Best of Ness - 1996
by Nestor Louis
As I said before, this has been a dismal year "in my
opinion" for the "salseros de acero".
Recordings for 1996 have been for the most part safe. By that
I mean, most of them had memorable songs riding the
"formula" already established by many of today's
salsa pop artists.
In spite of that there have been a few releases that, for
one reason or another, have managed to stay in my CD players
for more that 2 months (yeah really!). This only happens when
my desire of listening to something good, without being
overly critical, meets my unconscious desire to listen to
something because I know it is good. For example: Having
vanilla ice cream and chocolate fudge as dessert, without
questioning its taste. There I've said enough! Here are my
Best of 96!
10) RMM
All Stars, "Tropical Tribute to The Beatles"
(RMM) **** All of us at LMOL agreed that this was
one great recording. Matter of fact, we all chipped in to the
review of the production.
9) Rudy
Victorino, "Sangre Taina" (J&N) ****
8) Erick, "Aquel
Cantor" (Velvet) **** I've known about this
Venezuelan guy since 1991 when my youngest brother, who
happens to only like rap music (it's that generation gap
thing); came back from Panama with a tape loaded with the
stuff that was going on over there. In it there was this
Venezuelan salsa romantica song called "Fantasia
Herida". I don't know about you, but in my opinion salsa
romantica from Venezuela, Colombia & New York is a bit
different than that of Puerto Rico. So because of that, I had
my cousin mail me the LP from Panama. (Now the CD is
available in NY for $5.99 in Record Explosion!). Anyway,
"Aquel Cantor" is supposedly Erick's third
recording. It is mixed in terms of tropical rhythms and
themes. You have your salsa romantica mixed in with a son
montuno called "Arriba" and the title track, a
traditional salsa. Anyway, the reason why he made it to
"The Best of Ness for 96" is because of a song
titled "Quiero Olvidarte Y No Puedo". This song was
the anthem for all dancers in every nightclub. From Les
Poulets to Side Street, Erick's "Quiero Olvidarte Y No
Puedo" earned him (to my knowledge) his first gigs in
the NY tri-state area. Aside from having a great single, the
supporting cast of songs and musicians make this CD a
must-have in your collection.
7) Michael Stuart,
"Cuentos De La Vecindad" (RMM) **** Normally,
Little Judy would expect me to dislike this type of
recording. But to her surprise (and mine) I love this
recording! To begin with it is different. It's Los Fabulosos
Cadillacs or Mana meets Vicente Amigo meets Michael Jackson
meets Maxi Priest meets Marc Anthony meets Domingo Quiņones
meets Ruben Blades meets El Gran Combo (pre-1985, that is).
Amazing but true! This young man has a phenomenal CD--period!
500 words (or less) cannot describe this recording. His voice
is strong and his interpretations are seductive. It's no
wonder why Christine was woozy in his presence. Just get the
CD. And watch out for 1997!!!
6) Ruben Blades, "La
Rosa De Los Vientos" (Sony) **** I do not know
if anyone out there needs to be sold on this or any of
Ruben's recordings. It's a given that there is
"salsa", and then there is Ruben Blades. He has
such a distinct musical identity that to label him would be
totally unjust. Ruben is constantly evolving and
incorporating new sounds and new styles in his music. This
time around he features the lyrics, the music, and the
musicianship of my country, Panama. He does this without ever
compromising his musical beginnings in the afrocuban genre.
In other words, Ruben Blades' "La Rosa De Los
Vientos" is a very mixed production that features:
Tipico (folkloric music from Panama), Afrocuban Samba (Son
Montuno, laced with Brazilian Samba), two Boleros, and of
course straight-ahead-salsa. All the songs possess what, in
my book, is the Ruben Blades' lyrical trademark. Even though
none of the songs were written by Ruben, they are abstract,
they are romantic, they are sociological, They are Ruben
Blades! 
5) Rey Ruiz,
"Destino" (Sony) **** Amazing what
happens in a year! Honestly, I though that Rey Ruiz's
previous recording titled "Cuerpo Y Alma" (or
something like that) was not all that. You know what I mean?
Although I did not hear all the songs, the songs that I did
hear; were not motivating me to go to the record store and
buy the CD. Matter of fact, to this day I don't have it! So
there, I am just like you guys. I am not going to throw away
$12.99. Do you trust me now? However in this production Rey
makes a full 180 degree turn. "Destino" is a well
balanced recording that features aggressive salsa, both
romantica and traditional. The arrangements written by Papo
Lucca, Ernesto Sanchez, Guillermo Calderon, Roberto Perez,
Angelo Padro and the newest arranging sensation "Mr.
Versatility & Piano Riff" Jose M. Lugo are
phenomenal! Above it all Rey's soneos are quite impressive,
not because of what he says but how he says them. Here he
sounds like a true sonero! I mean, I've seen the guy on stage
and he is as good as he should be, which is never the same on
CD. On CD in the past, he's been a bit tame. However here,
"Destino" presents a more loose Rey Ruiz. And that
looseness is reflected throughout this CD.
4) Jose Alberto "El
Canario", "On Time" (RMM) **** What
can I say about the man that in my opinion, is one of the
artista responsible for keeping our music in its purest form?
- YES I am a purist DAMMIT!!! So what if the guy occasionally
throws in a little guitar and synthesizer action in his
overall sound? His sound by the way, is nothing less of pure
"afinque". For all the dancers out there,
throughout this recording you can easily find your
"one" if you dance on one, or "two" if
you dance on two. With Canario, although the lyrics are good;
they are not important! He makes the most romantic song
become the most rambunctious mambo ever heard! "A La
Hora Que Me Llamen Voy" & "Con Sandra En La
Cama" (I love that title!!!) are two songs in this CD
that prove what I'm saying every night and in every club.
3) Rafael De Jesus, "A Mi Puerto
Rico" (Copa) ****1/2
2) Alex
D' Castro, "El Tenor De La Salsa" (Rodven)
****1/2
1) Victor Manuelle,
"Victor Manuelle" (Sony) ***** Yes it's
true!!! Little Judy has psychic powers!!! Our own
Webjefecita, predicted that this would be "Victor's
Year". And sure enough it was! I interviewed Sergio
George in November 1995 and he expected his production of
Victor Manuelle to be a huge success. And "para muestra
un boton": There is no club in town that does not have a
full house whenever he performs. And why? Well, Victor
Manuelle has the absolute best recording of 1996. His
recording, according to "the hit maker" Sergio
George; was done on the fly with very little parts of the
arrangements (if any?) written on paper. This is further
perpetuated by the energy given off by the moņas that are
breaking out of everywhere with Victor Manuelle soneando on
top of the coros, that are coreando on top of the band
moņando. Does this make sense? It's an amazing process! Most
of the songs start as salsa romantica and later
metamorphosize into some sort of NYC street salsa of the 70s
heavily mixed with some Cuban songo appeal, a la NG
La Banda. To mention who played and who arranged here is so
insignificant because, everybody did such a phenomenal job
that it doesn't matter! All that matters is that this
production is, without a shadow of a doubt Ness' Best Of
1996!!!
Happy New Year!
Nestor A. Louis
RATING SYSTEM:
***** EXCELLENT (Must Have!)
**** GREAT (Very Impressive!)
*** GOOD (Safe Investment)
** AVERAGE (Not a Priority)
* POOR (Don't Waste Your Money)
ŠNestor A. Louis ALL REVIEWS ARE SOLELY THE OPINIONS OF THE AUTHOR.