The many vibrant colors of Cuban music, from Latin groove to new variations on son, mambo, rumba, cha cha cha & Afro-Cuban jazz

Since the success of the Buena Vista Social Club, Americans, whether Latino or not, have started enjoying the sounds of the son and other Cuban music styles in a way that we haven’t seen since the 1940s and ‘50s, when Latin music was on the air and in the homes of anyone who listened to Duke Ellington, Bing Crosby, or Dizzy Gillespie. Cuba Without Borders is a compilation of this music, produced by Robert Leaver and Greg Landau, and featuring many of the same musicians who helped Leaver and Landau’s Round World Music label garner two Grammy nominations.

Round World Music was originally a record shop specializing in rarities and hard-to-find Cuban titles. Tucked away in the San Francisco Mission District, the store’s owner, Robert Leaver, was making an important San Francisco-Havana connection at a time when the revival of Cuban music was just beginning. An even more important connection was made when he met producer-guitarist Greg Landau.

Landau, the son of author-educator Saul Landau, lived in Cuba for periods during the 1960s and 1970s and realized that Cuba’s musical landscape was largely terra incognita to most Americans. By lugging digital equipment to Cuba and squeezing recording sessions into his basement in the Bay Area, he and Leaver were able to transform Round World Music from an obscure record shop into one of the leading sources of contemporary Cuban music. They received consecutive Grammy nominations for their series Ritmo y Candela (Volumes 1 & 2). These records featured a formidable lineup that included Jose Luis "Changuito" Quintana, Orestes Vilató and the legendary Carlos "Patato" Valdes with musical director, Enrique Fernandez. Round World also recorded and released a series of albums with an impressive roster of resident musicians like Omar Sosa, John Santos, Rebeca Mauleón-Santana, Felix "Fito" Reinoso, and John Calloway, as well as island talents like Bellita & Jazztumbata, Pancho Quinto, and the Terry family.

Made at a time when the longstanding American embargo of Cuba is still in place, these recordings transcend borders and politics, ignoring the distinction between Cubans and Americans and showing instead how much we share as neighbors. Cuba Without Borders is a gift from a couple of San Francisco homeboys who know and love this music. Their compilation serves as a kind of cultural bridge, bringing this music to mainstream America, in many cases for the first time.

1. Patato - EL LENGUAJE DEL SON 6:24
(Sebastian Landau, Greg Landau)
Point Nine Publishing (BMI)

Congas - Carlos “Patato” Valdes; Timbales and guiro - Orestes Vilató; Drums - Walfredo de los Reyes, Sr.; Baritone sax - Enrique Fernandez; Tres - Greg Landau; Vocals - Felix “Fito” Reinoso; Coro - Lazaro Games; Flute - John Calloway; Piano - Ivan “Melón” Gonzalez
Produced by Greg Landau

Carlos "Patato" Valdes helped define the sound of Latin jazz in the 1950s, and helped redefine it in the 1990s. His distinctive conga playing has graced historic albums by Herbie Mann, Tito Puente, and Machito, and made him one of the most respected Cuban musicians of the past half century. His father was a member of the pioneering son band Los Apaches in the 1920s, and he taught young Patato the guitar-like instrument known as the tres. This gave Patato a melodic perspective that he later integrated into his drumming style. Patato helped evolve the Cuban musical form known as son while playing with some of Cuba’s greatest bands, like Conjunto Rubavana and Conjunto Casino – and did it while still a teenager. Restless and eager for new musical challenges, he immigrated to New York in 1954 to play jazz. There, he had an immediate and long-lasting impact. In addition to a longtime gig with Herbie Mann’s band, Patato was the drummer of choice on a variety of classic Blue Note recordings.

In this song, Patato pays tribute to his roots in Cuban son while using some decidedly modern touches. Check out Enrique Fernandez's "Wall of Wind," a dramatic, World Sax Quartet-inspired approach to the saxophone.

For more Patato music, check out The Legend of Cuban Percussion on the Six Degrees Travel Series.

