Panama

Un homenaje  al hombre que más allá del son, que nos puso a bailar, con su pregón nos hizo pensar

Rubén Blades, La cosecha de su "Siembra"

[APWW #413] [Originally aired 2003]
Cumbia is an exuberant music born on the coast of Colombia, mixing African and indigenous elements. We go the Copacabana, New York's premiere Latin dance club, to hear cumbia maestro and accordion king Lisandro Meza in concert. Other featured cumbia maestros are Andres Landero and Mexico's Celso Pina.

Maestros De Cumbia

The heavy sound of the African heritage in Venezuela. Rhythms and Percussion instruments brought from West Africa by the time of the slave trade that remained unexposed until the late 70's, when the band Un Solo Pueblo took the Venezuelan airwaves by storm with a traditional repertoire they had compiled themselves after traveling extensively for years in the most remote areas of the country in order to learn those songs directly from people who had successively learnt them from their ancestors on a process that went back to the arrival of the first slaves, in the early 16th century. Employing unique drums like the Cumaco, Mina, Culo 'e Puya, Paila or the Quitiplás, the polyrhythmic structure of rhythms such as Golpe (with each town having its own particular variation), Sangueo or Fulía can be heard on this mix, that compiles some of the most interesting moments of the many recordings that began to surface in Venezuela back in the late 70's featuring Afro Venezuelan music exclusively. 
All music taken from original Vinyl Records. Hope you enjoy and share!

TAMBOR! Afro Venezuelan Recordings 1978 - 1986, selected by Alex Figueira.

Willie Colon - Che Che Colé

93 Ruben Blades - Decisiones [DJ Kangri]

Indestrutible- Tito Allen - Vivo - Ray Barreto - Sands - PR

Ray Barreto con Tito Gomez y Ruben Blades en vivo- Guarare

Ruben Blades y Willie Colon en vivo- Plantacion adentro

El animal (Bonus Track)- Barbaro Fines & Su Mayimbe

papa este es mi umilde regalo a todos mis panas maestra vida 

Ruben blades - maestra vida(2)

A selection of rare and obscure tropical gems from both sides of the Black Atlantic. Cuban Son, Cape Verdean Coladiera, Senegalese Mbalax, Jamaican Dub, Dominican Merengue, Haitian Kompa, Antillean Biguine, Guinea-Bissau Gumbe, and Afro-Latin fare. Happy travels! 

Some of these tracks will be released exclusively on Ostinato Records in the near future. Stay tuned!

Catch Ostinato Records spinning the finest in vintage Black Atlantic rhythms at Canicule Tropicale in Montreal, Canada on November 22, 2014! https://www.facebook.com/events/356496084524439/

Afrophonia Vol. 2 1968 - 1982: Black Atlantic Rhythms from Cuba to Angola

esta cancion habla del valor de la familia

Amor Y Control - Rubén Blades (Video Original) LIVE

Ruben Blades - Salsa - Pedro Navaja

The Amazon River basin has long been a mystery to Brazil. Located far from the centers of business and power in the nation’s southeast, the jungle provinces of the Brazilian north have long been ignored by the nation at large. But recently, Brazilians have discovered that the cities and waterways of the Amazon are home to some of the nation’s hottest music. In this Hip Deep episode—a musical history of Pará state, where Afro-Caribbean influences have created a unique local flavor that connects the dots between Brazilian music and the rest of Latin America, we check out the guitar heroes of old-school Amazonian dance bands, investigate the origins of the early ’90s lambada dance craze, and explore the bubblegum bass culture of tecno brega. Featured interviews with singer Gaby Amarantos, lambada revivalist Felipe Cordeiro and ethnomusicologist Darien Lamen, among others.

Lead Producer: Marlon Bishop
Assistant Production: Saxon Baird, Joe Dobkin

The Mighty Amazon

Revolution Generation - Lord Panama y Los Exciters

[APWW PGM #207] [Originally aired 6/22/1995]


Produced by Ned Sublette with José Mandry. The music being made in Puerto Rico before and during the salsa years had its own sabor, even while the salsa boom was exploding out of New York. 

