CUBAN MASTERS

The brainchild of trombone man and longtime Cuban music great Juan Pablo Torres, los Originales are a group of some of Latin jazz's funkiest players doing what they do best. Famed percussionists Francisco Aguabella, Francisco de los Reyes, and Carlos "Patato" Valdes swing en clave like few on earth are capable. When joined by the oft-underappreciated pianist Alfredo "Alfredito" Valdes, Jr., and the father of mambo himself, Orlando "Cachaito" Lopez, the rhythm section exudes an unmatchable confidence and sense of elegance. Whether in a gutsy, machismo-laced mambo or a suave and elegant danzon, los Originales prove their claim to the name. It seems that the Cuban music community is glutted with groups following the same model (form an orquesta with a couple serious veterans and a whole lot of competent unknowns, play traditional mambo craze-era music with new arrangements, and call yourself the original gangsters of Cuban music), including groups read more...