Ska Cubano are retro London ska singer Natty Bo and Cuban crooner Beny Billy. The "Pan-Caribbean" music on ¡Ay, caramba! blends Jamaican ska, Cuban swing, Colombian big band, and other Caribbean musical styles. The result is brassy, rhythmic, vibrant and animated.
The rumbling "Soy Campesino (I'm a Country Man)" is an atmospheric ska cumbia (Colombian big band) version of the 1950s dancehall classic. The ska calypso "¡Ay Caramba!" is a little more fun and upbeat.
The Afro-Cuban tune "Tabú (Taboo)" is more of a vocal piece, layering Beny's deep voice with an audience turned chorus, big brass, and a lot of percussion. The liner notes describe "Oy Compay Juan (Listen My Buddy Juan)" as "the world's first heavy metal ska-son", and though it isn't quite that hard it does feature a prominent bass line and wailing baritone sax.
The bawdy "Big Bamboo (Gran Bambu)" is an old dancehall calypso here given Natty and Beny's swinging ska treatment. The clap happy, call-and-response "Tungarara" is a children's rainforest song that features the sonorous whistle of René Dominguez' flute.
The disc also includes ska'd up versions of the old Tin Pan Alley song "Instanbul (Not Constantiople)" - probably best known to my generation from the They Might Be Giants cover - and the saucy "Jezebel".
You can hear samples from each track here, and also listen to the band perform at NPR.
Ska Cubano MySpace
Buy the CD
The rumbling "Soy Campesino (I'm a Country Man)" is an atmospheric ska cumbia (Colombian big band) version of the 1950s dancehall classic. The ska calypso "¡Ay Caramba!" is a little more fun and upbeat.
The Afro-Cuban tune "Tabú (Taboo)" is more of a vocal piece, layering Beny's deep voice with an audience turned chorus, big brass, and a lot of percussion. The liner notes describe "Oy Compay Juan (Listen My Buddy Juan)" as "the world's first heavy metal ska-son", and though it isn't quite that hard it does feature a prominent bass line and wailing baritone sax.
The bawdy "Big Bamboo (Gran Bambu)" is an old dancehall calypso here given Natty and Beny's swinging ska treatment. The clap happy, call-and-response "Tungarara" is a children's rainforest song that features the sonorous whistle of René Dominguez' flute.
The disc also includes ska'd up versions of the old Tin Pan Alley song "Instanbul (Not Constantiople)" - probably best known to my generation from the They Might Be Giants cover - and the saucy "Jezebel".
You can hear samples from each track here, and also listen to the band perform at NPR.
Ska Cubano MySpace
Buy the CD
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