We talk to three of Puerto Rico’s all-time most important bandleaders: Rafael Ithier, founder of El Gran Combo; Quique Lucca, founder of Sonora Ponceña; and Willie Rosario, and hear key tracks from the island. 


Playlist:

Cortijo Y Su Combo feat. Ismael Rivera: Bomba Carambomba (1961)
El Gran Combo feat. Pellín Rodríguez: Acángana (1964)
El Gran Combo feat. Andy Montañez: Serrana (1968)
Kako y Su Combo feat. Chivirico Dávila: Soy Sonero (1962)
Nacho Sanabria: Mambo Batiri 
Tommy Olivencia feat. Chamaco Ramírez: Trucutú (1965)
Mario Ortiz feat. Chico Rivera: Se Acabó el Bembé 
Cortijo Y Ismael Rivera: Sinbad el Marino 
Sonora Ponceña: Hachero Pa’ Un Palo (1968)
Roberto Roena y su Apollo Sound: Y Tú Loco Loco Pero Yo Tranquilo (1969)
Bobby Valentín: Huracán (1970)
Willie Rosario feat. Chamaco Ramírez: De Barrio Obrero a la Quince (1971)
Puerto Rican All-Stars featuring Kako: Abaniquito (1963)


A History of Puerto Rican Salsa

Manolito Simonet Y Su Trabuco - Quien Te Mando [Timba]

[APWW PGM #579]  [Originally aired in 2009]
AFRO-DOMINICANA: MUSIC FROM THE OTHER DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 
[APWW PGM #579]  [Originally aired in 2009]
In the 1930s, infamous Dominican dictator Rafael Truillo ordered the burning of the country’s palos drums, hoping to erase the powerful vestiges of African culture in the Dominican Republic. Luckily for us, the breakneck, trance-inducing sound of palos still reverberates at Afro-syncretic religious parties across the island nation almost a century later. This week, Afropop revisits the home of styles such as merengue and bachata, but this time we’ll be looking towards the most deeply African side of Dominican music--little known outside of the island. Afro-Dominican music is a secret treasure, filled with virtuosic drumming styles, heart-stopping grooves, and mystic dance parties. We’ll listen to traditional genres like palos, salve, and gaga, a uniquely Dominican take on rara music from neighboring Haiti. Throughout, we’ll be looking at artists who have drawn on Afro-Dominican styles to make infectious pop music, from wizened veterans of the folklore movement such as Luis Dias, to a host of hip, young bands who use Afro-inspired rock, reggae, and hip-hop to redefine what it means to be Dominican. We’ll also check out the Afro-Dominican scene in New York City – home to more than a half million Dominicans—where we’ll find a Dominican gaga group in Brooklyn who are mending cultural fences at a weekly Haitian celebration.

Afro-Dominicana -  Music from the Other Dominican Republic

[APWW #596] [Originally aired in 2010]  
Central America, a narrow, mountainous, and largely impoverished stretch of land spanning seven countries, is a surprising and under-exposed Latin American musical hot zone. The region's bizarre and tumultuous history has led to a fascinating mix of cultural influences - Spanish conquistadors, British pirates, and American banana companies have at one time or another vied for power. Add to this mix presence of large indigenous enclaves, Anglo-Caribbean migrants, the Afro-Arawak Garifuna and Mosquito peoples, and the many musical influences of the Caribbean, and you have the makings of a very interesting musical tapestry. Salsa and merengue, soca and calypso, reggae and reggaeton - it all comes together in Central America.  We visit Panama, a little known musical treasure trove. Here on the isthmus, music from around the Americas mixed together in a unique stew:  American, Cuban, Colombian, Jamaican influences combine to form a highly complex and unique musical culture. We'll hear interviews from Spanish reggae star Kafu Banton, Afro-Spanish linguist John Lipski, traditional Afro-Latino princess Marcia Rodriguez, dancehall youngbloods Los Rakas, and many more. Produced by Marlon Bishop.

Panama

javon boothe