2. Pancho Quinto with Omar Sosa - LA GORRA 5:51
(Lazaro Rizo; arrangement by Omar Sosa)
Point Nine Publishing (BMI)

Cajon, bata, quinto - Pancho Quinto; Tumbadoras, quinto, bombo, bata, bells - Octavio Rodriguez Rivero; Bata, cajon, tres golpes - John Santos; Timbales, drums - Jesus Diaz; Bass - Rahsaan Fredericks; Keyboards - Omar Sosa; Guitar - Greg Landau; Vocals - Lazaro Rizo, Guillermo “El Negro” Triana; Coro - Jose Luis Gomez; Clave - Alexander Napoles
Produced by Greg Landau

In “La Gorra,” singer Lazaro Rizo tells the poignant story of how his Kangol hat, a gift from percussionist John Santos, was snatched off his head while he rode around Havana on a bicycle. Meanwhile Pancho Quinto and his group launch into a funk-laden rumba to accompany Rizo’s offbeat chronicle of Havana street life. Greg Landau’s production brings together two generations of Cuban musical ideas, as Pancho Quinto, one of Cuba's great folk drummers (see track 9), finds himself rubbing elbows with Omar Sosa, whose keyboards blend traditional harmonies with hip hop and classical music. And santeria drumming meets dance club backbeats in the playing of the great Cuban percussionist/babalao Octavio Rodriguez, who anchors the whole ensemble. Jesus Diaz’s quicksilver drumming dispels any lingering hint of sadness in Rizo’s tale.

3. Los Terry - Y MAÑANA QUE 4:56
(Eladio Terry)
Point Nine Publishing (BMI)

Guiro, chékere, vocals - Eladio Terry; Bass - Yunior Terry Cabrera; Flute - Yoel Terry Cabrera; Background vocals - Lydia Cabrera Leon, Arlin Gonzaléz, Luisito, Laito, Andrés Román Sánchez; Piano - Ivan “Melón” Gonzalez; Congas - Dafnis Prieto Rodriguez; Lead vocals - José “Laito” Hernández Boza ; Violin - Anthony Blea
Clave and guataca - Octavio Rodriguez Rivero; Timbales, bongo and percussion - John Santos
Produced by Greg Landau

Los Terry – the Terry Family – an extraordinary family of musicians from Camaguey, Cuba, was discovered by Greg Landau in Havana. Papa Eladio Terry was for many years the director, violinist and arranger for the popular dance orchestra Las Maravillas De La Florida. He also introduced the chékere (the beaded gourd used in West African Yoruba music) into Cuban dance halls. He taught his sons the religious and popular traditions of Afro-Cuban music, but they are also products of Cuba's musical education programs and conservatories. Sax whiz Yosvany Terry has already recorded and toured with the likes of Cubanismo, Steve Coleman, Patato, and his own group called Columna B (see track 8). Brothers Yunior and Yoel on bass and flute are also making names for themselves on the American jazz scene. Despite their various touring schedules, Los Terry still find time to play together. "Y Mañana Que" is a charming result of this family affair.

4. Omar Sosa - MARIMCHACHA 5:02
(Omar Sosa)
Shirmar Music (BMI)

Piano, marimba, vocal - Omar Sosa; Drums - Elliot Kavee; Bass - Geoff Brennan; Flute - John Calloway; Conga - John Santos; Timbales - Orestes Vilató; Vocal - Felix "Fito" Reinoso; Cello - Daniel Khachatrian; Violin, viola - Gerardo Cilvetti
Produced by Omar Sosa

"Ain't no party like a Sosa party," says Will Power. Of course, the Bay Area’s spoken-word griot isn’t talking about a real party, but an Omar Sosa music session. The results are often much the same, though: a bunch of people clearly having a good time. A pianist, composer and arranger, Omar Sosa has had a strong impact on northern California’s jazz and Latin scene. Born in Cuba and now living in Barcelona, Spain, Sosa spent five years in San Francisco, integrating the sounds of his East Oakland neighborhood into his Cuban roots. While critics argued about it, Sosa, like Ornette Coleman in his Something Else period, created a style of music that ignored borders. The same streets that gave rise to hip hop kings MC Hammer and Too Short found their way into Sosa’s music as well. "Marimchacha" gives a glimpse into just one aspect of his multifaceted output.

