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Artist
Patato Y Totico
12+ albums
latinjazznew yorkcubanrumba
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A Cuban Conga Master’s Definitive Rumba, by Felix Contreras NPR.org, March 6, 2008 - The death of Cuban conga master Carlos "Patato" Valdes this past December provides a sad opportunity to dig out one of his best-known recordings — which also happens to be a groundbreaking piece of Afro-Cuban music. In 1968, Patato recorded what many say is the definitive rumba recording, with what's essentially an Afro-Cuban supergroup. Forget about the swanky big-band rhumba (with an h) popularized by Latin society bands with ruffled sleeves — Xavier Cugat, for example. Traditional rumba came from Cuban solares: working-class neighborhoods where the African influence on Cuban music was most evident. Patato & Totico featured bassist Israel "Cachao" Lopez, who was an early Afro-Cuban pioneer, and Arsenio Rodriguez, a blind musician celebrated for giving traditional Cuban music a funky urban feel, as well as for making a folkloric instrument (the tres, a six-stringed Cuban guitar) sing with jazz inflections. Totico was another name for Eugenio Arango, Patato's childhood friend, who was a respected rumba singer. Lyrically, "Ingrato Corazon" (Ungrateful Heart) is typical of street rumba's topical nature. It's a lament, as well as the sort of warning call — "Watch out for her, she'll do you wrong" — often heard in blues and pop music. The song's guaguanco rhythm is again typical of the genre: a pulse-like beat driving the song forward, a soloist on the quinto (high-pitched conga) riffing, a
top songs
albums
Verve Remixed 4
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Verve//Remixed 4
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Verve Remixed, Vol. 4
Que linda va (Remastered)
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The Complete Verve Remixed (Deluxe Edition)
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More Than Mambo: The Introduction to Afro-Cuban Jazz (Disc 1)
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Verve Unmixed, Vol. 4
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Nuestro Barrio
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Que linda va - Remastered
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Patato Y Totico
More Than Mambo: The Introduction to Afro-Cuban Jazz
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More Than Mambo: The Introduction to Afro-Cuban Jazz (Disc 2)