Random Notes 3/24/15
9 time Grammy Award Winner, NEA Jazz Master and Latin Music legend Eddie Palmieri will be bringing his mighty Salsa Orchestra to open up the Yerba Buena Gardens Festival 2015 season on Sunday, May 3rd at 1 pm. The show is FREE to the public. The Gardens are located on Mission Street between 3rd and 4th Streets in San Francisco. The rest of the season will feature such acts as Cuban drum phenom Dafnis Preito, the Venezuelan Music Project, Yosvanny Terry and Baptiste Trotignon, Bixiga 70 direct from Brazil, Marcus Shelby, Lavay Smith and her Red Hot Skillet Lickers and others! The series will go until early October with free noon-time concerts during the week and free weekend early afternoon shows….Space 550 located at 550 Barneveld is becoming the place to be for the Salsa dance community on Saturday evenings in SF. The multi room space is featuring shows produced by the Club Fuego group and the Yerba Buena Social Club group. Shows have been featuring L.A.’s Boogaloo Assassins and such local favorites as Louie Romero’s Mazacote….I am wrapping up a month long DJ residency at Friday Nights at the OMCA (Oakland Museum) this Friday (March 27) from 5 to 7 pm. The Friday night scene which actually goes from 5 to 9 pm features a live band (this week is Hot Einstein), gourmet food trucks, wine/beer available, 1/2 price to the museum’s exhibits and band starting at 7 pm. It’s FREE to the public!…..I will also be guest DJ at the popular Koketo’s Sundays this coming Sunday, March 29th at St. James Gate Pub, 1410 Old County Road in Belmont from 4 to 9 pm. The featured band is the hot Orquesta La Original featuring vocalist Alexis Guillen. Get ready to sweat to the hottest in Salsa Brava, Timba, Mambo, Guaguanco, Merengue, Bachata y lo que sea for the dancers!!….Tomaj Trenda continues his Levitate Fridays and 3rd Saturday’s Party (3 1/2 years strong) at the spacious Just Dance Ballroom, 2500 Embarcadero in Oakland. The venue features 3 rooms including a Bachata and Kizomba room….SF Jazz will be presenting Chucho Valdes, Gonzalo Rubalcaba and Michel Camilo in a tribute to the Cuban legend Ernesto Lecuona on Sunday, June 21st at Davies Symphony Hall where Los Van Van will be presented on Friday, August 24th! The summer is going to be hot in the SF Bay!! Ciao 4...
Read MoreA New Sunday Kind Of Love
Once upon a time, I was a rotating resident DJ/Host at Jelly’s Dance Cafe which was a Salsa lover’s phenomenon on Sundays. The place was always packed with dancers, music aficionados and hangers on. The level of music was incredible from both band and dj – there was a strong connection between performers, dancers and the public. Salseros, Timberos y Los Bailadores had a place where everyone was part of the family. Jelly’s closed down in 2010. Different promoters have tried to capture the magic but few have lasted. Koketos, a Sunday party born last Summer in Belmont at the St. James Gate Irish Pub is the latest contender that actually is reminiscent of the same set up as Jelly’s. The place has an indoor/outdoor scenario-each with a stage, dance floor and full bar. They are featuring live Salsa bands such as Bembe and Pa’l Bailador as well as DJ Antonio (who was a monthly resident DJ in the final years at Jelly’s) who spins in a Cuban/Timba style mixing in Salsa and Bachata. The party is run by the charismatic husband/wife team of Eric and Grace Rivera with the sound run by Len Johns. The inside room was set up for the show the Sunday that I visited due to cold outside weather. It’s a smaller space than the outside patio but had a warm, cozy feel. This popular place will be one of the main places to go on a Sunday once the warmer weather hits..the patio has plenty of room to accommodate a large crowd. Over in Sausalito, the Seahorse has been the enduring contender in the Sunday Salsa sweepstakes outside of El Rio and The Ramp. It’s an Italian restaurant that has a large dance floor but does not have an outdoor or a patio space for dancing. It’s been the home of Salsa and Cuban bands such as La Moderna Tradicion, Edgardo y Candela, Louie Romero’s Mazacote, Fito Reinoso and others. DJ’s Ian, Jose Ruiz (KPFA/KPOO) and Carlitos Way rotate each week. The Sunday parties are hosted by Linda Wosskow, one of the original co-founders of the late Sunday Jelly’s scene. The place serves beer and wine only. As a reflection of today’s audiences, The Seahorse caters to an older crowd while Koketos caters to a wider and younger range of salseros. Both places strive to capture the Jelly’s type of ambience. However, each place has it’s own unique charm and in their own way…trying to keep Salsa alive in this day and...
