digital experiments that breaks with the dynamics of the album and completes it in its broad sonic spectrum.
Blanquito Man collaborated on many musical projects across the continent. One of his most notable collaborations was with the Mexican accordionist. Celso Piña, in a song that still resonates powerfully across the continent: Cumbia on the River. If there is a recording that proposes a rethinking of vallenato, it is that one. And there was our departed hero.
We bid you farewell, José Andrés Blanco, always in our memory as Blanquito Man, whom we prefer to remember with his cheerful image and not with the morbid fascination some media outlets resort to when reporting his death. Therefore, it is worth recalling the words of Antonio Machado's poem:
«"Song of my land,
that blooms
to Jesus in agony,
And it is the faith of my elders!
Oh, you are not my song!
I can't sing, and I don't want to!
to that Jesus on the cross,
but to the one who walked on the sea!"»
Blanquito, rest in peace. Our deepest condolences to his family and friends.
