RELEASED ON 14.6.2024 ON MR BONGO VIA PROPER
CATALOGUE NUMBER MRBCD307
An 18-piece Afro-Cuban big band, inspired by the musical melting pot of NYC in
the 1950s, but with the punch and power of a whole host of London's best Latin
and jazz musicians . Blowing new life into these compositions, the album is a
reimagining of some of the finest music from that golden era. From early 1950s
Rene Hernandez and Tito Puente, through to the 1970s salsa of Rafael Labasta
and Orlando Marin, produced and performed with fresh fire.
NRO is the brainchild of its artistic director, and the man behind Total
Refreshment Centre and Church of Sound , Lex Blondin . Through a long- held
passion for jazz, Lex discovered the explosive Afro-Cuban rhythms of mid-1940s
NYC via the godfather of Afro-Cuban jazz, Mario Bauza. A time when two musical
worlds collided in a fusion of creativity and energy, jazz luminaries like Dizzy
Gillespie and Charlie Parker joining forces with Cuban greats like Machito and
Chano Pozo. This vibrant sound was music to dance to and found a home at The
New York Palladium, a formative space of freedom and expression that was key
to the scene's development.
Although dance- focussed in their makeup, those early recordings are not often
heard in modern club environments and Lex dreamt of retelling their story with a
contemporary dynamism . A slice of serendipity followed, as a slot at a new
festival opened up and Lex jumped at the chance to make this idea a reality, an
18-piece big band breathing new life into these beloved songs.
Enlisting the expertise of some of the capital's finest talent, Lex and co-captain
Andy Wood , of Como No fame, put together a world- class line- up of talent.
Bringing in Eliane Correa as musical director and bandleader, a fluid and
interchanging 18-piece band was formed.
This pure collective joy, shared experience and music you can't help but move to.
Tracks:
1. Pregon
2. Sambaroco
3. Mambo Herd
4. Fiesta Time
5. Para Los Papines
6. Sahib & Tito
7. Scarlet Mambo Hour
8. Papa Boco
9. Labasta Llego
10. Mambo Rama (Lex Blondin Rework)
11. Mango Walk
12. Harlem Jamboree