Afrodisia

A classic from one of Kenny Dorham's Latin excursions. Horace Silver is a nice plus, too, ensuring a funky fusion of jazz and Afro-Cuban rhythms. 

Nunca vas a comprender

Mood music for the week has been Rita Payés and Elisabeth Romero. Their album has been dreamlike music for contemplation and accompaniment for reading. 

Señor Blues

We here at the blog are currently constructing a Horace Silver playlist. While we are mostly drawn to his recordings featuring Joe Henderson, especially The Cape Verdean Blues and Song For My Father, we are forcing ourselves to listen to music from his various outfits and eras. Always the master of a funky Latin number, "Señor Blues" shows off Silver's mastery of a minor blues in 6/8 time. Silver, as always, shines in live performances with his deep blues and percussive piano style. 

Ceora

"Ceora" is a classic penned by Lee Morgan. Unlike his usually boisterous and fiery self, "Ceora" is a restrained and cool Latin number with an excellent introduction by Herbie Hancock. Morgan's solo is so breezy and soulful that it is difficult not to get lost in its gentle, undulating waves. Hancock's solo is also perfect for the composition. 

Pa Coute Conseil

One can listen to this song on repeat for hours. "Pa Coute Conseil" demonstrates those Cuban and Latin influences Haitian music has absorbed for a long time, particularly in the guitar, rhythms, and, if you will, carefree abandon suggested by the song's title and lyrics. "Anna" is also highly recommended for fans of Charmeurs du Cap's other songs. 

The Golden Ass

Apuleius's The Golden Ass is a hilarious tale of a man transformed into a donkey. Written in the 100s, perhaps during the reign of Marcus Aurelius, the North African author combines comedy and moral education in a tale of magic. Lucius, the protagonist, and central character in novel loaded with inset stories, suffers from an unnatural interest in magic and sex, ultimately leading to his accidental transformation into an ass by Photis, his lover (and slave of Milo and Pamphile, the witch). P.G. Walsh's translation ably renders into the English language much of Apuleius's wicked humor and satire of social relations, the Roman Senate, "catamite" priests, and unfaithful servants. Walsh's translation does not "modernize" the text to make it too informal or contemporary, so it still almost reads like something a Latin-speaker wrote over 1800 years ago. 

Like other ancient "novels" of the Roman Empire, the narrative structure brings to mind Arabian Nights through its several stories of infidelity, disloyal slaves, sorcery, supernatural events, bandits, greedy estate-owners, and, in the tale of Cupid and Psyche, a fable with Platonist or philosophical implications. Cupid and Psyche's tale occupies a significant chunk of the text, suggesting its central importance to the religious and philosophical themes pertinent to the soul and love, humanity and the divine. Psyche's desire for connection, her curiosity, and her eventual reunion with Cupid (and the other gods) suggest a possible route for human connection to the higher powers. Like Lucius, Psyche's curiosity and need for companionship drive her toward peril, but humble service to the gods (even a human-like Venus, overwhelmed with envy for the unsurpassed beauty of Psyche) with acceptance of one's mistakes lead to her salvation. 

Like Heliodorus's Ethiopian Romance, the novel shifts its settings and deals with a variety of trials that Lucius must survive or escape, although there is no Charicleia or female figure he truly loves (Photis was only useful for her sexual services). The intervention of the gods and belief in divine providence abounds in both texts, although the two lovers in Heliodorus's romance are directly linked to two main deities of the Greek pantheon and lack any of the moral flaws of Lucius. Since Lucius is a flawed person with moral shortcomings, his character is more believable and compelling than the star-crossed lovers in the Greek romances. Of course, since Heliodorus and Apuleius were both familiar with the literary heritage of the Greek language, The Golden Ass shares much of the same mythological and literary allusions with the ancient Greek "novels."

 The final book, which tells of Lucius's initiation into the mysteries of Isis and Osiris, presents a shift in tone in the novel as it drops it satirical tone and seems to openly embrace worship of Isis and proper religious behavior. In its embrace of the mysteries and its description of various rituals, this must surely be the world's first occult novel. Like a fable, it calls upon the reader to pursue knowledge in the proper way and practice moderation in sex and curiosity. Lucius, educated though he was, had to endure harrowing experiences as a donkey before he could learn this essential lesson, and find a way out of he morally corrupt world he experienced first-hand as a beast of burden. Much of the details of Lucius's initiation is left unrevealed to the reader, but the novel purports to offer right living and service to the mystery cults as the path to knowledge and success. Instead of the avaricious estate-owners, unchaste wives, effeminate pseudo-priests, violent bandits, abusive centurions, or miserly wealthy who hoard their riches to no purpose, the cult of Isis offers a path away from these ethical dilemmas. 