5. Rebeca Mauleón-Santana - ROUND MIDNIGHT 6:41
(Thelonious Monk, C. Williams & B. Hanighen, arrangement by Rebeca Mauleón-Santana)
Thelonious Music Corp. (BMI) and Advanced Music Corp. (ASCAP)

Piano and percussion - Rebeca Mauleón-Santana; Timbales, bongo and percussion - Orestes Vilató; Bass - David Belove; Congas - Jesus Diaz; Drums - Paul Van Wageningen
Trombone - Jeff Cressman; Alto and tenor saxophone - Alex Murzyn; Flute - John Calloway; Baritone saxophone - Malecio Magdaluyo; Violin - Anthony Blea
Produced by Manuel Santana

Rebeca Mauleón-Santana served as musical director for Mickey Hart’s globetrotting Planet Drum ensemble, and has collaborated with Orquesta Batachanga, Pete Escovedo, and John Santos’s Machete Ensemble. Rebeca has also recorded with the likes of Steve Winwood, Santana, Tito Puente and many others. Oh, and she’s a mom as well. Incredibly, with the release of her debut CD on her own label, Rhumbeca Music, this talented pianist has now found the time to lead her own band. With a diversity of influences, Rebeca Mauleón-Santana has been described as a Latina version of Mary Lou Williams, and on this track she displays her personal approach to one of the great standards of American jazz.

6. John Santos and the Machete Ensemble - CARAVAN 5:20
(Edward Kennedy Ellington, Irving Mills, Juan Tizol arr. W. Wallace)
Duke Ellington Music, EMI Mills Music Inc./Old Acct (ASCAP), Famous Music Corporation (ASCAP)

Trumpet - Bill Ortiz; Flute - John Calloway; Trombone (solo) - Wayne Wallace
Trombone - Jeff Cressman; Baritone Sax - Malecio Magdaluyo; Piano - Rebeca Mauleón-Santana; Bass - David Belove; Drums - Paul Van Wageningen; Bongos & bell - Anthony Carillo; Congas - John Santos
Produced by John Santos

There’s a reason why John Santos is on half the tracks on this record: he’s more than just a percussionist, and more than just the man who gave Lazaro Rizo his ill-fated hat (see track 2). A renowned Afro-Caribbean music scholar and band leader, John Santos has in large measure defined the hard driving West Coast Latin jazz sound with his adventurous Machete Ensemble. Santos has recorded and performed with jazz greats Dizzy Gillespie, Max Roach, Cal Tjader as well as Latin giants like Israel "Cachao" Lopez and others. Santos is a native San Franciscan, but his family’s roots are in Puerto Rico and the Cape Verde islands, a heritage that gives him a unique musical perspective. "Caravan" pays homage to the legendary boricua trombonist Juan Tizol, who introduced Latin sounds to mainstream America through his long tenure in The Duke Ellington Orchestra. Tizol co-wrote this classic tune with Ellington and Irving Mills; here, Wayne Wallace gives it a colorful new arrangement that sports a fiery trombone solo.

7. John Calloway - APROVECHA QUE ME VOY 6:26
(John Calloway, Jesus Diaz)
Point Nine Publishing (BMI)

Flute - John Calloway; Bass - Rahsaan Fredericks; Piano - Omar Sosa; Conga - John Santos; Drums - Paul Van Wageningen; Vocal, quinto, bongo, chékere - Jesus Diaz; Coro - Eric Rangel, Julio Areas, Edgardo Cambon, Jesus Diaz
Produced by John Calloway and Greg Landau

John Calloway is co-musical director of John Santos’s Machete Ensemble. It’s a musical collaboration that goes back several decades, as Calloway was also part of Santos’s pivotal 1970s band Tipica Cienfuegos, a retro-Afro-Caribbean ensemble. A gifted flutist, he has spent much of his career as a sought-after sideman in New York City and around San Francisco, and penned arrangements for a number of bands and recordings. Now Calloway is working on his long-awaited debut release. "Aprovecha Que Me Voy" gives us a preview of the urban influences and textures Calloway is pursuing.

