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Cherry Pop

Title - Vacil​ó​n Santiaguero
Artist - Kiki Valera y su Son Cubano

Vacil​ó​n Santiaguero is Kiki Valera’s second US solo release after many distinguished years as director of La Familia Valera Miranda in Santiago de Cuba.

It reaches beyond his core performing group to present collaborations with some GRAMMY® award winning musicians and to feature his favorite trumpeters, some Cuban-born, others US-born, but all with justified reputations for playing Cuban music out of love if not from DNA.

“Vacilón” is one of those words that doesn’t have a perfect English equivalent to Cuban Spanish, but something that is a REALLY good time (a little rum or aguardiente always helps) comes close.

So what sets this apart from the vast mountain of excellent traditional albums already out there? Not only is there Kiki’s custom-built Cuban cuatro, which brings a unique texture to the sound, rather than a tres, but in his jazz-influenced hands, you will occasionally hear twists and turns in the solo work that you probably weren’t expecting when you first glanced over the song titles; which are mostly Cuban evergreens.

Thanks to Kiki’s creative arrangements, this is no mere recycling of cover versions of these classic songs.

1. Este Vacilón (5:20)
2. El Ají de Cocina (5:07)
3. Sobre una Tumba una Rumba (7:04)
4. El Penquito e’ Coleto (4:11)
5. Funfuñando (5:31)
6. La Guajira (5:46)
7. Mari-Juana (3:54)
8. Muñequita Feliz (6:30)
9. El Empanadillero (4:35)
10. Pájaro Lindo (6:23)
11. Dos Gardenias (2:56)
12. El Cuarto de Tula (5:34)

The album opens on the wholly impassioned Este Vacilón and the bouyant El Ají de Cocina and then brings us the percussion-hued Sobre una Tumba una Rumba, the flirtatiously decadent El Penquito e’ Coleto, before both the melodic Funfuñando and the free flowing La Guajira are brought forth.

Along next is the spirited Mari-Juana and the all-embracing Muñequita Feliz and they are in turn backed by the effervescent El Empanadillero, the elegantly-sculpted Pájaro Lindo, the recording rounding out on the gently euphoric Dos Gardenias, closing on the dancefloor hipsway of El Cuarto de Tula.

Official Purchase Link

www.kikivalera.com

Kiki Valera @ Facebook





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