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0-9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z All
Type | Artist | Product | Date | Author |
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CD | Gastón Joya |
![]() ENGLISH: Bassist Gastón Joya's first commercially-released solo album, a trio project with some special guests, is the winner of the Jazz Soloist category in Cubadisco 2018
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10/14/2018 | Bill Tilford |
CD | David Álvarez y Juego de Manos |
![]() Like the group's name, this album is deceptively basic. A good solid dance album, but while you think you are dancing guaguancó, for example, it sneaks up on you with Vallenato stylings and other odds and ends. Which won't stop you from dancing. This was nominated for a Cubadisco 2015 in the Música Popular Bailable -Maestros category. |
07/02/2015 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Klimax |
![]() Nominated for a Cubadisco award in the Popular Dance Music category in 2013. In a different year when it would not have been competing with Pasaporte, it might have had an excellent chance of winning, musically speaking. |
05/01/2013 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Eliel Lazo |
![]() Some of the best elements of the Cuban dance music of the 70s return with a vengeance, but with new compositions and fresh blood. The album's title is quite accurate: it is VERY funky, Cuban, and relentless. |
12/06/2014 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Oriente López |
![]() ENGLISH: Abracadabra an audio kaleidoscope that defies easy description due to the multiple different styles performed within the recording. Expect the unexpected, but that's a good thing here. Several big names - Alaín Pérez, Kelvis Ochoa, Angel Bonne, Mayito Rivera, Malena Burke, Calixto Oviedo, Jimmy Branly and many others participate. . Nominated in the Fusion category of Cubadisco 2017. ESPAÑOL: Abracadabra un caleidoscopio de audio que desafía la descripción fácil debido a los múltiples estilos diferentes realizados dentro de la grabación. Espere lo inesperado, pero eso es algo bueno aquí. Varios grandes nombres - Alaín Pérez, Kelvis Ochoa, Angel Bonne, Mayito Rivera, Malena Burke, Calixto Oviedo, Jimmy Branly y muchos otros participan. . Nominado en la categoría Fusion de Cubadisco 2017. |
07/23/2017 | Bill Tilford |
CD/DVD | Ernan López-Nussa |
![]() This beautiful trio recording has Ernán at the grand piano and incorporates elements from much of the history of Cuban and US popular music and Jazz as well as his classical training. For those who only know of Ernán from his work with Afro-Cuban groups, this shows a different side of his talents. |
09/01/2011 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Harold López-Nussa |
![]() Harold López-Nussa may not be as famous as uncle Érnan yet, but if he keeps putting out recordings like his one, that will change in time. |
03/11/2011 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Harold López-Nussa |
![]() Harold López-Nussa's newest album, New Day, brings more beautiful songwriting and virtuosic performing from this rising young member of the illustrious López-Nussa family. |
11/06/2013 | Bill TIlford |
CD/DVD | Ernán López-Nussa |
![]() Winner of 5 Cubadisco Awards (including the Grand Prize) in 2014, Sacrilegio is an extraordinary project by Ernán López-Nussa that may very well be the most ambitious blending of Jazz, Cuban and Classical music ever recorded by any artist to date. |
06/01/2014 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Ruy López-Nussa |
![]() This is not a revival of the music of the original Grupo Afrocuba, but fans of that group should go to the ends of the earth if necessary to find this music anyway. In many ways the sound is similar (not a big surprise since some of the same musicians are involved) , but La Academia is a step forward with deeper Afrocuban percussion fused with modern Cuban Jazz, Funk, Reggae and other music. The project is also designed to be educational for young people about percussion and rhythm in Cuban music. You probably can't buy this yet, but keep your eyes peeled. When this hits, it will turn heads. That shouldn't be too long since it was just nominated for a Cubadisco in the Jazz Cubano category. |
04/19/2015 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Ernán López-Nussa |
![]() Winner of the Cubadisco 2015 award for Jazz Cubano (and nominated in the Recording category, an engineering award), Invención Lekszycki is a sort of panorama of the multiple roots that inform Ernán's work. Includes some unusual touches like Kelvis Ochoa singing a Jazz ballad and some Fusion elements. It works. |
06/09/2015 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Harold López-Nussa |
![]() The splendid new album by Harold López-Nussa is an intense blend of Afro Cuban, African and Jazz ingredients. |
10/25/2016 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Harold López-Nussa |
![]() ENGLISH: In Te Lo Dije, Harold López-Nussa presents a bold jazz tribute to several genres of popular music, mostly but not exclusively Cuban, including a surprising jazz treatment of reggaeton in one track. ESPAÑOL: En Te Lo Dije, Harold López-Nussa presenta un audaz homenaje jazzistico a varios géneros de la música popular, en su mayoría pero no exclusivamente cubana, que incluye un sorprendente tratamiento jazzístico del reguetón en un track. |
09/20/2020 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Ivan "Melon" Lewis |
![]() Nominated in both Cubadisco (Cuban Jazz) and the Latin GRAMMY awards (Latin Jazz, Best New Artist), Ayer y Hoy puts Ivan "Melon" Lewis, who already solid credentials in the genre of Timba and other parts of the Jazz and Cuban music spectrum, firmly in the ranks of important current Cuban Jazz recording artists and composers. Rich and complex while remaining emotional. |
09/27/2015 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Leyendas.com |
![]() ENGLISH: Nominated in the Traditional Popular Music (later Conjuntos & Other Formats) category in Cubadisco 2017, Sabroseando by Leyendas.com is an impressive and enjoyable collection of sones and boleros. Highly recommended for fans of the part of the music spectrum popularized by groups like Rumbavana.