As an influential text in the history of the Western canon, I could not help but wonder if this novel may have influenced Antoine Innocent's Mimola. The Haitian novel directly links the Vodou loas to the dieux lares of the ancient Mediterranean. Like Lucius, Mimola is afflicted by supernatural means, although in her case it has more to do with the family's rejection of the ancestral spirits. Like Lucius, Mimola and her mother must persevere over the course of a number of trials, culminating in their pilgrimage to Saut d'Eau. Again, like Lucius, Mimola is initiated as a priestess in Vodou and is freed from her affliction. Perhaps any and all similarities between the two novels end here, yet they share a critique of Christianity (the baker's adulterous wife is likely a Christian, while in the Haitian context nationalists of Innocent's era were critical of the Catholic Church's influence). Like Apuleius, Innocent sees the syncretism of "pagan" beliefs and their positive social impact as the basis for community, the city-state. I would like to further explore any possible links between Apuleius and Haitian authors in the future, particularly as it relates to the occult, initiation, and connaissance. Milo Rigaud's Jésus ou Legba? may be the best place to look, especially since Rigaud linked Vodou to ancient Egypt and Nubian religions, of which Isis was a major figure. 

Bossa Fly Me To the Moon

Neon Genesis Evangelion used "Fly Me To the Moon" brilliantly, often changing the vocalist by incorporating members of the cast for the outro credits. This bossa-inflected take of the American standard met the interests and needs of the various characters in the show as they sought affection and connection. 

Boricua

"Boricua" is one of the interesting early attempts by Astor Piazzolla to fuse tango and jazz in a Jazz-Tango quintet.. As the title of the piece suggests, this early crossover attempt involved instrumentation typically associated with the Cuban and Puerto Rican influences in Latin jazz. Jason Borge mentions it as an interesting piece, and it certainly is. Perhaps one of the few from this group that is worth hearing. 

Cachita

A classic from the songbook of Rafael Hernandez receives an excellent Latin jazz interpretation from trumpeter Charlie Sepulveda. "Cachita" has rarely sounded better. 

Mujer

Although salsa is not my preferred genre of music, it's one I return to somewhat regularly. Enjoy.

Con el Sentimiento Herido

Boleros are usually not my cup of tea, but this woman's voice is too powerful. 

Faltaste a la cita

Irresistible merengue music from the 1980s...a great decade for the genre, although perhaps very dated to our ears in the 2010s. 

Samba Jazz

A stirring samba-jazz composition from a Brazilian saxophonist and his band, this is just as addictive as Cannonball Adderley's "Jive Samba." Jazz is truly global culture...

Te Quiero

Roger Colas singing in any language is delightful, but in Spanish is particularly beautiful. "Te Quiero" is a Lara song, and Colas does it justice here. 

Noriko Awaya

I've been reading a book on jazz in Japan, and in order to expand my appreciation of jazz as a worldwide phenomenon, listening to all kinds of music reflecting jazz influences. While legendary Noriko Awaya's "Blue Light Promenade" bears more of the influence of tango and Cuban music, it was irresistibly catchy and I had to share it. Jazz truly is global music. 

Saint Louis Blues Louis Style

A definitive take on W.C. Handy's classic, "Saint Louis Blues." Handy's use of the habanera rhythm illustrates how "Latin" music has been part of the jazz repertoire for over 100 years, and part of the reason why I annoyed by the ways in which some define "Latin Jazz" as a genre or sub-genre of jazz. Moreover, Armstrong's honking orchestra did in the 1920s what came to define early R&B so well with artists like Louis Jordan.

Armando's Rhumba

 

 A personal favorite from Chick Corea's Latin-inspired album, My Spanish Heart. Jean-Luc Ponty's violin playing is spectacular and brings to mind some of the best Cuban music.

Prosthetic Cubans

First recorded on Marc Ribot y los Cubanos Postizos, their first album, this take on "Choserito Plena" is lively and rock influenced, which shows Ribot's other strength while accompanied by talented Latin percussion. While not on the same level as Sabu and Arsenio Rodriguez's take on the same tune, which also features vocals, Ribot's take on this classic is worthwhile for doing something different and not losing itself in that elusive quest for authenticity, as the band's humorous name suggests. 

Keith Jarrett's Common Mama

Due to the recommendations of family who enjoy Keith Jarrett's music, I have been exploring his catalog. "Common Mama" is the kind of the jazz fusion I enjoy: funky, accessible, largely avoiding the noodling one finds in so much 1970s fusion records, and exploring polyrhythm in an interesting vein. Dewey Redman does not hold back here in his brief solo, which bows to the demands of funk and popular music while paying homage to the avant garde stylings of Albert Ayler and others. But the samba-like percussion is what drives this piece. Indeed, one is reminded of Bud Powell's "Un Poco Loco" because of Jarrett's use of Latin rhythms without sacrificing the jazz side of the equation.  

Encontros

I miss Gato Barbieri so much that even his more standard Latin jazz fare is more precious than ever. While lacking more of the extreme playing you might expect from his work with Don Cherry, Alan Shorter and others, Barbieri's Latin-inspired music is usually capable of taking Latin American folk styles, songs, and rhythms into interesting directions. This number, a cute song with what sounds like a Brazilian beat, forays into some of Barbieri's famous honking without disrupting the melody.