8. Columna B - ESTOS DÍAS 7:45
(Roberto Carcasses, Jesus Diaz)
Bombo Music Productions (ASCAP)

Saxophone - Yosvany Terry; Piano - Roberto Carcasses; Drums - Josh Jones; Vocals, congas, timbales, percussion - Jesus Diaz; Acoustic bass - Yunior Terry; Coro - Sandy Cressman, Yosvany Terry, Roberto Carcasses, Jesus Diaz
Produced by Jesus Diaz and Yosvany Terry

Columna B features the next generation of Cuban jazz giants. Yosvany Terry (reeds), Roberto Carcasses (piano) and Dafnis Prieto (drums) met while still students in Havana. They’re a street-savvy bunch, as their hardbop/hip-hop Latin fusion suggests. Whether performing at leading jazz festivals or spending a week in residency teaching at the Stanford Jazz Workshop, they've begun to attract international attention. Currently, their records are only available in Europe. "Estos Días" is a rare opportunity for American listeners to hear what they’ve been missing.

9. Pancho Quinto - LENGUASA 4:51
(Lazaro Rizo)
Point Nine Publishing (BMI)

Bata, cajon and congas - Pancho Quinto, Octavio Rodriguez, Isidro; Lead vocals - Lazaro Rizo; Chorus vocals - Lazaro Rizo, Guillermo “El Negro" Triana, Juan “Chan”Campos,
Caridad “Santica" Maldonado Alfonso, Arlyn Gonzalez, Pablo Menendez, Luis “Luisito” Badell, Lilia “Bellita” Exposito; Piano - Omar Sosa; Bass - Rahsaan Fredericks; Tres - Greg Landau; Additional percussion - Michael Spiro
Produced by Greg Landau

Pancho Quinto is a former dock worker from the Belen neighborhood of old Havana and one of the founders of Cuba’s national folk music troupe. He began playing bata drums as a child with Jesus Perez, the legendary Santeria drum priest. He later became the lead drummer for the noted Carnival troupe Los Dandy's de Belen, and after the Cuban Revolution in 1959, he co-founded the Conjunto Folklorico Nacional. He is renowned for his work with the groups Yoruba Andabo, Sonora Matancera, and with Jane Bunnett and the Spirits of Havana. Pancho continues to practice his art in the barrio jam sessions, religious ceremonies and as guest artist with the country's top bands. El Solar la Cueva del Humo is the name of his own Round World debut release; this excerpt, a tongue-twisting rumba called "Lenguasa," marries the music of the barrio to the gossip of the 'hood.

10. Patato - SAN FRANCISCO TIENE SU PROPIO SON (The son et lumiere remix by Garry Hughes) 6:45
(Sebastian Landau/Greg Landau)
Point Nine Publishing (BMI)

In the 1980s, the Mariel Boatlift brought many Cubans to the Bay Area. One of those was a sonero (singer) named Felix "Fito" Reinoso. Using a vocal style inspired by legendary singer Benny More and the contemporary, rock-inflected sound of Cuban bands like Los Van Van, Fito and his band Rito y Armonia have ignited dance floors around San Francisco. Fito’s vocals include improvised verses, often praising the Latino heritage of the San Francisco Mission District, the city's barrio. This song appears in its original form on Patato's CD The Legend of Cuban Percussion (Six Degrees Travel Series), and suggests that the same music scene that gave birth to the Latin rock of Santana and Malo so many years ago is still spawning great talents today. Noted producer/remixer Garry Hughes adds his own distinctly modern spin to this irresistible track.

Compilation produced by Greg Landau & Robert Leaver.
Package design by Rex Ray.
Cover photo by David Belda.
Inside painting by Susan Matthews.
Liner notes by John Schaefer & Jesse "Chuy" Varela.
Mastered at Mr. Toad's, San Francisco, CA.