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07/09/2017 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Los Cubanos |
![]() This extraordinary album is what the title says it is, and possibly the best recording of it ever made anywhere. Recorded in the EGREM studios and originally manufactured and distributed by a Japanese label, now available in Cuba as an EGREM CD. Nominated for a Cubadisco in 2013 (Vocal-Instrumental Music), it deserves to win something, somewhere. |
04/21/2014 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Los Hermanos Colón Los Hermanos Colón |
![]() This 2014 release employs all the tried and true formulas that have made New York salsa great since the beginning, proving once again that one can’t go wrong with concise arrangements and A-list musicians. Each part fits together like a well-designed piece of architecture with every detail accounted for and nothing left out of place. |
06/13/2014 | Ian Stewart |
CD | Pupy & Los Que Son Son |
![]() Sin Límite, his latest release on EGREM, is one of Pupy's most innovative albums, full of stylistic twists and turns that you wouldn't normally expect in a recording that still contains some great timba. |
04/20/2014 | Bill Tilford |
DVD | Pupy & Los Que Son Son |
![]() Nominated in the Compilation category in Cubadisco 2013, this DVD contains 30 slamming Timba MP3s of some of Pupy's best material along with a 25-minute documentary. |
04/20/2014 | Bill Tilford |
DVD | Juan Formell y Los Van Van |
![]() This DVD, which was nominated for a Cubadisco in 2013 in the live recording category, includes a 2006 40th Anniversary concert, extra footage of interviews and conversations, English subtitles in the spoken parts of the film, and some video and photo footage of the beginnings of Los Van Van. |
01/16/2014 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Los Van Van |
![]() The 3 CD-set is one of the very best of the numerous Los Van Van compilations. Excellent song choices, ditto continuity, ditto production values. |
03/30/2014 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Los Van Van |
![]() Its founder, Juan Formell, only performs (posthumously) on one track, but a resurgent Los Van Van captures the best of his spirit and comes roaring back in this new release on EGREM that is one of their best albums from any decade. |
02/01/2015 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Formell y Los Van Van |
![]() ENGLISH: Legado, the latest by Formell y Los Van Van, is an exciting combination of material from the early days of the band with current compositions. It won a Special Prize in Cubadisco 2018 and as of this writing is also a nominee for Best Tropical Latin Album in this year's GRAMMY awards.
