By José Gandue @Gandour
Of course, anyone could start to suspect that this is all a move by some office of a multinational corporation, where an executive brings the novel idea of mixing Cuban music with Jamaican rhythms, Put in a blender, just because, bits of son and guaguancó with some reggae, dub and dancehall and magically produce a result that explodes worldwide simply because people across the globe need to dance. There will always be some fool who says it was an idea anyone could have come up with, but, as the Australian producer comments... Mista Savona (also known as Jake Savona), There had never been a full-length album that brought these two cultures together, despite the proximity between the islands. It had to take someone from the other side of the world, someone so un-Caribbean in principle., to understand that this fusion, which now seems so natural to us, was remotely possible.
Savona invents Havana meets Kingston and develops two albums over three years, one that is just being released in November and another that will be presented during 2018, gathering to some of the most influential musicians in the Antilles in the recording studio. There are guests such as Barbarito Torres (Buena Vista Social Club), Félix Baloy (Afro-Cuban All Stars), Changuito (Los Van Van), La Armada (Puchoman & Krazyman) and many others from the Cuban sector, alongside Sly & Robbie, Bongo Herman, Bopee, Leroy Sibbles (The Heptones), Glasford 'Porti' Manning & The Jewels and a good amount of additional Jamaican talent.
The result, for the moment, as seen by the public, is an initial compilation of 15 songs, where the achieved mixture is pure elegance, with an explosion of powerful flavor. It is, for example, enjoying the refined guitar playing of Ernest Ranglin, an octogenarian master accompanist for legends such as Jimmy Cliff, The Skatalites and Bob Marley, in an instrumental piece of delicate expression, 410 San Miguel. Is Julito Padrón, one of the best trumpet players on the planet, exquisitely joining the dub cadence of Carnival Horns, A perfect track to express the free spirit of this album. Or listen The Sitiera, a reggae-based love affair with an overflowing melody taken from the classic bolero, sung by Beatriz Márquez and the piano of Rolando Luna.This is an unmissable work that demands the immediate attention of open-minded music lovers. It is, without a doubt, a fantastic album.
That sounds funny, But it took an Australian to invent such a revolutionary sound as this new Caribbean encounter which, as it gains the opportunity to become known worldwide, could establish itself as one of the best albums of our time. Mista Savona has achieved a suitable continuation of the sequel created by Buena Vista Social Club, which will continue to present Caribbean music in the way it deserves.
