Chucho Valdes - Jazzcuba n° 1 (2007)

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Chucho Valdes - Jazzcuba n° 1 (2007)

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Son of the pianist and bandleader Bebo Valdes, Chucho Valdes' mid 1960s band included three of the musicians who would go on to form Irakere some ten years later—Valdes himself on piano, Paquito D'Rivera on saxophones and clarinets, and Carlos Emilio Morales on electric guitar.
This 1964 album is number-one-with-a-mango, Latin jazz heaven from start to finish—sunny, dancefloor friendly, improvisation centred music featuring a breathtakingly virtuosic frontline. Valdes' inventive arrangements draw from bop and hard bop, chachacha and other Cuban dance styles, European classical music and African-American gospel. There's less santeria-derived roots percussion work than was to come with Irakere, but supple congas and timbales rhythms, rather than kit drums, are used to drive most of the tunes forward.
Valdes and D'Rivera are already fully on song, and the biggest revelation is guitarist Morales, captured playing a fluent, pure jazz style which he returned to all too infrequently with Irakere. His abandoned, rapid-fire, single note runs are amongst the most magical passages on the disc. When he plays the themes in agile, exhilarating unison with D'Rivera, you're reminded of saxophonist Stan Getz's live recordings with guitarist Jimmy Raney in the early 1950s.
The final track, "Rabo De Nube," was recorded in 1981, and is a little masterpiece: a mid tempo, expansive and declamatory, five minute solo piano showcase with flute and guitar (both uncredited) introduced towards the end.
After this album, you might reasonably imagine you'd heard the best Jazz Cuba could offer.
Personnel: Chucho Valdes & Combo (tracks 1-14): Chucho Valdes: piano; Paquito D'Rivera: saxophone and clarinet; Julio A. Vente: flute; Alberto "El Man" Giral: trombone; Carlos Emilio Morales: electric guitar; Enrique Kike Hernandez: bass; Emilio Del Monte: drums. Chucho Valdes Quintet (track 15): Chucho Valdes: piano; other personnel not credited.