Marimba rhythms from Colombia Pacifico

Marimba traveled from Africa (balafon) to Central America and the Caribbean several centuries ago. This percussive and melodic instrument had time to spread and can be found along the Pacific shore from Mexico to Ecuador, where it became an integral part of local folklore (and even national pride in Guatemala).

Toto La Momposina and Baranquilla Carnaval Live in La Habana (2013)

Afrocolombian spirit gliding over La Habana, could be a good summary of this unique night, beginning in the Teatro de America, and ending in the streets as an improvised carnaval...

Alberto Beltran, El Negrito del Batey (Dominican singer in Cuba, Panart 1950's)

(Panart LP-2017).

Panart Records was a pre-revolution cuban record label (before 1959), and released a good number of amazing records. Here's Alberto Beltran, a dominican singer, joined by Conjunto Casino.

MIX /// Tropical Roundtrip Selection (from Colombia to Africa)

(Muzzicaltrips TRT019).

A real tropical roundrip, beginning in colombia with classy 60s cumbia, guiro y guaracha, merecumbe, maracumba, currulao, afrocolombian...

Palenque culture #01 Palenque de San Basilio

Palenque de San Basilio is a village not far from Cartagena (Colombia) which represents a really unique cultural space. At the dawn of the17th century, several groups of african slaves escaped from spanish settlers, building fortified villages called "palenques". San Basilio village, led originally by african king Benkos Bohio, is the only one who survived up to nowadays.

Eliseo Herrera, Trabalengua and the folkloric group Los Malibus (Colombia, 1960s)

(Fuentes Delujo LP 400168).

Eliseo Herrera (1924) played with various formations including one of the greatest at Fuentes: Los Corraleros de Majagual. He imposed his specific way of singing which became a style called "Trabalengua" (tongue-twisting). You'll recognize directly listening to following tracks, but basically it consists of producing a dense jerky flow, very fast, adding syllables, without any pause for breathing.

MIX /// Muzzicaltrips In Colombia (afrocolombiano, bombo, cumbia, currulao, gaita, guanguanco, porro)

Colombia is surely one of the most impressive country in Latin American, notably due to importance, diversity and quality of his music. Regionalism and opening to numerous influences being two particularities, listing and studying every styles (and sub-styles) becomes quickly a full time job. 

For sure this 60s 70s LP selection cannot be representative of the richness of colombian music, but just travels all around the country, introducing some great gaita, jazzy cumbias, bombo, porro, currulao, guaguanco, afrocolombian crazy tracks from Silver, Fuentes, Felito, Tropical, Machuca, Curro...

Que disfruten el viaje!

Lisandro Meza - Shakalao / Shakara (1975)

Muzzicaltrips will present many exemples of mutual influences between Africa and Latin America.

Here's "Shacalao", played by Colombian Lisandro Mesa, cumbia master, known as "Accordion World Champion", joined by his conjunto.

It consists of a roots afro-colombian version of nigerian king of afrobeat Fela Kuti song "Skakara".

Amazing mixed influences version, atlantic ocean seems to have evaporated...

Lisandro Meza - Shakalao:

Accordeon is so spread in Colombia that I remember talking a guy who could not imagine nor concieve that this instrument was brought from abroad... As I could not convince him, let's have Lisandro Meza's clarification on story of 1st Accordeon in Colombia (A. Wolfe - 2003):

"The first accordion arrived in Colombia via Coveñas, brought by a man named Pisarro, Joaquín Pisarro. He came from Germany and arrived at the ports carrying grappa, wire, hammers, hachets, and machetes, and he traded thesae things for tabacco as he traveled. Once he brought an accordion and he sold it to the Villa Milian Oveja family for two bales of tobacco. The three brothers in the family all learned to play on that accordion.

Later they sold the accordion to Francisco El Hombre, whose real name was Francisco Moscote. They gave him the name "Francisco El Hombre" because he lived in Machovallo, and most of the men from that region were away working in the banana plantations when a plague came and killed many of the children. But there were no men to bury the children. Francisco said, "I am the man who will bury the children", so they called him "Francisco El Hombre" (Francisco the Man). The legend is that he was the first great accordionist from Colombia."