Read MoreRandom Notes – 2/15/15
A “new” Buena Vista Social Club cd “Lost And Found” has arrived. The project consisting of unreleased recordings featuring band members both living or deceased such as Ibrahim Ferrer, Ruben Gonzalez, Compay Segundo, Cachaito Lopez with Miguel Anga Diaz, Eliades Ochoa and Omara Portoundo is a revelation. Live recordings, outtakes and rarities featuring these beloved artists is now out on the World Circuit label distributed by Nonesuch…..Pacific Mambo Orchestra is set to release a single “The Pacific Mambo Dance” as a followup to their Grammy award winning “PMO” recording. A video will also be released. The song will also feature their newest member, vocalist Armando Cordova (Avance)…..The Salsa Rueda Festival is set for this coming week from Thursday, Feb. 19 through Sunday, Feb. 22 featuring former Van Van vocalist Mayito Rivera as headliner accompanied by Miami’s Timbalive. The festival will also feature appearances by the Bay Area Rumba All Stars and Rumbache as well as dance performances and dance workshops for beginners to advanced dancers during the day. For more information, go to salsaruedafestival.com…..Vocalist Herman Olivera and Trombonist Jimmy Bosch who are two extraordinary talents in the Salsa world will be appearing together as part of a Salsa/Bachata weekend happening at San Jose’s renowned Club Milano on Saturday, March 21st. The club’s Producer Max Jose Enrique has leaked on Facebook that he is bringing the highly regarded salsa band from Italy, La Maxima 79 to the club this Summer…San Jose is certainly stepping up in terms of showcasing Salsa in Northern California…..New scene: Baylando Wednesdays at the Berkeley Underground (formerly Shattuck Down Low and Mr. E’s) featuring salsa dance lessons and salsa bands in the early part of the evening until 11:30 then turning the show over to the Baylando label DJ’s consisting of DJ Santero, DJ Kool Kyle, DJ J Styles (Jerry Limon) and others. I will be a guest MC/Host for the Wed, Feb 25th show…see you there!!…..For the dancers: Fridays at Just Dance Ballroom, 2500 Embarcadero in Oakland boasts 10,000 square feet of dance floor with 3 separate rooms with Salsa, Bachata and Timba brought you by Tomaj Trenda who is the host of a highly successful party every 3rd Saturday at the Allegro Ballroom in Emeryville….Phenomenal Spanish vocalist Buika at SF’s Nourse Auditorium on Sat. Feb. 28…Ciao 4...
Read MoreXiomara Luagart – Music 2 my ears
Just wanted to drop a few lines about Xiomara Laugart’s new cd “Tears And Rumba” on Chesky. A new take on Afro Cuban folklore, rumba, son montuno and boleros from the ex-Yerba Buena vocalist. Laugart shines throughout the recording with a wealth of material ranging from the moody trova style standard such as Maria Teresa Vera’s “Ausencia” to the danceable son montuno of Miguel Matamoros’ “La Mujer De Antonio”. Laugart dives into these classic Cuban songs with a lot of soul, heart and feeling. She is backed by an excellent ensemble comprising of bassist Yunior Terry, guitarist Roman Lajara, flautist Javier Porta, percussionist Luisito Quintero, vocalist Gerardo Contino and her son Axel Tosca Laugart, the musical director on the date on vocals and clave. Laugart serves up a heartfelt musical stew that isn’t your typical Cuban fare. It’s moody and aspires to reach deep into monte adentro. It’s worth the effort to join her on this...
Read MoreLive Appearances
Follow Luis on
Follow Luis on