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10/14/2018 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Magic Sax Quartet |
![]() Magic Sax is Santiago de Cuba's answer to Habana Sax, and they are every bit as good. This was nominated for a Cubadisco (Instrumental Music) in 2014. |
01/28/2016 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Manolín, El Médico de la Salsa |
![]() Given the amount of water that's passed under "the bridge" for the amusingly enigmatic character known as "El Médico de la Salsa", it's no wonder that the historic release of "El puente" has rekindled the many controversies swirling around the current state of music and politics in Cuba and the United States. Fortunately, "El puente" also has the power to make us forget such annoyances and remember why we're drawn to this music in this first place. This live double CD captures the torrid adrenaline rush of the live Timba experience as no commercial recording ever has... |
09/28/2002 | Kevin Moore |
CD/DVD | Manolin El Medico de la Salsa |
![]() Manolin does a little bit of everything here, and different tracks may appeal to different listeners. |
03/24/2013 | Bill Tilford |
CD/DVD | Yasek Manzano |
![]() Better late than never dept: This came out long before we had a reviews section, but this Cubadisco 2010 winner for Jazz and Recording (and part of Colibrí's The Jazz Young Spirit Collection) is Mr. Manzano's first recording as sole leader and quite simply one of the best recordings of Jazz in Cuba ever made, so it would be a sin not to write about it here. |
06/28/2015 | Bill Tilford |
CD/DVD | Maraca & His Latin Jazz All Stars |
![]() This Cuban Jazz recording by Maraca and a cast of supporting all stars received critical acclaim internationally including a glowing review by Downbeat in the United States. |
01/09/2012 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Juan Carlos Marín |
![]() This 2013 nominee for a Cubadisco award in the Jazz Cubano category showcases Juan Carlos Marín, who may now be Cuba's best Jazz trombonist, along with an excellent ensemble performing some modern Jazz and Jazz Fusion material. It is also yet another entry in Colibri's "The Young Jazz Spirit" series, which so far has consistently proven to be excellent. |
04/02/2014 | Bill Tilford |
DVD | Pablo Menéndez |
![]() If you think you know everything there is to know about Pablo Menéndez from his past recordings with Mezcla, think again - this intense Jazz DVD not only shows sides of him that you may not know, but it will radically change your perceptions of the current Jazz scene in Cuba as well. |
01/08/2014 | Bill Tilford |
Concert | Mezcla |
![]() Mezcla's tours in the U.S. have been limited to a few cities, it would be |
07/30/2013 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Pablo Menéndez & Mezcla |
![]() Pure Mezcla is a live recording by Pablo Menéndez and Mezcla, recorded live at Yoshi's Oakland in 2013 and released in February 2015. Several critics and a battallion of Latin Jazz and World Music DJs love it. Since one TIMBA.com member produced it (Bill Tilford) and another mastered it (Michael Lazarus), we'll let those other critics tell you how good it is. |
06/14/2015 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Papo Vazquez Mighty Pirates Troubadours |
![]() Trombonist/Composer/Bandleader Papo Vazquez has been experimenting with Bomba Jazz, which incorporates Puerto Rican Bomba and Plena with Hard Bop, since the 1980s. The mature results are VERY impressive. |
06/28/2015 | Bill TIlford |
CD | Carlos Miyares |
![]() Nominated for a Cubadisco for Cuban Jazz in 2013, this recording is deep and beautiful. Saxophonist Carlos Miyares' style has been described as post-Coltrane by some reviewers. |
05/13/2013 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Moncada |
![]() This eclectic album, like the body of Moncada's work, incorporates a wide array of the different genres that have contributed to the evolution of Nueva Trova. Moncada, a multiple award winner in Cuba, is receiving an increased amount of attention in the United States after its recent appearance on Conan and an article in Rolling Stone. This review takes you a little deeper into their music. |
04/13/2015 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Marcos Morales |
![]() ENGLISH: Perspectiva is the auspicious (and audacious) debut album by one of the winners of JoJazz 2017, Marcos Morales. Mature beyond the years of its protagonists, Perspectiva provides the listener with an excellent panorama of many current trends in Jazz in Cuba.
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06/25/2018 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Rolando Morales-Matos |
![]() Vibraphonist/multi-instrumentalist Rolando Morales-Matos is the embodiment of what people would picture of a consummate professional musician. His eponymous solo effort, featuring his own ensemble Forward, is a top notch Latin jazz album with intriguing compositions/arrangements and fiery improvisations by Matos and his superb roster of musicians. |
06/16/2014 | Ian Stewart |
CD | Nabori |
![]() (Reviewed for our "Nuestros Primos Musicales" section). This is the second CD by Nabori, a rising "Salsa Brava" band in the Midwestern US. Many of its members are "on-call" when touring acts visit the region and need musicians. |
08/25/2013 | Bill Tilford |
CD | José Luís Cortés & NG La Banda |
![]() A hard-hitting new release by NG La Banda. Excellent arrangements, funny when it wants to be, Los Metales del Terror are in action, some solid Timba with a dash of Cuban Jazz, Conga/Merengue, Rumba and Bachata in the album. |
04/13/2015 | Bill Tilford |
CD | Aymee Nuviola |
![]() Nominated for a Latin GRAMMY (Salsa), a GRAMMY (Best Tropical Latin) and a Cubadisco (Música Popular Bailable - Maestros), this is an extremely solid dance album, and if that was its mission, then "mission accomplished". One does look at the guest artists and wonder what might have been... |
07/05/2015 | Bill TIlford |