Ska Cubano

Ska Cubano

   Everybody wants to make a good first impression. So, when Jacob Edgar left his position as vice-president in charge of A&R at Putumayo Records to found his own label, the old adage must certainly have been on his mind. The initial offering from fledgling Cumbancha Records is “Ay Caramba!” from Ska Cubano and it definitely has blown the doors open for the new label, with its foot-tapping, dare-you-not-to-start-dancing music. An eleven piece band, Ska Cubano is the brainchild of Peter Scott, whose love for classical Jamaican ska and Cuban mambo and cumbia led him to assemble these musicians and reunite these long lost musical relatives. He enlisted Natty Bo, a U.K. ska veteran and fan of all things retro to oversee the production of the disc. Together they traveled to Santiago, Cuba, where they discovered Benny Billy strumming and singing in an old bar there. They both knew immediately that they had found their frontman for the band. And I concur: hey, anyone who appears in public with one lens missing in his sunglasses is alright by me. They flanked him with legendary seventy-four year old trumpeter Eddy “Tan Tan” Thornton, ska saxist Megumi Mesaku and bassist Ray Crespo.

   The CD’s first song, “Soy Campesino” sets the tempo for the entire disc, with its playfulness and danceability. To be sure, there is not a single tearjerker or torch song on the album. The whole mood is fifty-two minutes of fun, at times more than a little tongue-in-cheek, without ever being condescending. The title song, “Ay Caramba” is a good example, extolling and celebrating the scandalous irresponsibility in the lives of musicians everywhere. The band also covers a few gems, including “Jezebal” and “Tabu” and possibly the first ska arrangement ever of the risqué mento song “Big Bamboo”, which has nothing to do whatsoever with bamboo.

Ska Cubano in action

   Before the Cuban Revolution in 1959, Trinidadian calypso was popular all over the island, and early ska bands regularly infused Cuban beats into their songs. By the 60s, these two tangential styles separated into different musical directions, as Cuban music develop0ed into salsa, while ska led to the worldwide phenomenon called reggae. It’s nice to see these two closely related musical brothers discover a new commonality. As Edgar Jacob said, “Ska Cubano is a perfect example of a group that needs to be heard by a wider audience. I’m certain that people of any age and background will find this upbeat music irresistible” This infectious CD is available at Jaime Peligro book store in Playa Tamarindo, where they will sample the music for their customers.All commetns concerning this article are welcome.