Issac Delgado - Live in Los Angeles
September 10, 2001 

(Kevin's review was written in his hotel room immediately after the concert, several hours before the tragic events of September 11, 2001)

GRACIAS A LA VIDA
by Kevin Moore

Gracias a la vida...and Albert Torres, and Elena Peña, and Bill Martínez.

Peña, Issac's U.S. manager, refused to take "No" for an answer when The Conga Room was unwilling to risk a Monday night Timba show. She called Torres, and the fearless LA concert promoter took a big chance in booking Issac Delgado & Friends on a Monday night at the massive Sportsman's Lodge on such short notice. The risk paid off as LA fans came out in large numbers to hear one of the best bands in world play for almost three straight hours with a powerful dose of pre-Grammy adrenaline coursing through the veins of its 14 members. 

The visa problems which have resulted in the cancellation of the last six West Coast Timba tours were again an issue as late as 48 hours before the show, but attorney/magician Martínez managed to get things straightened out in time and all band members were present, as well as a number of other Grammy-nominated Cuban artists.

The band was very tight, thanks in part to having had only two personnel changes since its last West Coast tour in December of 2000.  Saxophonist and arranger, Juan Ceruto, has stopped touring in order to focus on his arranging/producing career and is replaced by Carlos Averhoff, Jr., the son of Carlos Averhoff of Irakere and NG La Banda fame. The other new member, albeit a temporary one, is Haila Momprié, of Azúcar Negra, and previously of Bamboleo. In addition to singing coro, she was featured as lead vocalist on two numbers from her upcoming CD, a tribute to Celia Cruz produced by Delgado and Ceruto.

At the core of the searing hot rhythm section are musical director/drummer, Oscar Valdés, Jr., pianist Rolando Luna and bassist Alfredo Echeverría, three musicians who have a Latin Jazz trio of their own which plays regularly in Havana at "La Zorra y El Cuervo" and the Jazz Café. On timbales is the fiery Andrés Cuayo, who with a one leave of absence has played with Delgado since about 1996, and on congas is Denis Savón, considered one of the top young congueros in Havana.

The band played straight through for almost 3 electrifying hours, opening with one of the most devastating Timba tracks of all time, Alain Pérez' "La Sandunguita". If you've only heard the studio version, you're in for quite a treat. Luna has enhanced the montunos and the live arrangement features one of the greatest coros ever not-recorded: "Ni pica, ni duele, pero tiene su cosita. Se pega, se pega, y no se te quita, la Sandunguita." At the end, the coro is sung acapella in wonderful three-part harmony, slower and slower each time, and the effect is very powerful. Here's the blow by blow on the rest of the evening's festivities:

"Catalina" - This is Melón González' tasteful arrangement of the old Cuban standard, originally recorded on the legendary "Rarities" album. It featured an extended virtuosic solo from Rolando Luna which brought the house down, ramping everyone's energy level up yet another notch.

"El Solar de la California" - The first of six songs from the Grammy-nominated "La Fórmula" CD, this stunningly beautiful piece of music was co-written by Issac and Juan Formell and features a brilliantly integrated reference to the American rock anthem "Hotel California", cleverly mixing languages in the already classic coro: "Welcome to the Solar de la California, él de la Calle Crespo between San Lázaro y Colón". The second coro, "En el Solar de la California, baila Lola y bailo yo", is full of no-holds-barred, raw Timba energy and Luna has created an amazing new montuno for this section which adds yet another unforgettable hook to the arrangement. 

"Bemba Colora' " - Issac turned the mike over to Haila to sing this track from her new CD, with Luna playing some amazing piano montunos which most certainly were not on Celia's version! The new CD is available in Cuba but has yet to be released here.

"Mucho Corazón" - This was a short, off-the-cuff improvisation on the old Beny Moré standard, performed by just Issac and Haila as a vocal duet with guitar accompaniment.

"Pregón del Chocolate" - "La Fórmula" includes a short but exhilarating Joaquín Betancourt arrangement of this older Delgado composition, originally written for La Charanga Habanera's first album, "Love Fever" in 1992. It's now become a regular part of Issac's live shows, where it gets a much more extended treatment. Dominican conguero Chichi Peralta sat in.

"Deja que Roberto te Toque" - This has been a staple of Issac's live performances since the mid-90's. It was originally recorded on "Otra Idea".

At this point Issac invited Lázaro Roz to the stage to sing a medley of folkloric songs accompanied by only percussion. Denis Savón was able to simulate a very satisfying batá groove on just two congas and the elderly Roz, also nominated for a Grammy this year, gave a very moving and masterful performance.

"Amor Sin Ética" - another great track from "La Fórmula".

"Malecón" - In Cuba, this is the title track of the CD released elsewhere as "La Fórmula". The song and Joaquín Betancourt arrangement are equally brilliant in their own way. Actually, all of the "best song" nominees could easily have come from this CD! "Malecón" is a particularly satisfying example of Issac's unparalleled ability to blend beauty and raw fire and this was one of the emotional highlights of the set. The introduction was especially moving, with Delgado's rubato vocal accompanied only by Rolando Luna's stunningly beautiful piano voicings.

"Popurrí Para el Sonero" was still another nod to traditional Cuban music, although the band, and especially Luna, infused it with plenty of modern Timba energy and musical content. This medley of traditional pieces was originally recorded on "El Año Que Viene".

The set concluded with a short version of Issac's runaway hit of 1999, "La Vida es un Carnaval", but even after almost two and a half hours, the crowd erupted into a rock concert style ovation and demanded an encore, with a spirited Torres leading the cheers from the microphone. The encore, of course, was the title track of "La Fórmula", which is also nominated as best song. Issac's song, and Joel Domínguez' brilliant arrangement, which seamlessly combines a brilliant original song with half a dozen musical interludes from various artists who influenced Delgado's career. By the time it reached the homage to Cándido Fabré, "y lo que no sabes tú no lo sabe nadie", Delgado himself was visibly moved and everyone in the room was on a powerful musical high that would have lasted well into the following day's Grammy ceremony had it not been abruptly extinguished by the horrible and tragic events that occurred on the East Coast only a few short hours later.

©2001 Kevin Moore

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