11. Sabu - Palo Congo (1957)

1. El cumbanchero *

2. Billumba-Palo Congo

3. Choferito-Plena*

4. Asabache

5. Simba

6. Rapsodia del Maravilloso*

7. Aggo Elegua

8. Tribilin cantore

A-

The late Forties and early Fifties were not kind to Sabu. Gone were the years with the Korda brothers, and his turn in the Powell & Pressburger classic Black Narcissus. Film roles had dried up, and he was beginning to wonder what he'd even come to America for. But as luck would have it, a chance encounter with traditional Cuban musicians while filming the mostly forgotten pirate film Blue Caribbean in Havana in 1951 set off a spark in Sabu's mind. Turning his back on acting, he dedicated himself to becoming a conguero. A stint playing with Dizzy Gillespie soon followed, and in 1957 Sabu struck out on his own, forming the band Palo Congo and releasing their landmark eponymous album.

All of which is clearly bullshit.

I won't pretend to understand this album. I've had very limited exposure to Latin and Afro-Latin music (by which I mean - I've listened to Buena Vista Social Club a couple of times). And to be honest, at first I was ready to dismiss it. These songs are repetitive and droning. But after a while I realised that was kind of the point. What I'd considered repetitious was actually hypnotic. I've listened to this album half a dozen times now and I'm still not tired of it. True, the drums tend to settle into a groove and just sort of sit there, but this adds a driving quality to the songs and provides a lush bed for the chanted and/or call and response vocals (I can't discuss the lyrics - I speak about ten words of Spanish). If you're like me, you love a rhythm - and this album is nothing but rhythm,

That said, while most of the tracks feature singing and guitar, some are just guys yelling over drums. I find they expand the palette of the album, but some might feel otherwise.

One thing I particularly like about this album is the guitars. There are two - a tres, which is an odd sort of Cuban rhythm guitar, and a more conventional electric guitar. Both mostly play ostinados, but the electric guitar frequently breaks out of this pattern to engage in melodic and rhythmic explorations that I found captivating. There hasn't been much good guitar on this list so far, and to hear a slightly distorted electric riffing and noodling was a real pleasure. 

So. This album isn't always on, but when it is it's really on. This was a pleasant surprise, and I can only hope there are more such surprises in my future.