‘Cha Cha Cha‘ (World Circuit, 2014)
World Circuit Records is one of the labels that facilitated the renewed interest in Cuban music in the 1990s with their release of the Buena Vista Social Club album and follow-ups. Now they have unearthed a gem from Cuban music history. The British label has licensed recordings by a key figure in Cuban music during the 1950s, vocalist Abelardo Barroso and Orquesta Sensación.
Even though he passed away more than 40 years ago, in 1972, Abelardo Barroso’s timeless classics still resonate with many Cubans and throughout West Africa where Barroso’s songs are still heard and admired in cafes and on the radio throughout Guinea, Mali, Senegal and Ivory Coast. Now the rest of the world will be exposed to Barroso’s alluring songs.
The recordings featured on Cha Cha Cha were made in Havana during the 1950s and were mastered by Bernie Grundman and Tom Leader with Jerry Boys.
Orquesta Sensación was a traditional charanga ensemble that played the highly popular cha cha cha, featuring percussion, bass, flute and violins. The mix on Cha Cha Cha highlights the excellent vocals, superb percussion and great flute solos. The violins and other instruments have a lower volume and can be heard in the background.
Abelardo Barroso had his ups and downs throughout his career. He was born in Havana in 1905. In the 1920s he recorded with Sexteto Habanero and all the leading Cuban son music acts. During the 1930s, he was known as the ‘El Caruso de Cuba’ (the Cuban Caruso). He performed with the most popular danzon groups of the time and became one of Cuba’s first radio stars.
By the early 1950s, his fame had faded and he made a living playing the guitar and singing for tips outside Havana’s La Campana nightclub. Rolando Valdés, the director of Orquesta Sensación, one of the most successful charanga bands of the cha cha cha era of the mid-1950s recognized Abelardo Barroso in 1955 and recruited him for his orchestra.
Valdés had the right songs in mind for Barroso to sing with the band, “La Hija De Juan Simón” and “En Guantánamo.” Both had been big hits years before and the new versions with Barroso’s vocals became an immediate hit.
“I remember walking down the main street in Centro Habana and hearing Sensación coming out of every juke box in every bar I passed,” Valdés recalls. “Amazing. I walked back the way I had come to experience it again.”
Orquesta Sensación and Abelardo Barosso experienced a series of hits in Cuba. “Songwriters would offer me songs,” Valdés noted, “and my mother, who was a fortune teller, could tell from looking at a list which ones were going to be hits.”
Cha cha cha was the sensation during those years and Barroso and Orquesta Sensación were the best. “Barroso was very famous, and he was very good – every time he started with a band he lifted it,” Valdés indicates. “That’s the truth. Barroso was candela [hot]! We had so much work and it was with Sensación that he settled for the longest period of time and where he earned the most money.”
As musical tastes in Cuba changed again, Barroso’s visibility declined. He recorded his last song with Orquesta Sensación in 1965. Abelardo Barroso’s final performance came on New Year’s Day, 1968. Shortly after that he had surgery on his vocal chords that left him incapable to sing. During his retirement, Barroso learned that his legacy continued. When Orquesta Aragón returned from a West African tour, they reported that Cuban music was immensely popular there, with Barroso the most admired singer of all. T
Barroso passed away on September 27th, 1972. “Barroso had an amazing voice,” Valdés recollects. “A unique voice. And he was always keen to dance. If people saw him dance a rumba they would still be talking about it days later. Amazing! He had all the gestures and he was born a great artist.”
Abelardo Barroso with Orquesta Sensación’s Cha Cha Cha compilation presents one of the most influential Cuban musical acts from the 20th century. It’s an essential piece to decipher the history of Cuban music.
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.
