Published on Mar 31, 2003
Ry Cooder is a musician’s musician. That’s the first thing you
have to say about a guy whose talents are respected and diverse
enough to earn him studio time over the years with acts ranging
from Little Feat to Taj Mahal, not to mention stints supporting the
Rolling Stones, John Hiatt and Gordon Lightfoot, and more
soundtrack work than you can shake a stick at.
What you can’t do is pin him down in one specific category of
music. Depending on his tastes and mood, previous solo albums might
find him laying down some sweet slide on an R&B tune,
rearranging traditional Hawaiian folk songs, or reaching back to
cover the roots of rock and roll.
This particular album grew out of Cooder’s work with the Buena
Vista Social Club, an all-star group of Cuban musicians whose 1997
album captured the imagination of world music fans who have rarely
caught a glimpse of that isolated country’s prodigious musical
talent at work. His partner in this outing, recorded primarily in
Havana, is Cuban guitarist Manuel Galban, whose twangy, gently
swinging stylings meld Dick Dale, Don Ho and Herb Alpert into music
that’s both otherworldly and joyous.
There’s a uniquely exotic tone to this almost exclusively
instrumental album; the music manages to be tropical and dusky at
the same time. The pace is generally languid, but the rhythms are
steady and intricate, with two drummers (session superstar Jim
Keltner and Cooder’s son Joachim) and multiple percussionists
supporting Galban, Cooder and acoustic bass player Orlando
“Coachito” Lopez on most cuts.
As with most instrumental albums, it’s all about atmospherics,
and this music, while it often swings and sometimes shimmies,
carries undercurrents of both celebration and lamentation. The
island vibe is thick in the tropical rhythms of tracks like “Drume
Negrita” and “Maria La O.” What’s fascinating is to hear them
blending beautifully with Latin rhythms as in “Caballo Viejo,”
“Bolero Sonambulo” and especially the foot-tapping title track,
which plays Cooder’s organ off against guest Herb Alpert’s trumpet
and some especially twangy lead work from Galban.
A collision of styles makes other tracks especially memorable,
such as the frothy Latin-surf fusion of “Monte Adentro” and
“Patricia.” “Los Twangueros” features plenty of twang but also a
sinuous, polyrhythmic, almost psychedelic melody. That dreamy
quality is the true unifying element of the album, which is rich
with island atmosphere and utterly devoid of flash.
On the whole, this effort comes off as a loving homage in which
two veteran musicians sit down in a room and pretty much play
whatever they feel like. The results, while not what you’d call
rousing, never fail to engage and entertain. This is mature,
densely textured music, to be digested slowly over a long period of
time.
And yes, a straw hat, a cold drink and/or a cigar might go
nicely…