World Circuit Records will celebrate 25th anniversary of the landmark Buena Vista Social Club with a collection of special 25th Anniversary Editions, scheduled for release on September 17, 2021. The special editions will be available in various formats, a 2LP + 2CD Deluxe Book Pack; 2CD Casebook; 2LP Gatefold Vinyl; and Digital formats.
These definitive editions are timed to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the album’s recording and contain the original album as remastered by Grammy-winning engineer Bernie Grundman as well as previously unheard tracks from the original 1996 session tapes. Other features across the formats include new liner notes, previously unseen photography and lyrics, with extended biographies, art prints and a written history of the legendary original Havana club available exclusively within the Deluxe Book Pack format.
This new edition includes tracks that were recorded during that famous week in 1996 but never released; some intended as repertoire suggestions, some off-the-cuff improvisations and some fully formed jewels that are the equal of anything on the original album. There are also alternate takes of some of the now famous and most well-loved songs from the album.
Producer and guitarist Ry Cooder says, “The Buena Vista boys fly high and never lose a feather. If you miss the boat this time, you’ll have the blues forever.”
Juan de Marcos González adds, “Buena Vista Social Club has probably been the most important album of Cuban music in the late 20th century, and definitely the one that reopened the doors of international recognition for ‘Son Cubano.’ 25 years later I can still feel the positive vibes of the studio and, of course, the pleasure of having contributed to some extent to the album that rescued the music of my country and many of its great interpreters from the shadows.”
Nick Gold notes, “Buena Vista Social Club is a once in a lifetime recording of Cuban music at its transcendental best. The magic created in that Havana studio sounds as vital and beautiful today as it did 25 years ago.”
And Eliades Ochoa says, “Buena Vista Social Club brought together great musicians from the golden age of Cuban music and successfully took our traditional music to the rest of the world. It allowed me to be recognized internationally by the sones, guarachas and boleros I had been doing since I was young. It also made me reconnect with musicians with great experiences whom I admired. Buena Vista brought us together through music, and we were a well-run family. On this 25th anniversary, we will remember with deserved pride those great legends who will always be present among us. We will celebrate with joy the legacy of the Buena Vista Social Club and the traditional Cuban music.”
Author: World Music Central News Room
World music news from the editors at World Music Central